About George & Ira Gershwin
While George and Ira Gershwin had stellar careers as individuals, they will forever be remembered as the songwriting team whose voice was synonymous with the sounds and style of the Jazz Age. From the time of their first Broadway hit, 1924's Lady, Be Good!, which starred Fred and Adele Astaire, till George's untimely death from a brain tumor in 1937, the brothers wrote almost exclusively with each other.
The extraordinary collaboration between the brothers Gerswhin produced such classic musical comedies as Oh, Kay! (1926), Strike Up the Band (1927/30), Girl Crazy (1930), and Pardon My English (1933), all of which, along with Lady, Be Good!, are featured in new cast recordings for the Nonesuch Records Gershwin Series. The culmination of the series is Standard & Gems, a collection of Gershwin classics and lesser-known songs performed by Dawn Upshaw, Audra McDonald, Judy Blazer, and others.
Nonesuch has also released two albums of piano music by George Gershwin featuring his original 1920s piano rolls digitally transferred to a contemporary concert grand piano.
Latest Release
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Standards & Gems
August 28, 1998Standards & Gems is the culmination of Nonesuch Records' Gershwin Series. The collection features a bounty of well-known George and Ira Gershwin classics, as well as a number of recently discovered, lesser-known songs, all performed by some of today's most talented artists, including Dawn Upshaw, Audra McDonald, Judy Blazer, John Pizzarelli, Rebecca Luker, David Garrison, and Adam Arkin.
