February 20, 2025: Jerome Kern: Movie Scores and Songs, 1929-1956
Class Preparation
Recommended Reading:
- Broadway: The American Musical: none
- If you haven't yet read Stephen Sondheim's essay "Jerome Kern: The Simplicity of Artfulness" I recommend it as a way to sum up Kern's influence on musical theater.
- Class 4 Selected Lyrics (revised 2/17/25 to correct a couple of errors)
- Handout of Key Class 4 slides (updated 2/20/25)
Links & Playlists
Playlists:
- Jerome Kern at the Movies (Twenty "audio only" performances of songs for films--including seven Oscar nominees for Best Song--two of them winners) Lyrics for all of these songs are included in the handout listed above.
- Suite from the Film Swing Time (Using original scores from the RKO Studios archives, John McGlinn conducts the National Philharmonic Orchestra and the Ambrosian Chorus in arrangements of five songs plus the Main Title.
- Swing Time Dance Numbers (all 6!)
- Class 4 Videos
Class Follow-Up
Documents:
- Class Members' Comments on Jerome Kern's Legacy (typed into Chat during Class 4 or emailed separately)\
- Results of the Kern "Top 20" Songs Survey
- Playlist of Our Top 20 Kern Songs (arranged as a countdown from #20 to #1)