Rhapsody In Blue By George Gershwin (1924) Scored by Ferde Grofé Edited by Jari Villanueva

Full Score
Reed 1-Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone (Clarinet)

Reed 2-Alto Saxophone, Clarinet, Baritone Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone (Clarinet)

Reed 3-Tenor Saxophone, Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone (Clarinet)
2 Trumpets in B-flat

2 Horns in F
2 Trombones
Tuba/String Bass
Banjo
Percussion (one player) Drum Set, Timpani, Bells, Triangle
Violin 1 (4 players)
Violin 2 (4 players)|

SCORE AND PARTS DOWNLOADED UPON PAYMENT

Rhapsody in Blue has always been a collaborative endeavor. It was the work of three musicians-George Gershwin, Paul Whiteman, and Ferde Grofé. Paul Whiteman, the self-proclaimed “King of Jazz”, commissioned the work sometime in the fall or early winter of 1923 for his “Experiment in Modern Music” concert, to take place the following February on Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. As the story goes, George Gershwin forgot about this commission until his older brother Ira spotted a brief news item about Whiteman’s concert in the New York Tribune, announcing that “George Gershwin is at work on a Jazz Concerto.” That was on January 4, 1924. Three days later, as gleaned from the date given at the top of his manuscript, Gershwin began writing Rhapsody in Blue. Five weeks later, Rhapsody in Blue had its triumphant premiere on February 12, 1924, at Aeolian Hall in New York City.

The work was composed by Gershwin, who produced a two-piano score. Because of his commitment to a show he was working on, he turned the chore of orchestrating the work to Whiteman’s chief arranger, Ferde Grofé. Grofé met with Gershwin on a daily basis in January and wrote the score out for members of the Whiteman band. He would later go on to orchestrate a theater orchestra version, a full symphonic orchestra arrangement, and one for concert band. The original manuscript eventually found its way to the Library of Congress in Washington DC, where I was able to make a copy for a performance at the Peabody Institute in 1978 as part of a concert program sponsored by the local chapter of Phi Mu Alpha.

I have always thought the original version of Rhapsody had charm. It more subtly evoked the sounds of the 1920s than the fuller orchestrated versions.

Here are a few of the edits I made on the Rhapsody In Blue.

1. Providing a set of parts that are playable with the standard version performed today,
2. Eliminated the Oboe double. Nine measures (72-80) that don’t add that much color difference. It is covered in the clarinet part
3. Eliminated the Eb Soprano (Sopranino) Saxophone. Scored it for Bb Soprano at mm. 230 and the Andantino section at m. 307. The scoring is not out of the Bb soprano’s range.
5. Cued Horn parts into Saxophone and/or Trombone parts
6. Eliminated the second piano part
7. Altered the banjo part in some places to give a more rhythmic part in place of the second piano. This is evident at M. 162 where the banjo part helps the rhythmic motion. Addition of chord symbols
8. No piano part is provided. The rehearsal marks line up with the Schirmer Rehearsal Score, The WB, and the New World Music Corp scores.