Gershwin at the Keyboard : 18 Song Hits Arranged by The Composer for Piano Review

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(More customer reviews)As George Gershwin writes in the introduction, "Sheet music, as ordinarily printed for mass sales, is arranged with an eye to simplicity."In this collection of 18 Gershwin songs, which includes Fascinating Rhythm, Somebody Loves Me, Strike Up the Band, and I Got Rhythm, he presents his music in a way that reflects his "desire for complication and variety that every composer feels when he manipulates the same material over and over again."

Though not for the beginner, these pieces will reward the more advanced pianists who love the Gershwin style.He even supplies a hint about how to play them - keep your foot off the sustaining pedal.American popular music (in the early twentieth century, at least) "asks for staccato effects, for almost a stenciled style."

If you've been at the piano for a few years and love his music, you'll enjoy this collection.If you prefer simpler arrangements with lyrics, try "50 Gershwin Classics," also available through Amazon.

P.S. A note to sheet music publishers: Why not include a few sample pages so web users can judge for themselves whether the arrangements are appealing?

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Product Description:
Eighteen song hits arranged by the composer. Includes: The Man I Love * 'S Wonderful * Who Cares? plus 15 more.

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Harold Arlen Rediscovered (P/V/G Composer Collection) Review

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(More customer reviews)The trouble with this "rediscovered" series of songbooks by composers from the Golden Age of The Great American Songbook -- people like Gershwin, Porter, Rodgers & Hart, Kern, Berlin and, here, Harold Arlen -- is that for every gem they're known for, there were dozens of mediocre songs that never made it. Most of these men were writing for short-lived Broadway shows, and even today only a handful of songs from a show are memorable. (In the case of Andrew Lloyd Webber, we're lucky to get one per show.) There are a few shows, like WEST SIDE STORY and GYPSY, where every single song is brilliant.

In the case of this "rediscovered" Harold Arlen, there's an awful lot of so-so songs to wade through to stumble upon a previously unknown gem. Of course, archaeology is sometimes its own reward and the gems along the way are certainly well worth the digging.

From an historical point of view, ALL these "rediscovered" collections are worth it. These men shaped American music for several decades. (Sad, isn't it, that out of the entire history of mankind the great popular music is from a period of only about four decades!)

So for the serious student of The Great American Songbook, this collection is recommended. For the casual musician, most of the good stuff is in The Harold Arlen Songbook.

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Product Description:
39 songs commemorating the career of songwriter Harold Arlen. Includes: As Long As I Live ¥ Get Happy ¥ I Love a Parade ¥ ItÕs Only a Paper Moon ¥ The Man That Got Away ¥ Stormy Weather (Keeps RaininÕ All the Time) ¥ and more. Includes photos and an extensive introduction by Edward Jablonski.

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