Our Volumes

Score: Available Schott Music, GIGE 1101. It may be purchased through Ficks Music.

Note: We use “Final” to indicate that this edition represents George Gershwin’s ultimate, final version of the score after making five cuts to fit the work onto four sides of two 78-rpm discs. That recording was made on February 4, 1929 with Nathaniel Shilkret and was the last time Gershwin made substantive changes to the structure of the piece. Thus, “Final” here does not indicate that it is the most up-to-date version published by the Gershwin Initiative at the University of Michigan, but rather the composer’s own final word on the piece. The label “Final” for vol. 1A distinguishes it from the Uncut version (vol. 1B). The “Uncut” is the initial version of the score from November 1928. We avoided calling the two versions “Unabridged” and “Abridged,” although this may have been more straightforward, so as not to make it seem like the later version with the cuts was less valid or complete from Gershwin’s perspective than the “Uncut” version. 

Duration: ca. 17 minutes

Instrumentation: 3 Flutes (3rd doubling Piccolo), 2 Oboes, 1 English Horn, 2 Clarinets in B-flat, 1 Bass Clarinet in B-flat, 2 Bassoons, 3 Saxophonists (Soprano/Alto, Soprano/Alto/Tenor, Soprano/Alto/Baritone), 4 Horns in F, 3 Trumpets in B-flat, 3 Trombones, Tuba, Timpani, 4 Percussionists (Snare Drum, Wood Block; Cymbal, Taxi Horns, opt. Crash Cymbals; Triangle, Small and Large Tom-toms, Bass Drum, Wood Block; Xylophone, Glockenspiel, Ratchet), Celesta, Violin 1, Violin 2, Viola, Violoncello, Contrabass.

Celesta may be covered by Percussion 4. Note the Ratchet is not in the Frank Campbell-Watson arrangement (see below). See below regarding Alternate Saxophone parts.

Performance materials: The performance materials for each edition are available in the USA from European American Music (rental@eamdc.com). International rentals can be secured at hire@schott-music.com. Taxi horns in the correct pitches can be obtained from the University of Michigan (jdales@umich.edu) and through other rental services. The current parts have “Print Date 2026.04.24” at the bottom of the first page of each. If you have questions or suggestions about the edition or parts, please email managing editor Andrew Kohler at smtd-gershwin@umich.edu.

About: This edition restores Gershwin’s original orchestration and articulation, clarifies and corrects errors and ambiguities in notation, and removes spurious additions and changes made for the popularly known arrangement “revised” by Frank Campbell-Watson published in the 1940s. Until now, the Campbell-Watson revision is the only version to which ensembles and audiences have had access.

Both editions of An American in Paris have been recorded by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Louis Langrée (Final and Uncut).

Score Errata: The update below has been made in the most recent performance parts, but would need to be changed in the published score.

m. 425.7: E. Hn., final note of measure should be D5.

m. 592: 2/4 time signature missing (music barred correctly).

Saxophone Parts: George Gershwin scored An American in Paris for three saxophonists playing eight different instruments, and we recommend honoring this design. Campbell-Watson simplified the parts to only alto, tenor, and baritone saxophone. With the critical edition, we have published the original parts but offer an alternate set that balances fidelity to Gershwin’s vision with practicality. These alternate parts remove the alto saxophone doublings from Saxophone 2 and Saxophone 3, with that material revised into the tenor and baritone parts, respectively. Fortunately, the material for three altos is not featured prominently in the orchestration. In contrast, all three players double on soprano saxophone in a remarkable trio. We recommend preserving these soprano saxophone doublings, but ossia lines in the alternate parts allow the work to be performed on alto, tenor, and baritone saxophones without doublings. These alternate parts are included with each edition.
Original parts: 1) Alto, Soprano; 2) Tenor, Soprano, Alto; 3) Baritone, Soprano, Alto
Alternate parts: 1) Alto, Soprano (ossia: Alto only); 2) Tenor, Soprano (ossia: Tenor only); 3) Baritone, Soprano (ossia: Baritone only)

Note for orchestral librarians: We want to make all previous users of the draft critical editions aware that the measure numbering of the 1A Final Edition (only) has changed. In response to performer feedback, we made the eight bars of Cut 1 available to performers of the Final Edition using VI- -DE indications in the score and parts. We still encourage performers to honor this cut, as it was made by Gershwin for the 1929 recording. Nevertheless, the edition offers the option of performing these eight bars, which are in Gershwin’s hand and are familiar to listeners from the Campbell-Watson arrangement. 

It is important for orchestral librarians to know that this change affects the numbering of the measures in the previous draft score after bar 225, and thus our new parts should replace any now outdated performance materials for the previous draft edition. We regret any inconvenience this causes. (Note that measure numbering for the Uncut Edition remains unchanged.) The attached page at the end of this memo details this and other changes made to both scores in the publication and proofreading process as well as a few errata noted since final publication.

Acknowledgments: We are especially grateful to MOLA librarians Karen Schnackenberg (Dallas Symphony), who is on our edition’s advisory board, Christina Eaton (Cincinnati Symphony), who oversaw the editions’ official premiere performances, and Justin Vibbard (Chicago Symphony Orchestra), for generously reviewing the parts and offering suggestions. 

Score: Available Schott Music, GIGE 1102. It may be purchased through Ficks Music.

Note: We use “Uncut” to indicate that this edition represents the initial version of the score from November 1928, prior to George Gershwin’s ultimate, final version, which makes five cuts to fit the work onto four sides of two 78-rpm discs. We avoided calling the two versions “Unabridged” and “Abridged,” although this may have been more straightforward, so as not to make it seem like the later version with the cuts was less valid or complete from Gershwin’s perspective than the “Uncut” version. 

Duration: ca. 21 minutes

Instrumentation: 3 Flutes (3rd doubling Piccolo), 2 Oboes, 1 English Horn, 2 Clarinets in B-flat, 1 Bass Clarinet in B-flat, 2 Bassoons, 3 Saxophonists (Soprano & Alto; Soprano, Alto, & Tenor; Soprano, Alto, & Baritone), 4 Horns in F, 3 Trumpets in B-flat, 3 Trombones, Tuba, Timpani, 4 Percussionists (Snare Drum, Wood Block; Cymbal, Taxi Horns, opt. Crash Cymbals; Triangle, Small and Large Tom-toms, Bass Drum, Wood Block; Xylophone, Glockenspiel, Ratchet), Celesta, Violin 1, Violin 2, Viola, Violoncello, Contrabass.

Celesta may be covered by Percussion 4. Note the Ratchet is not in the Frank Campbell-Watson arrangement (see below).
See below regarding Alternate Saxophone parts.

Performance materials: The performance materials for each edition are available in the USA from European American Music (rental@eamdc.com). International rentals can be secured at hire@schott-music.com. Taxi horns in the correct pitches can be obtained from the University of Michigan (jdales@umich.edu) and through other rental services. The current parts have “Print Date 2026.04.24” at the bottom of the first page of each. If you have questions or suggestions about the edition or parts, please email managing editor Andrew Kohler at smtd-gershwin@umich.edu.

About: This edition restores Gershwin’s original orchestration and articulation, clarifies and corrects errors and ambiguities in notation, and removes spurious additions and changes made for the popularly known arrangement “revised” by Frank Campbell-Watson published in the 1940s. Campbell-Watson’s revision, which does not have the cut material restored in this “Uncut” edition, was the only version to which ensembles and audiences had access before ours.

Both editions of An American in Paris have been recorded by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Louis Langrée (Final and Uncut).

Score Errata: The updates below have been made in the most recent performance parts, but would need to be changed in the published score.

m. 425.7: E. Hn., final note of measure should be D5.

Saxophone Parts: George Gershwin scored An American in Paris for three saxophonists playing eight different instruments, and we recommend honoring this design. Campbell-Watson simplified the parts to only alto, tenor, and baritone saxophone. With the critical edition, we have published the original parts but offer an alternate set that balances fidelity to Gershwin’s vision with practicality. These alternate parts remove the alto saxophone doublings from Saxophone 2 and Saxophone 3, with that material revised into the tenor and baritone parts, respectively. Fortunately, the material for three altos is not featured prominently in the orchestration. In contrast, all three players double on soprano saxophone in a remarkable trio, which has more material in the Uncut Edition (1B).

Original parts: 1) Alto, Soprano; 2) Tenor, Soprano, Alto; 3) Baritone, Soprano, Alto
Alternate parts: 1) no change; 2) Tenor, Soprano; 3) Baritone, Soprano

Acknowledgments: We are especially grateful to MOLA librarians Karen Schnackenberg (Dallas Symphony), who is on our edition’s advisory board, Christina Eaton (Cincinnati Symphony), who oversaw the editions’ official premiere performances, and Justin Vibbard (Chicago Symphony Orchestra), for generously reviewing the parts and offering suggestions.

Edited by Michael Owen

Published in 2024 by Schott Music

Buy: https://www.schott-music.com/en/the-gershwins-abroad-no577202.html

https://www.halleonard.com/product/49047558/the-gershwins-abroadl-a-1928-notebook

https://www.ficksmusic.com/products/the-gershwins-abroad-or-four-americans-in-paris-schott

On March 10, 1928, the celebrated American lyricist Ira Gershwin and his wife Leonore set sail for Europe aboard a luxury ocean liner, accompanied by Ira’s brother George, the esteemed composer of Rhapsody in Blue, and his sister Frances (“Frankie”). Over the course of the next several months, Ira recorded their experiences visiting five countries during the height of the American expatriate period in Europe.

Ira’s extensive account of their travels includes vivid – oftentimes humorous – descriptions of the numerous parties given for the Gershwins; the concerts of George’s compositions and his work on the tone poem An American in Paris; meetings with such artistic luminaries as Sergei Prokofiev and Alban Berg; encounters with members of high society; Ira’s wide-ranging choice of reading material; and entertaining anecdotes about the food and drink consumed along the way, so different from that available in Prohibition-era New York City.

This notebook has been a valuable archival source for previous scholarship on the Gershwins, and now it appears, in full, for the first time in print. Ira Gershwin’s biographer, Michael Owen, who has been the archivist and historian for the Ira and Leonore Gershwin Trusts since 2005, has provided illuminating commentary and annotations to guide us through the Gershwins’ European journey.