Jazz Notes: Gershwin Piano Concerto at Reed College, Kaul Auditorium

Whether first or 10th-generation Americans, virtually all of us come from someplace else, carrying the heartbeat and soul of our ancestry. We express this in our traditions, cuisine, culture, and music—all “jazzified” in a unique fusion of old and new.

The same is true for America’s greatest composers, whose music expresses their connections to their pasts in entirely original ways. The rhythm and harmony of Samuel Barber’s string quartet (encompassing the powerfully moving “Adagio for Strings”) and Lembit Beecher’s heartfelt Stories From My Grandmother contain threads anchored in the past but driven by a new energy that propels their musical past into the present and future.

George Gershwin brings all of this together in his 1925 Piano Concerto, fusing Jewish and Eastern-European folk (Klezmer) traditions with African and Caribbean influences in a full-fledged celebration of America’s truly new music: jazz! Experience this in a new chamber version arranged and performed by the astounding Kit Armstrong!

We have a special tradition of picnics before concerts at Reed College’s Kaul Auditorium. Reed’s catering service, Bon Appétit, offers food and drink service beginning at 6 PM. Alternately, you can bring your own picnic, but alcoholic beverages must be purchased on site.

6:30 PM | Kaul Auditorium Prelude Performance with CMNW’s Young Artist Institute students

Prelude performance sponsored by Ronnie-Gail Emden & Andrew Wilson.

Concert sponsored by Dan Boyce & Lilla Cabot and Jonathan Ater & Christiana Carr