Rhapsody in Blue (and Some Recipes)

Tomorrow is Super Bowl.  I should be posting recipes we use but I will, instead, post links to some past posts.

Guacamole and tomato salsa. 

And Emily Bites with her Thai Chicken Skewers with Peanut Sauce. 

But now to the topic of today's post.

Today would have been Abraham Lincoln's birthday.  I plan to blog more about that tomorrow.

I started out angry today morning at some developments in the news.  I could explode.  Or splatter my thoughts over this blog draft area which I might regret later.

Or, I could turn to music.

I subscribe to a free Substack written by newsperson Dan Rather, and to my joy this morning, his post was a post about a wonderful musical composition called Rhapsody in Blue..

We have a bit of history, Rhapsody in Blue and me.

I fell in love with Rhapsody in Blue when United Airlines used it as music in their commercials back in the 1980's; so much so that I bought a cassette tape so I could listen to it whenever I wanted.  This was before streaming, or You Tube, after all.

This is a blend of jazz and classical music with a beginning clarinet glissando that is instantly recognizable by millions worldwide.  It was composed by George Gershwin, a young musical genius

It premiered on February 12, 1924.  Sadly, George Gershwin would only live to the age of 38, passing away in 1937 from brain cancer.

When I became pregnant in the late 80's, my hormones were all over the place, and I couldn't listen to the commercials without sobbing uncontrollably.

Later, in choosing music I would have while in labor, Rhapsody in Blue was one I chose.

Now, today, on the anniversary of the premiere of Rhapsody in Blue, I'm posting the performance posted on his Substack by Dan Rather. On piano is a Georgian pianist, Khatia Beniatishvili, playing with the Orchestre National de Lyon, conducted by Leonard Slatkin.

If you listen to the end (and I hope you will, although it is nearly 18 minutes) you'll see how Khatia Beniatishvili congratulates the conductor and orchestra before taking her well deserved bows.

Bravo!

Now, as we return to the ground after soaring with music:  May our skies be friendly again one day.