Jeffrey Biegel’s ‘Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue’ Unites Orchestras Across All 50 States

Brooklyn College Adjunct Professor of Piano Jeffrey Biegel's newly commissioned orchestral work, Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue, has become the largest nationwide collaboration ever assembled for a new musical composition.

Serving as the pianist and driving force behind the project, Biegel commissioned composer Peter Boyer to write Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue in 2023 as a companion work to George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, honoring the original's centennial and celebrating American music. He has performed the piano solo part in performances and recordings across the country, as well as with the London Symphony Orchestra, with Boyer serving as conductor, also in 2023.

To date, 68 orchestras in all 50 states have signed on to perform the work that marked the centennial of the George Gershwin classic. As of December 31, 2025, Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue has already been performed 53 times by 40 orchestras in 37 states, with additional performances scheduled throughout the 2025-26 and 2026-27 seasons.

Marc George Gershwin, nephew of George Gershwin, said of the project: "Jeffrey Biegel has been one of Rhapsody {in Blue's} fondest advocates, having recorded two versions based on historical manuscripts. His love of my uncle's music, of America, and of people steered him to have a vision for a diverse America of the 21st-century through music to further reflect our unity."