The Great American Songbook Goes Legit—Thanks to Michael Feinstein

A mutual friend introduced them and before the meeting was over, Michael Feinstein had a job. He was to sort out lyricist Ira Gershwin's extensive record collection.

At the time, 1976, Feinstein was 20 and Gershwin 80. Perhaps the age difference was the basis for their friendship. Gershwin enjoyed the enthusiasm of the young pianist and Feinstein was inspired by the experience and wisdom of the older man.

Whatever the case, the men became friends and when the record collection job was completed, Feinstein went to work on the songwriter's library and the materials he had accumulated collaborating on musicals with brother George.

When George died suddenly from a brain tumor in 1937, Ira inherited his library, so Feinstein became the archivist for both brothers and stayed with Ira until his death in 1983.

To have such an important undertaking as a young man would shape Feinstein's life. And as an accidental bonus, he formed a relationship with Ira's next-door neighbor, singer Rosemary Clooney.

The Songbook Ambassador

By any measure, Feinstein's career has been exceptional. As a cabaret style pianist-singer, he has performed widely. His repertoire, the Great American Songbook, includes tributes to Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. He wrote two books on his experience with the Gershwins: The Gershwins and Me (2012) and Nice Work If You Can Get It (1996).

Feinstein has recorded many albums and has five Grammy nominations. He also produced a PBS series, The Great American Songbook, for which he received an Emmy nomination.

He's been a conductor and an artistic director at various venues. In 1999 he opened his first nightclub, Feinstein's, in New York City's Regency Hotel. He now has nightclubs in San Francisco at the Nikko Hotel and in Carmel, Indiana, at the Hotel Carmichael.

Nearly every Feinstein endeavor has been based on the Songbook, and he came to be known as "the Ambassador for The Great American Songbook."

The Songbook Foundation

Sound and color for movies were developed in the early 20th century, and what better way to show off these new technologies than to make musicals.

And that's what MGM did. With the help of producer Arthur Freed, the studio created The Wizard of Oz (1939), Meet Me in St. Louis (1944), An American in Paris (1951), and Singing In the Rain (1952). They were blockbusters and now they are beloved classics. (The Wizard of Oz is the most watched movie of all time!)

MGM had maintained a library of the movie productions' many artifacts, but when new ownership took over in 1969, they didn't see the need to store this stuff, so they threw it all away! So, the scores, lead sheets, notes, memos, and artifacts regarding costume and scene design were considered worthless trash. When this story got out, many people were horrified as I imagine Michael Feinstein was.

Feinstein vowed that would never happen to his beloved Songbook. To ensure its history would be preserved, Feinstein established The Great American Songbook Foundation, which headquartered at Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, Indiana. Its mission is to preserve the materials that went into the creation of this great body of work and broaden its appeal by introducing the music to new generations. The Foundation is a cultural affiliate of the Los Angeles-based Grammy Museum.

Exhibit Hall

The Foundation continuously features new exhibits. The current presentation, "From the Jazz Age to Streaming: The Soundtrack of the '20s-'20s," juxtaposes the popular music and pop culture of the 1920s and the 2020s in terms of how music has been recorded, marketed, purchased and experienced and how the music has reflected the social disparities and other trends of its time.

Visitors can learn about featured artists from Louis Armstrong and Cole Porter to Taylor Swift and Lizzo, viewing "Over the Rainbow" composer Harold Arlen's personal piano, and engaging with interactive touchscreens to experience the music of the two decades.

The Library and Archives

The Library and Archives now includes more than 500,000 items—books, recordings in every format, and of course, the artifacts that went into creating the songs. Artists Meredith Willson of The Music Man, Andy Williams, Natalie Cole, Sammy Davis, Jr., Rosemary Clooney and many other songbook performers entrusted Feinstein with their legacy artifacts. They are all available to scholars and project creators for research.

An example is the new documentary "Showstoppers," about the trailblazing women who took the TV variety show to the heights of excellence: Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Rosemary Clooney, Mitzi Gaynor and others. The producers used the Archives to fill in important facts.

The prolific jazz critic and writer Will Friedwald used the Library and Archives in researching for his book, A Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singers, an invaluable resource for anyone interested in the singers of the Golden Age.

Other examples include "The Big Parade: Meredith Willson's Musicals from The Music Man to 1491"; "Miracle of The Music Man"; "Meredith Willson: America's Music Man (PBS)"; and "GRAMMY Museum Exhibit—75 Years of Natalie Cole."

How can the Foundation be used? Let's say you want to create a documentary on how women empowerment increased over the past 100 years as expressed in song lyrics. You could use the Library & Archives to read and hear lyrics of songs from the 1920s and compare them to contemporary singers' work. The library has over 100,000 musical arrangements and manuscripts. It has recordings in many different formats.

The Foundation works with researchers both in person and remotely. The collections are searchable online and through the website. There are workspaces in the facility where researchers can physically access collections. If remote, digitized scans of the materials can be provided.

From the Archives

"From the Archives" is a series of videos on the Foundation's YouTube channel with Feinstein presenting interesting facts and stories about the preserved materials. For example, he shows how the facility's special shelving can be easily moved and how paper documents are treated for preservation. He consults a textile expert on how to preserve the Ella Fitzgerald gowns. He relates interesting stories such as how he acquired a batch of Rosemary Clooney arrangements thought to have been discarded along with her library. They were being sold on eBay!

Songbook Academy

About 40 high school applicants are accepted each year to participate in a week of intensive workshops and performance sessions led by professionals. The week culminates in a mini-Broadway style number featuring choreographed medley and solo singing. These numbers appear on the Foundation's YouTube channel. Several Academy alumni have gone on to start careers.

Perfect Harmony

Presented by video on the Foundation's YouTube channel, the Perfect Harmony program appeals to seniors, particularly those with memory or cognitive issues. It is based on the premise that lyrics are often recalled when other things are not. However, it can also be simply a fun thing to do. The program presents a theme of the month. (For example, "Love" for February.) And participants are shown exercises to accompany the theme's songs as well as lyrics for singalongs.

The Songbook Hall of Fame

Photos and exhibits of the Songbook Foundation's honorees are in the Shiel Sexton Songbook Lounge on the Gallery level of the Palladium Theater. It is funded by Dr. and Mrs. Charles Simons. Songbook creators and performers are added to the list annually. The Hall of Fame is a digital display, where guests can see images of each inductee and read a brief biography. They can also visit the webpage.

Special Events

The Songbook Foundation presents several events each year—from educational events, panel discussions, concerts by the Songbook Academy® Alumni, and special exhibits. The Allied Solutions Center also has a Songbook Series as part of their season.

Traveling Exhibits

One of the several available traveling exhibits is the Ella Fitzgerald Songbook Series. "The First Lady of Song," as she was called, recorded eight albums called songbooks consisting of the works of songwriters Duke Ellington, Irving Berlin, Rodgers and Hart and the like, a novel idea at the time. You'll receive the materials for a booth which can be set up in a school library or classroom. This exhibit would be an ideal way to introduce students to The Great American Songbook, with its core composers on the albums by the music's greatest performer. There's no cost to borrow an exhibit, you only need to pay shipping fees.

The Future

The Foundation is planning to build a museum devoted to the Great American Songbook. It already has the permission of the Carmel City Council and has decided on a location, a 3.7-acre site near the Palladium. It will be similar to museums for other musical genres—Rock 'n Roll and Country. Architects are developing the plans as we speak.

So now if the question is asked "Is the Great American Songbook real?," the answer is YES!

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