Analysis of a colourful passage from Gershwin’s An American in Paris

[colline1750]

Hi!



I’d like to share an analysis of a section I always loved from Gershwin's tone poem An American in Paris. It has an interesting blend of popular American idioms (blue notes, extensive use of Mixolydian sonorities, etc.) with more traditional European concert music procedures (melodic unfolding, functional harmony, etc.)



Differently from passages by Ravel and Debussy where the European modernist traits seem to dominate over the Americanism—making these almost a mere coloristic resource—Gershwin seems to do the exact opposite.

I would love to hear your thoughts about this!