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Some Notes On The Performance Of "Lullaby" According to Ira Gershwin, "Lullaby" was probably originally intended as a piano solo, as he was in possession of an unfinished fragment of it, However, it was not publicly performed until 1967 when it emerged as a string quartet which George Gershwin had written sometime between 1919 and 1920. Wedo not know exactly when Gershwin composed the preceding piano version of "Lullaby" but the theme subsequently appears in 1922 as the heroine's love song in his opera "Blue Monday". Until the present edition, there was no existing score for pianosolo, The fragment and suggestion that Ireconstruct “Lullaby” came to me from the eminent scholar and biographer on Gershwin, Edward Jablonski, to whom I owe many thanks, ‘When studying this piece there are certain points the pianist might want to bear in mind. "Lullaby" is deceptive in its simplicity. Itis not unlike Mozart in its transparency and as dangerous, for the pianist may find himself lulled into a lackluster redundancy. It is a good idea to play the theme in the same way each time it appears, for it is repeated several times throughout the piece - something like a thought that consistently returns tothe dreamer. The digressions within this dreamy landscape encompassakind of slow “rag” and should not be encumbered with rubatos. The tempo remains taut throughout and the pianist should remember that "Lullaby" is a truly impressionist composition written by a very young man with a "twenties" New York pulse. It is romantic yet unsentimental in style. One can hear a similar unemotional “distance” in Debussy or Ravel for their influence on Gershwin is obvious. If one adheres carefully to the fingering, pedaling and phrasing as indicated in this edition, they will be greatly aided in the understanding of this most beautiful and haunting work. Alicia Zizzo December 18, 1991 fee Fn. LULLABY Music by GEORGE GERSHWIN ‘Arranged by ALICIA ZIZZO J una corda mag J =69 Andante Cantabile ‘Con Moto (In strict tempo) 3 Ban, . Ran, Lan, Len, Lea. Lo. Len. Ln. Fo. ED. ED Ka, (© 1963 GEORGE GERSHWIN MUSIC Renewed) '© 1992 GEORGE GERSHWIN MUSIC =<——_. => 2) a] 3 a 2 o/ os “— Be. fe Ri, tempo con moto ‘Reo, St, ek tempo aa Sn im te TT OM

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