Fascinating Rhythm: Monica Ramey Sings George Gershwin
Friday, August 28th, 7:30 PM
Nashville Jazz Workshop
Monica Ramey continues her year-long residency at the Nashville Jazz Workshop with an evening devoted to one of the most beloved figures in the history of American music. George Gershwin was born in Brooklyn in 1898, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants, and by the time he died at just 38 years old he had reshaped what American music could be. He started out as a song plugger on Tin Pan Alley, scarcely a teenager, and ended up composing some of the most enduring melodies the 20th century ever produced. Rhapsody in Blue. An American in Paris. Porgy and Bess. Summertime. Someone to Watch Over Me. Embraceable You. I Got Rhythm. The Man I Love. The list goes on and on, and almost every title on it sounds like home.
What made Gershwin extraordinary was his refusal to stay in any one lane. He heard jazz on the street and took it into the concert hall. He heard the blues and wove them into Broadway. He heard classical music and asked Ravel and Stravinsky if they'd teach him — Ravel reportedly declined, saying, "Why would you want to be a second-rate Ravel when you can be a first-rate Gershwin?" That answer tells you everything. Gershwin worked alongside his brother Ira, whose witty, warm lyrics gave George's irresistible melodies their words, and together they created a body of work that feels as alive today as it did a hundred years ago.
Fascinating Rhythm was the song that first lit up Broadway in 1924, introduced by Fred and Adele Astaire in Lady Be Good. It was, as one scholar put it, "an anthem of the Jazz Age." Monica brings that same rhythmic electricity — and all the tenderness Gershwin was equally capable of — to the Jazz Cave for an evening that celebrates one of the greatest songbooks ever written.
About Monica Ramey
Nashville Scene's Ron Wynn put it simply: Monica Ramey has "a real feel for and understanding of the jazz tradition." And that's exactly right — though it barely scratches the surface.
A native of Francesville, Indiana, Monica grew up singing and dancing on stage alongside her mother, a music teacher who directed her high school show choir. She studied Music Performance at Indiana State University and interned with the NARAS Foundation in Los Angeles before making her way to Nashville in 2000, where she discovered the Nashville Jazz Workshop and found a second family.
Her long musical partnership with the legendary jazz pianist Beegie Adair defined much of her career: together, they recorded multiple albums, sold out venues across the country, and became a fixture at Birdland Jazz Club in New York. The Tennessean once described Monica stepping onstage and opening her mouth to deliver "a smooth, velvety voice formed by years of study and countless performances, putting her own fresh spin on jazz standards." Broadway World called her vocals "impeccable" and named her "one of the best jazz vocalists."
About the Residency
Fascinating Rhythm is the fourth installment of Monica Ramey's year-long residency at the Nashville Jazz Workshop, in which she brings her deep love for the Great American Songbook to the Jazz Cave one composer at a time. Previous evenings have explored the Cole Porter Songbook (May 15), the music of Blossom Dearie (June 26), and the music of Harold Arlen (July 17). More dates will be announced throughout the year.