Rhapsody in Blue / An American in Paris

This fast and furious orchestral work with piano, which begins with what must surely be the most famous clarinet glissando of modern times, was composed with the intention of presenting as many facets as possible of music from the New World in the short space of around 15 minutes. In his ‘Rhapsody In Blue’ Gershwin wanted to paint a musical kaleidoscope of America – our enormous melting pot, our typical national traits, our blues, our seething city life. With this in mind, Leonard Bernstein made a number of recordings of the work and among the many excellent recordings that he made as a conductor or as a soloist, this present version with the Columbia Orchestra, from 1959, is especially of note.