“The Interwar American Accent of George Gershwin, Kurt Weill, & William Grant Still”

What makes American music sound American? In the interwar period, highbrow composers like Aaron Copland and Virgil Thomson, referred to the influence of jazz and the American popular song as the ‘American Accent.’ This program explores this further by looking at the inspiration of the American musical, the development of the Blues, and the appeal of broadened commercial success from the formula of the American popular song.

George Gershwin | An American in Paris
Maurice Ravel | The Foxtrot of the Teacup and the Teapot from
L’enfant et les sortilèges
Kurt Weill | “Mack the Knife” from Die Dreigroschenoper
Kurt Weill | “Lonely House” from Street Scene
William Grant Still | Africa