Rhapsody in Blue on The Charles

As I drove home Friday evening I scanned the wireless for engaging melodies.

As I tuned past people yelling, singing? People blathering on about something or other, ads, and other electronic effluence my wireless pulled in a local signal. One that I normally pass on by.

But this time my ears picked up on a familiar riff. It was a few bars of a piano melody that I recognized. But what was it? It was that song from Fantasia and The Great Gatsby. The song I love so much. It was Rhapsody in Blue!

When the song finished, the announcer said that it was one of the original recordings of the tune, perhaps with George Gershwin himself playing. It may have been the original performance, I’m not sure. I wasn’t paying attention to what she said I was still…

Far, far away…

This song always fires my imagination with images and thoughts of another time. As happens so often with me this song took me far, far away.

It makes me think of my Grandparents and their lives. What must it have been like?

The era after The Great War. An era when America was moving off of the farm. Autos and trucks were replacing horses. Flying was still a marvel. Life in America was changing.

An era when a generation of broken men drifted about a shattered Europe trying to figure out who they were, where had they been, where were they going. What did it all mean? Dreamers amongst the desolation. Hope and dissolution.

My journey

As I motored along each phrase brought new delights. Such a wealth of hooks and riffs. Each phrase is like a new vista that delights the ears. I drifted from fantasy to deep appreciation for the work of a fine craftsman, an artist, a composer, and the musicians. It is a Tour De Force.

Before I arrived home the performance landed on the 5th.

Here is some good information on the composition.

For The Daily Prompt. It’s funny I wrote this before I saw The Daily Prompt.

Listen well my friends!

© 2014 anagelin