Susan Lewis

In the first part of the 20th century, George Gershwin found fortune as a composer of popular songs, which were used in dozens of Broadway and Hollywood musicals - many of which he created with his brother, lyricist Ira Gershwin. 

The work that launched him as a classical composer, however, was Rhapsody in Blue.  It premiered in  1924, and was performed for decades by orchestras throughout the world. Before he died in 1937 at the age of 38, Gershwin would compose many solo pieces for piano, the first great American opera, Porgy and Bess, and a number of orchestral works.

WRTI’s Susan Lewis  considers George Gershwin and his musical legacy.

As the National Constitution Center stages a major exhibition on Prohibition, Susan Lewis looks at the early 20th-century ban on alcohol and its consequences for American culture.

Susan Lewis explores an exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art on the American painter Winslow Homer and the American tradition of lifesaving.

Susan Lewis profiles The Philadelphia Wind Symphony. The ensemble will perform works by Tchaikovsky, Holst, and Shostakovich at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

As the Free Library of Philadelphia continues its celebration of A Year of  Dickens, WRTI's Susan Lewis considers the lasting appeal of the 19th-century writer - 200 years after his birth.

The exhibition AT HOME ON THE STAGE: Charles Dickens and Theatre  is at the Rare Book Department of the Parkway Central Library through January 3rd, 2013.  A variety of Dickens-related programming is also scheduled, including literary salons that are considering a different Dickens novel each month. 

Philadelphia is a city rich with classical musical offerings, from Philadelphia Orchestra concerts at the Kimmel Center to recitals in homes, neighborhood churches, and community centers.  But there haven't always been public venues to hear chamber music – or presenters to bring in top talent.  

WRTI’s Susan Lewis looks at a driving force behind the city’s vibrant chamber music scene:  The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. PCMS has been presenting world-class chamber music and recital concerts to the Greater Philadelphia region for more than a quarter century. The organization is committed to offering affordable tickets to listeners from all walks of life.

Check out the PCMS website for a lineup of extraordinary performances.

Trumpet virtuoso, singer and bandleader Louis Armstrong propelled jazz onto the mainstream stage, shaping the music with his own distinctive style.  Jazz documentary producer Ken Burns says “Armstrong is to music what Einstein is to Physics, and the Wright Brothers are to travel.”

Yet,  the man behind the legend is less well known.  The Wilma Theater is now staging Satchmo at the Waldorf, a one-man show by Terry Teachout, who is also the Wall Street Journal drama critic and the author of Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong.  Both the book and the play are informed by audio tapes Armstrong made of his private conversations with friends and family.

Susan Lewis talks with playwright Terry Teachout, actor John Douglas Thompson, and WRTI's Maureen Malloy about Armstrong and his life, and about how the tapes, the book, and the play reveal a different, lesser-known side of the jazz icon.

As The Wilma Theater in Philadelphia stages the Terry Teachout play about the legendary trumpet player Louis Armstrong, Susan Lewis explores the life and work of this musical icon.

Information about Satchmo At The Waldorf at The Wilma Theater through December 2nd.

A new master plan for cultural and economic development in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania - Creative Montco - is investigated by Susan Lewis.

In the midst of a still rocky financial landscape, one suburban Philadelphia county is investing in the arts as a path to a more vibrant local economy. This fall, Montgomery County unveiled “Creative Montco” – an initiative created by a collaboration of  cultural groups, county government, community planners, and business, education, and foundation leaders.