Mississippi Suite
Encyclopedia
The Mississippi Suite is an orchestral suite in four movements by Ferde Grofé
, depicting scenes along a journey down the Mississippi River
from its headwaters of Minnesota down to New Orleans.
's orchestra at the Hippodrome Theatre, New York City.
Later, American lyricist Harold Adamson
wrote words to music from the ballad theme of the suite's final movement. The resulting song was called "Daybreak". Frank Sinatra
recorded "Daybreak" twice, once with Tommy Dorsey
and his orchestra on July 1, 1942, and nineteen years later, on May 2, 1961, for the album called "I Remember Tommy
". (See under Adamson at #http://www.songsbysinatra.com/songs/composers/composers_main.html)
The entire piece runs about 17 minutes.
) (That recording can be heard here #http://www.redhotjazz.com/pwo.html)
The first full recording of the work, as Grofé composed and orchestrated it, was made in 2004 by Steven Richman conducting the Harmonie Ensemble/New York and released in 2006 (Bridge Records 9212).
Ferde Grofé
Ferde Grofé was a prominent American composer, arranger and pianist. During the 1920s and 1930s, he went by the name Ferdie Grofé.-Early life:...
, depicting scenes along a journey down the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
from its headwaters of Minnesota down to New Orleans.
History
The piece was composed by Grofé in 1925 and first performed in the summer of that year by Paul WhitemanPaul Whiteman
Paul Samuel Whiteman was an American bandleader and orchestral director.Leader of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s, Whiteman's recordings were immensely successful, and press notices often referred to him as the "King of Jazz"...
's orchestra at the Hippodrome Theatre, New York City.
Later, American lyricist Harold Adamson
Harold Adamson
For the Toronto Police Chief see Harold Adamson Harold Adamson was an American lyricist during the 1930s and 1940s.- Biography :...
wrote words to music from the ballad theme of the suite's final movement. The resulting song was called "Daybreak". Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
recorded "Daybreak" twice, once with Tommy Dorsey
Tommy Dorsey
Thomas Francis "Tommy" Dorsey, Jr. was an American jazz trombonist, trumpeter, composer, and bandleader of the Big Band era. He was known as "The Sentimental Gentleman of Swing", due to his smooth-toned trombone playing. He was the younger brother of bandleader Jimmy Dorsey...
and his orchestra on July 1, 1942, and nineteen years later, on May 2, 1961, for the album called "I Remember Tommy
I Remember Tommy
I Remember Tommy... is an album by Frank Sinatra, released in 1961. It was recorded as a tribute to bandleader Tommy Dorsey, and consists of re-recorded versions of songs that Sinatra had first performed or recorded with Dorsey earlier in his career...
". (See under Adamson at #http://www.songsbysinatra.com/songs/composers/composers_main.html)
Movements
- I. Father of the Waters - depicts the birth of the Mississippi RiverMississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
in the streams of MinnesotaMinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and the lands of the Chippewa Indians . - II. Huckleberry Finn - based on the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark TwainMark TwainSamuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
. A short piece ruminating on Huck's prankish nature. - III. Old Creole Days - Grofe's interpretation of spirituals sung by slaves on the plantations
- IV. Mardi Gras - depicts Fat Tuesday in New Orleans.
The entire piece runs about 17 minutes.
Recordings
Paul Whiteman recorded the piece in 1927 in abbreviated form (minus the first movement) because of the space limitations of the 12-inch 78-rpm disk, the lengthiest recording format available at that time. Whiteman's recording was released by Victor on Victor 35859. (See gramophone recordGramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
) (That recording can be heard here #http://www.redhotjazz.com/pwo.html)
The first full recording of the work, as Grofé composed and orchestrated it, was made in 2004 by Steven Richman conducting the Harmonie Ensemble/New York and released in 2006 (Bridge Records 9212).