Porgy and Bess Fantasy for Two Pianos: Sheet

by George Gershwin (Composer), DuBose Heyward (Composer), Dorothy Heyward (Composer)

The unbeatable Gershwin melodies and rhythms provide great rewards for duo pianists! This arrangement by Percy Grainger sends one great tune flying to another and another, creating a fantasy-like medley. This is a full-bodied work for accomplished pianists, and a wonderful treat for discriminating performers and audiences. A Federation Festivals 2016-2020 selection. A Federation Festivals 2020-2024 selection.

Genres: Plays, Music, Musicals, Theatre

48 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1936

About the author

George Gershwin (26 September, 1898 - 11 July, 1937) was an American composer. He wrote most of his vocal and theatrical works in collaboration with his elder brother, lyricist Ira Gershwin. George Gershwin composed songs both for Broadway and for the classical concert hall. He also wrote popular songs with success. He died young from a brain tumour at age 38.

Many of his compositions have been used on television and in numerous films, and many became jazz standards. The jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald recorded many of the Gershwins' songs on her 1959 Gershwin Songbook (arranged by Nelson Riddle).

Countless singers and musicians have recorded Gershwin songs, including Louis Armstrong, Al Jolson, Bobby Darin, Art Tatum, Bing Crosby, Janis Joplin, John Coltrane, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Sam Cooke, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Madonna, Judy Garland, Julie Andrews, Barbra Streisand, Marni Nixon, Natalie Cole, Nina Simone, Maureen McGovern, John Fahey, and Sting.

Reviews

[Cristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this legendary Gershwin opera set among the black residents of a fishing village in 1912 South Carolina, Bess - a woman with a disreputable history - tries to break free from her brutish lover Crown after he becomes wanted for murder. The only person willing to overlook her past and offer her shelter is the crippled Porgy. Their relationship is threatened by the disapproval of the townspeople, the presence of her old drug supplier Sportin' Life - and the threatened return of Crown.

[Kaia Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I watched the 2020 version along with reading the script. A really good musical with really intense themes and multifaceted characters. Oh Porgy and Bess. A beautiful and tragic depiction of black love. What really happens at the end, who knows. But I like to think Porgy found his girl.

[Susan Molloy · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Porgy and Bess" is an English-language opera by George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play "Porgy," itself an adaptation of DuBose Heyward's 1925 novel, "Porgy." The novel, set in the 1920s, tells the story of Porgy, a crippled street beggar who lives in the tenements of Charleston, South Carolina, in the 1920s. The story was created into a play, and in 1959, a movie.

I like the way the story flows, and the music for its smoothness and composition. The lyrics are sentimental.

💥 🎵 Recommended.
🟣

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wonderful story, but a kind of muddled. Some of the best lyrics you will ever read in your life.