" America Again" -Lara Downes explores America's rich musical heritage.
My blog, Classical American Popular Song, has attempted to explore the period between 1900 and 1950 when the flowering of American popular song reached an audience around the world. Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Richard Rodgers, Cole Porter and Harold Arlen produced a body of work that has survived to this very day.
But, with America Again, Steinway Artist Lara Downes has created a captivating portrait of the many strains that make up America's musical heritage. Lara has adroitly combined the popular compositions of Irving Berlin, George Gershwin and Scott Joplin with more classical pieces by Aaron Copland, Amy Beach, Roy Harris and Samuel Coleridge Taylor. Collectively these performances draw upon every possible strand of musical influences, from the blues, jazz and folk themes, to more formal compositions that still manage to reflect the restless spirit and dynamism so characteristic of the American experience. Shenandoah, the traditional folk song,is given a particularly evocative and spiritual performance by Lara Downes . She has made it her personal mission to bring the many and diverse strands of American music to the widest possible audience. Her earlier tribute to Billie Holiday is a case in point.
Anyone who wants to experience the extraordinary breadth of the American musical heritage should acquire Lara Downes tribute to her beloved country.
Already available on Spotify.
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