Ahead of Their Time: Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue & Mahler 5

Pianist Kristhyan Benitez will bring his unique brand of virtuosity, charisma and poetry to this 100th-anniversary celebration of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. From the unmistakable opening clarinet wail to the final dramatic crescendo, “Rhapsody” captures a distinct moment in our history—the Jazz Age of the 1920s—that made it controversial at its conception and now quintessential to the American canon. In striking similarity, Mahler’s 5th Symphony was not met with great acclaim when it premiered at the turn of the 20th century but has now reemerged in a pop-culture moment that celebrates it as a haunting and triumphant masterpiece.