Feeling 'Blue': New Mexico Philharmonic celebrates 100 years of George Gershwin's iconic work

George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” is turning 100 this year, and orchestras across the globe are joining the celebration.

The New Mexico Philharmonic will perform Gershwin’s masterwork on Sunday, Oct. 6, at the National Hispanic Cultural Center.

Gershwin penned his masterpiece at the age of 25.

The composer’s fusion of classical and jazz music was born in controversy.

“The New York Times critic called it the worst masterpiece ever written when it first came out,” said guest conductor Na’Zir McFadden.

“Every major work is heavily criticized,” he continued. “Stravinsky’s ‘The Rite of Spring’ actually caused riots. Even Mozart was considered too much for his time.”

McFadden is the assistant conductor for the Detroit Symphony.

Kate Shao, first-place winner in the piano division of the Jackie McGehee Young Artists’ Competition, will helm the keyboards.

Opening with that signature clarinet glissando, the composition is a challenge for all members of the orchestra.

“There are four cadenzas that Gershwin wrote, and each one is more and more challenging, but the music is so gorgeous,” McFadden said. “You’ll see me dancing at the podium.”

The composer’s fusion of jazz and classical traditions captured the kaleidoscopic melting pot of Jazz Age New York.

Woody Allen used it in his valentine to the city he loved: “Manhattan” (1979), and Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Great Gatsby” (2013), raised a glass to it, while fireworks blossomed in the background. United Airlines used it as their theme music for years.

The program also includes Camille Saint-Saëns’ Cello Concerto No. 1, with Jackie McGehee first-place string division winner Sydney Tasker on cello.

“It’s one of the masterworks for the cello,” McFadden said. “Every cellist at some point in their career has performed this piece.”

Saint-Saëns wrote it when he was 37.

“This piece kind of marked his acceptance in the French school,” McFadden added. “Even Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich called it one of the greatest cello concertos ever written.”

The concert will open with “Ballade in a minor” by the composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.

“I’m very excited to bring this piece to New Mexico,” McFadden said. “He’s one of my favorite composers in the classical repertoire.

“He’s an African English composer born in London,” McFadden continued. “I would consider him similar to Dvorak or Tchaikovsky. In New York, they called him the ‘African Mahler.’”

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s dramatic symphonic poem “Romeo and Juliet” closes the show.

“This is a fan favorite,” McFadden said. “It is such a masterwork. It’s based on Shakespeare’s play. The action is told from the point of view of Friar Laurence, who tells the story. The battle scene is epic; it’s loud, it’s exciting.”

The overture’s love theme has appeared in many television series and movies such as “Columbo,” “Wayne’s World,” “Scrubs,” “South Park,” “The Simpsons,” “Clueless,” “A Christmas Story,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “SpongeBob SquarePants” and “The Ren & Stimpy Show,” among others.