The Listening Service Extra 9 of 12 - Tennis Partners

Tom looks at Schoenberg’s love of Gershwin, who was also his tennis partner in Hollywood. 'George Gershwin was one of these rare kind of musicians to whom music is not a matter of more or less ability. Music, to him, was the air he breathed, the food which nourished him, the drink that refreshed him. Music was what made him feel and music was the feeling he expressed. Directness of this kind is given only to great men. And there is no doubt that he was a great composer. What he has achieved was not only to the benefit of a national American music but also a contribution to the music of the whole world. In this meaning I want to express the deepest grief for the deplorable loss to music. But may I mention that I lose also a friend whose amiable personality was very dear to me.' - Arnold Schoenberg 1937 Archive audio and photos with kind permission of Arnold Schönberg Center, Wien