Brooklyn College Adjunct Professor of Piano Jeffrey Biegel has reached a historic milestone in American music with Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue, as his newly commissioned orchestral work has become the largest nationwide collaboration ever assembled for a new musical composition. Serving as the pianist and driving force behind the project, Biegel commissioned composer Peter Boyer to write Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue in 2023 as a companion work to George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, honoring the original’s centennial and celebrating American music. He has performed the piano solo part in performances and recordings across the country, as well as with the London Symphony Orchestra with Boyer serving as conductor, also in 2023. Brooklyn College associate professor and internationally renowned composer Jeffrey Biegel (on piano) performs “Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue” with the London Symphony Orchestra in 2023. To date, 68 orchestras in all 50 states have signed on to perform the work that marked the centennial of the George Gershwin classic. As of December 31, 2025, Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue has already been performed 53 times by 40 orchestras in 37 states, with additional performances scheduled throughout the 2025–26 and 2026–27 seasons. Performances have been met with extended standing ovations and enthusiastic responses, as listeners have embraced the work’s spirit of shared celebration and unity. Marc George Gershwin, nephew of George Gershwin, said of the project: “Jeffrey Biegel has been one of Rhapsody in Blue’s fondest advocates, having recorded two versions based on historical manuscripts. His love of my uncle’s music, of America, and of people steered him to have a vision for a diverse America of the 21st-century through music to further reflect our unity.” What music industry standouts are saying about Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue: “This incredible new piece, composed by the incredibly talented Peter Boyer, continues in that tradition and celebrates the diversity and the unity created through music. (Jeffrey) Biegel is a phenomenal player and a great interpreter and champion of the Classical canon. He’s also an artist that is a steadfast advocate in what he’s passionate about.” — Neil Sedaka, singer, songwriter, and pianist who has sold millions of records worldwide since his career began in 1957 “Just as singers like me strive to refresh and celebrate the beauty of the Great American Songbook, Jeffrey (Biegel) is helping bridge the 20th century to the 21st with this inspiring and joyous work that deserves to be heard in every major concert hall of this nation. This project propelled an audience member to say after one performance: ‘This brought tears to my eyes, and renewed my sense of country.’ Politics divides us, music unites us.”— Ann Hampton Callaway, jazz singer, songwriter, and actress “I can’t wait to witness this incredible collaboration celebrating 100 years of one of the world’s most treasured compositions, Rhapsody in Blue, with my dear friend Jeffrey Biegel at the piano. No one brings the essence of Gershwin and his genius more to our ear than (Jeffrey Biegel). He, like Gershwin’s music, is world class! What a fantastic idea to commission the uber talented Peter Boyer to help celebrate this milestone with his composition Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue.”— David Foster, composer, arranger, songwriter, pianist, recording artist, record producer, music executive
