Rhapsody in Blue Béla Fleck

• Ferde Grofé (1892 - 1972), George Gershwin (1898 - 1937), Béla Fleck (b. 1958): Rhapsody in Blue(grass)
• 1 Grofé, Gershwin, Fleck: Rhapsody in Blue(grass) 12:10
• George Gershwin, Béla Fleck: Unidentified Piece for Banjo:
• 2 Gershwin, Fleck: Unidentified Piece for Banjo 03:19
• Ferde Grofé, George Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue (feat. Eric Jacobsen & Virginia Symphony Orchestra):
• 3 Grofé, Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue (feat. Eric Jacobsen & Virginia Symphony Orchestra) 18:50
• Ferde Grofé, George Gershwin, Béla Fleck: Rhapsody in Blue(s):
• 4 Grofé, Gershwin, Fleck: Rhapsody in Blue(s) 05:08
• Will Donaldson (1891 - 1954), George Gershwin, Béla Fleck: Rialto Ripples:
• 5 Donaldson, Gershwin, Fleck: Rialto Ripples 04:08
• Total Runtime 43:35

Info for Rhapsody in Blue

Béla Fleck's interpretation of George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue.

Banjo great Béla Fleck's latest project expands and explores George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, paying homage to the legendary composer while redefining an American classic - just in time for the centennial. Available February 12, one hundred years from the day Gershwin premiered the work at Aeolian Hall in New York City, Fleck's Rhapsody in Blue album includes three variations: "Rhapsody in Blue(grass)," "Rhapsody in Blue(s)” and the classical orchestration, but with banjo instead of piano, played by the Virginia Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Eric Jacobson. The set also includes Gershwin's "Rialto Ripples" and "Unidentified Piece for Banjo," a previously unpublished piece discovered at the Library of Congress.

Here is the first recording of Gershwin's "Unidentified Piece for Banjo", which Fleck heard from his friend Dr. As shared with Ryan Banagale, author of Arranging Gershwin: "It's very similar to a ragtime piece of music through the Gershwin lens, with a very catchy melody and some surprising harmonic movements at the end of the phrases," says Fleck. “He didn't write down the harmony, but the implications seemed to clearly point to 'I Got Rhythm' chords, albeit a little weirder. To maintain the authenticity of the piece, I played it on an old five-string banjo.”

Born and raised in New York City, this project is a culmination of Fleck's lifelong love of Gershwin and his compositions. “A piano player can play the Rhapsody much faster than I can,” Fleck adds. “But the truth is that they have played it so many times that sometimes it is played hastily. I listened and thought, 'There's so much in there, but it's going by so quickly that I don't get it all. That showed me how to reinterpret those parts on the banjo. It could be a new experience for the listeners rather than hearing it on the piano for the twenty-fifth time. It could even be a revelation.

Over the past four decades, Béla Fleck has consistently gone where no banjo player has gone before - winning 16 Grammys in nine different categories, including country, pop, jazz, instrumental, classical and world music. As he neared the end of his Rhapsody rearrangements, Fleck began to wonder whether he could expand his Gershwin tribute even further, perhaps by replacing the entire orchestra with bluegrass instruments.

“My first thought was, ‘Rhapsody in Blue(grass)’ is the most terrible idea I could ever imagine,” he admits. “But as we started exploring it, I realized it actually sounded pretty good. With the bluegrass version, we had a chance to stretch, have some fun, and do some other creative moves." He's joined by the core band of his Grammy-winning My Bluegrass Heart Band: Michael Cleveland, Sierra Hull, Justin Moses, Mark Schatz and Bryan Sutton. Long-time Béla colleagues Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas and Victor Wooten can be heard on “Rhapsody in Blue(s)” – the blues version.

Fleck added a solo banjo version of Gershwin's “Rialto Ripples,” a ragtime novelty that initially flopped when it premiered in 1916. Fleck revisits the lesser-known work with grace and unparalleled precision.

"I wish George Gershwin would have liked it, thought, 'Hmmm, this isn't what I expected, but the musicians certainly brought something different to it.'"

Béla Fleck, banjo
My Bluegrass Heart:
Michael Cleveland, fiddle
Sierra Hull, mandolin
Justin Moses, guitar, Dobro, banjo
Bryan Sutton, guitar
Mark Schatz, bass
Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Eric Jacobsen, conductor

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This album contains no booklet.