Internationally-renowned classical pianist, NPR host and cultural activist Lara Downes is among the foremost American pianists of her generation. Downes is a trailblazer both on and off the stage, whose musical roadmap seeks inspiration from the legacies of history, family and collective memory.
Downes has a major concert coming up on Saturday, July 27: the NYC premiere of her Rhapsody In Blue Reimagined in Brooklyn Bridge Park. The pianist will perform outside with a full orchestra. George Gershwin's classic turned 100 this past February.
Downes spoke to WBGO's Doug Doyle about the inspirational event.
"I had a meeting with the team at St. Ann's Warehouse because I love that space. Everyone was so excited about what this means, the 100th anniversary of Rhapsody in Blue and Gershwin as a Brooklynite. Before I knew it, now we are talking about building a giant stage outside under the Brooklyn Bridge, so it's turned out to be this extravaganza that will be so beautiful and exciting. I have to give a shout out to the Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust because without his generous support this would not be happening. It's been such a pleasure to collaborate with these theatrical minds to create this big moment."
The Rhapsody for This Land Concert, curated by Downes, Also features Rosanne Cash, Christian McBride, Arturo O’Farrill, and Grammy Award-Winning trio Time for Three.
While Downes can't exactly recall the first time she heard Rhapsody in Blue, but she says the tune has lived with her for so long and loves to play it.
"I'm so grateful to reflect on the piece, reconsider the piece and learn more about the piece and I'm so glad I did. It's not only a great tune that we all love it's a really important American statement."
While her parents were musical, they were not musicians, but Downes says her mother and father probably wanted to be.
"What's funny is that my mom used to talk about her ill-fated piano lessons and all she wanted to do was to play Rhapsody in Blue. She had this mean teacher who said 'you're along ways from that' instead of encouraging her. That really turned her away from the piano."
Downes, through her new album This Land, curated concerts, and radio programs that she hosts, is redefining the sound of American classical music, and American music. The central theme: probing reflections on the diversity of stories that have converged and collided throughout American history. Acknowledging the flaws and failings of the American experiment, ultimately embracing the power of hope and humanity. As part of this, she has dedicated her career to shining a light on overlooked composers of color, and women - like Margaret Bonds, Scott Joplin and Florence Price.
"There was that movie that kind of revived Joplin's music. had that not happened would anybody know about Joplin now? I think it's so interesting these kind of fluky things that happen that end up keeping one person's lineage alive and not others. Margaret Bonds and Florence Price were so impactful in their time. Both of them were working in Chicago in the 1930's and onward as part of the Black Renaissance in that city. Both have great migration stories. It was a time of so much creativity."
AMPLIFY with Lara Downes premiered as an NPR video series in October 2020, capturing artists' experiences in a time of chaotic upheaval.
"I love connecting with these brilliantly-creative minds in a time of a lot of shift. The NPR show started during the pandemic. It started only because I had nothing to do. All my concerts were cancelled. I was very depressed. One of the things I did was just to reach out to my colleagues and other artists and friends that I never get to see and I kind of needed to know how everyone else was feeling. We were all freaked out, terrified and very sad, but at the same time, we were also immediately thinking about what that pause was going to mean. My impulse was let's capture this."
Laura Downes' new album This Land comes out August 23.
