Porgy & Bess was first performed in 1935 and sadly has peaked. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was popular in the Soviet Union during the Cold War as a display of American repression - the 1980s film White Nights showcased this.. It seems that the Usual Suspects who control popular culture are not subtle enough to line this into their repertoire of anti-American art, but whatever.
This is without doubt the most famous song from that opera, and has been recorded by pretty much everybody - Janis Joplin & The Holding Company may have been the most unexpected of these. Here's Ella Fitzgerald with what approaches the Platonic Ideal performance of the song.
No comments:
Post a Comment