Porgy and Bess may be the most endearing of all of George Gershwin's ambitiousefforts to wed the conventions of popular song with the structures and idioms of
serious music.
Using images from Broadway musicals, classic films, and personal collections, “A Fine Romance: Jewish Songwriters, American Songs, 1910-1965” tells the story of Jewish artists who created songs of wit, sophistication, and optimism through America’s ups and downs during the 20th century.
The sky was the limit for talented young people with big imaginations—young people such as Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein, and George Gershwin. Their witty and romantic songs—“Body and Soul,” “Over the Rainbow,” “Thou Swell,” “That Old Black Magic,” “It Had to Be You“—became beloved classics that remain enduring elements of American popular culture.
This tribute to the many Jewish composers of the American songbook will be on display at the Main Library from January 13–February 23.
Related Programs
Sunday, January 29, 2:00 p.m.
The Cincinnati Klezmer Project will perform Eastern European Klezmer, Jewish and Yiddish music.
Fridays, February 3 & 10, 12:15 p.m.
Join pianist Della Enns for a lunchtime concert of music by the composers featured in the exhibit.
The music for the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz are among the most instantly
recognizable American popular music standards of all time. Music and lyrics were by
Harold Arlen (seated next to Judy Garland and E.Y. “Yip” Harburg (4th from left),
who won an Academy Award for Best Song for “Over the Rainbow.”
Sunday, February 12, 2:00 p.m.
Rabbi Kenneth Kanter of Hebrew Union College will discuss Jews of Tin Pan Alley.
Saturday, February 18, 2:00 p.m.
Samba Jazz Syndicate will perform a combination of jazz standards and Brazilian music.
All programs will take place in the Main Library's Reading Garden Lounge.
Thanks to...
“A Fine Romance: Jewish Songwriters, American Songs, 1910-1965” was developed by Nextbook, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting Jewish literature, culture, and ideas, and the American Library Association Public Programs Office. The national tour of the exhibit has been made possible by grants from the Charles H. Revson Foundation, the Righteous Persons Foundation, the David Berg Foundation, and an anonymous donor, with additional support from Tablet Magazine: A New Read on Jewish Life.
