Rhapsody in Blue takes us back to the time of the prohibition of alcohol consumption and the proliferation of nightclubs where the first great jazz figures flourished. It was in 1924, in New York, that Gershwin played in front of Paul Whiteman’s orchestra to show the world that this new musical genre went far beyond the stigma of disadvantaged and discriminated communities. Ravel knew this well. In 1928 he travelled the USA from north to south and from coast to coast. He was then inspired to compose a piano concerto characterised by the harmonies of the Blues and the syncopated rhythms of Ragtime. In the place of both, Thomas Enhco now sits at the piano, a pianist who also crosses the classical tradition with the expressive readiness of Jazz.
Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue
Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra
Carlos Azevedo Premiere work *
M. Ravel Piano Concerto in G Major
M. Ravel Suite from the ballet Ma mère l’Oye
G. Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue (version for piano and small orchestra)
Thomas Enhco piano
Pedro Neves conductor
* Commissioned by CCB
Photo: THOMAS ENHCO by Julien Benhamou
