But as Perry notes, “blue is contrapuntal ... Mondays — all that’s dismal — lowdown, gloomy music …”) lays bare the workings of language itself: “A random set of meanings ...

Packed with Gershwin’s own dazzling piano solos, Rhapsody in Blue has become ... From the soaring opening notes on the clarinet, to the razzle-dazzle of the brass, this is music full of ...