On February 12, 1924, the great bandleader Paul Whiteman presented “An Experiment In Modern Music” at New York’s Aeolian Hall, a salvo in his life-long crusade to prove to the musical establishment and cultural highbrows that the exciting music bursting out of America's every nook and cranny was just as worthy as anything European or classical. Towards the end of that historic and astounding evening, a young theatre composer named George Gershwin sat down at the piano, Whiteman lifted his baton, his Palais Royale Orchestra's clarinetist played that amazing opening glissando, and the rest, as they say, is history. Ken Peplowski and his hot OFAM orchestra welcome renowned jazz pianist Bill Mays in a re-creation of the masterpiece Gershwin premiered that night that you will never forget…and–with the help of Maria Jette, Bill Hulings, Catherine Olson and Ian Whitcomb–spend the rest of the evening cutting loose on the best tunes from the rest of that famed concert and the other great songs of 1924 Whiteman didn’t play that night but should have!
| | Whispering (1920) Marvin Schoenberger (w) John Schoenberger (m) - Maria |
| Kitten on the Keys (1921) Zez Confrey (m) - Bill Mays, piano |
| Copenhagen (1924) Charlie Davis, Walter Melrose (m) |