Elgin Symphony salutes American icon Gershwin

Whether it's "Rhapsody in Blue," "An American in Paris" or "Porgy and Bess," George Gershwin was a true American musical genius.

Next weekend's "American Icon Festival" Classic Series concerts by the Elgin Symphony Orchestra will focus on Gershwin when the renowned pianist Pascal Rogé joins music director Robert Hanson and the orchestra performing two of the best-loved piano concertos of the 20th century -- Gershwin's own Concerto in F Major and the Concerto in G Major by Gershwin's mentor, the French impressionist composer Maurice Ravel

The concerts are at 1:30 and 8 p.m. May 2; 8 p.m. May 3 and 3:30 p.m. May 4 at Hemmens Theatre, 45 Symphony Way in downtown Elgin. They are the climax of the ESO's monthlong celebration of the life and works of Gershwin (1898-1937), who rose from New York's famous Tin Pan Alley to become one of America's most influential composers in the early to mid-20th century.

"With our Friday matinee and evening concerts, Pascal Rogé will be playing four concertos that day, plus both concertos again on Saturday and Sunday. Can you imagine that?" Hanson said.

The program will conclude with "An American in Paris," Gershwin's colorful orchestral portrayal of the "City of Lights."

This is the fourth in the Elgin Symphony Orchestra's multiyear "Exploring Our American Voice" project, a wide-ranging multimedia initiative that involves concerts and humanities programs. Next season's festival, recently announced, will honor Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990).

Festival events away from the concert hall still on the schedule include a broadcast on WFMT 98.7-FM at noon May 1, which will feature Pascal Rogé in conversation about Gershwin, including musical examples which he will perform at the piano.

"Our featured speaker for this year's festival is Dr. Howard Pollack, who has written the most exhaustive and definitive book on George Gershwin I've ever seen in my life," Hanson said. "It's about a thousand pages long, analyzing Gershwin's works and his life."

Pollack will headline a lecture-discussion program from 3 to 5 p.m. May 3, at Gail Borden Library, titled "George Gershwin and Jazz-Classical Music."

For more information about this event, call the Gail Borden Library at (847) 429-4680.

For tickets or more information about next weekend's main festival concerts, call the ESO Box Office at (847) 888-4000 Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. or visit elginsymphony.org. Tickets start at $15 and range up to $70.