George Gershwin: Porgy & Bess (2008)

A Historical Recording Of Porgy And Bess

Beginning in 1952, the United States Department of State sponsored an international tour of George Gershwin's opera, Porgy and Bess. The opera toured Europe in 1952 -- 53, returned briefly to the United States, and then, with different lead singers, resumed the tour to Latin America, the Middle East and Europe from 1954 -- 1955. During the tour, Porgy and Bess became the first American opera performed at the La Scala Opera House. The opera also was performed in Moscow during the chilly days of the Cold War.

Only one known recording survives of the State Department tour performances of Porgy, but it is masterful. The recording dates from September 21, 1952, from Titania Palast, Berlin. The recording is of a radio broadcast of the live production. In 2008, the Guild Historical Label released the recording on this 2-volume CD. The recording is of the "complete" opera, although there are significant cuts. It is an important historical record as well as an excellent performance of Porgy and Bess in its own right.

The recording has strong historic ties to Gershwin and to the first performances of the opera. Alex Smallens, who had been the music director for the Broadway premier of Porgy and Bess in 1935, is the conductor here. Eva Jessye, whom Gerswhin handpicked as choral director for the 1935 premiere, also conducts the chorus on this recording. The three stars of the production, a young Leontyne Price as Bess, William Warfield as Porgy, and Cab Calloway as Sporting Life would achieve lasting fame for their work in subsequent performances of Porgy and Bess. Both Price and Warfield sing with passion and Calloway is a suitably oily and unreliable Sporting Life.

The supporting cast is also strong. Helen Colbert plays Clara and gives a highly convincing rendition of the famous song "Summertime" in the opening scene of the opera. Helen Thigpen takes the role of Serena with a heartrending performance of her song, "My Man's Gone Now". John McMurry performs the role of Porgy's chief rival for Bess's affections, Crown. Some of the small roles in this opera,including the strawberry woman, the crab man, and Serena and the chorus in the final act are striking. The sound is very good for a 1952 recording and allows appreciation of the singing and the orchestra.

Porgy and Bess has had a long complex and controversial history since its premier in 1935. There are several versions of the work. Just before the premiere, Gershwin cut back his original score of about four hours to a work of just over three hours. Subsequent performances and revivals made additional cuts. At times the work was performed more in the style of a Broadway musical with spoken parts rather than as the distinctly American grand opera that Gershwin wanted. The work has been adapted in various was for television and the movies. Only in 1976 was Porgy and Bess presented with its original score. The many performance versions of Porgy and Bess is not unique in opera. Another extraordinary opera, Gluck's Orfeo written two centuries before Porgy,is also performed in a confusing number of versions.

Over the years, Gershwin's opera endured periodic charges of racism for its portrayal of the residents of Catfish Row, Charleston, South Carolina. The characters to me are portrayed with love and sympathy and the work has a universal theme of love and commitment that honors its setting and characters. The opera ends with Porgy casting aside his crutches and physical disability to leave Catfish Row for an uncertain journey to New York City in search of Bess who has left him yet again. The opera is based upon a book and a play "Porgy" by DuBose Heyward which Gershwin had loved and determined to set years before he turned to composing his opera. Heyward worked closely with Gershwin on the libretto to which Ira Gershwin also contributed.

It was valuable to think about Porgy and Bess and how it has become a revered part of American culture in connection with listening to this historic recording. The recording is an outstanding way to get to know Gershwin's Porgy and Bess. The recording will be of most interest to those who love this music and who are familiar with some of the more recent standard recordings.

Total time
CD 1: 62:08
CD 2: 77:09

Robin Friedman