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From Broadway to the concert platform: The young George Gershwin had already enjoyed great success as a songwriter when in 1924 bandleader Paul Whiteman 1924 persuaded him to write a jazz piece for orchestra. His Rhapsody in Blue, his Variations on “I Got Rhythm” and the opera Porgy and Bess were soon celebrated around the world. It is Gershwin’s unique mix of laid-back swing and “classical” technique that makes his music so irresistible, and many European composers took their cue from him.