George and Ira Gershwin’s music is a perfect fit for this gathering of community singers and instrumentalists because, together, the Gershwins wrote both classical piano and orchestral music and wonderful popular songs in the 1920’ and 30’s that most Americans still know and love today. The Gershwin brothers collaborated, George composing the music and Ira writing the lyrics. According to Wikipedia, “He (George) developed a unique style due to his ability to take the jazz he discovered on Tin Pan Alley into the mainstream by splicing its rhythms and tonality with that of the popular songs of his era.” That style was not just unique but very successful as well. George Gershwin (1898-1937) asked to study composition under Maurice Ravel, but when Ravel learned how much Gershwin was earning, he replied, “How about you give me some lessons?” One can only wonder what else George Gershwin might have composed had he lived past his 39 years.

The combined, forty-seven-voices of the chorus, accompanied by a seven-piece jazz combo, will be singing many of the Gershwin brothers’ beloved songs, for example: “I Got Rhythm,” “Summertime,” “They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” “Love Is Here to Stay,” “Somebody Loves Me,” “Embraceable You,” “The Man I Love,” “Strike Up the Band,” and “Swanee.” The vocal soloists are LeeAnn Baldwin, Maureen Kolzow, Marlene Krueger, Ruth Mutschler, Kathy Scott, Sue Spooner, and Jan Strange. Claudia Irwin, who is the director of all of these vocal groups will be conducting them on July 27th.

After the intermission, Dr. Derald DeYoung will take over the conducting duties to introduce the more classical second half of the program. He has carefully rehearsed the orchestra for the past ten weeks so that it now enjoys performing fine renditions of George Gershwin’s “An American in Paris (1924),” and highlights from the opera, “Porgy and Bess (1935),” arranged by Bourdon.

The orchestra will also feature two soloists. Under Ms. Irwin’s direction, Keith Leonard will be playing the trombone solo, “Someone to Watch Over Me,” to the lush accompaniment of seventeen string players. The concert finale will be the Ferde Grofe’ orchestration of George Gershwin’s masterpiece, “Rhapsody in Blue (1924),” also conducted by Ms. Irwin and featuring Michelle Gergen-Wisner as the piano soloist.

Michelle Gergen-Wisner

Many communities have recently organized inter-generational orchestras. Estes Park did not wait for the U.S. Government to encourage and subsidize such an organization. By enlisting volunteer instrumentalists from each generation, the EP Chamber Orchestra has been able to offer good, classical concerts with complete instrumentation for the past twenty years. Currently, these musicians cover an age-span of seventy-two years, from that of Wulfgar Novak, second flutist, age 12, to Ray Novy, 1st bassoonist, age 84. These two have no intergenerational communication gap due to their mutual love of music.

The twenty-plus rehearsal hours that each of these eighty-seven local residents and their directors have given to prepare for this benefit concert are just one indication of their strong commitment to building a performing arts center (PAC) in Estes Park. Admission to the concert is free and open to the public. However, board members of the Supporters of the Performing Arts (SOPA Inc.) will take a free-will donation during the intermission for the PAC construction fund. So far $1.3M of the needed $5M have been raised. Contributions are tax-deductible. For more information about this concert as well as about SOPA, Inc. and its plans, see the website at www.estesparktheater.com.