First of all, congratulations to Jody and his wife on the birth of
their new daughter!  Thank you for sharing the good news with all of
us.  Best wishes to all!

Gershwin CD:  OK guys, enough is enough!  All this discussion about the
CD roused my curiosity to a fever pitch, so I went out and bought it.
Please don't discuss any more CD's; my budget can't handle it.

My initial impression after hearing the first couple songs:  That's a
player piano, definitely a player piano.  After listening a little
longer, I no longer cared whether the sound came from Gershwin, Artis
Wodehouse, or wherever.  It was enjoyable music.  I have not heard the
original piano rolls, so I cannot comment on how well they compare with
the CD.  But, it would be a shame to completely dismiss the CD as
worthless.

Some thoughts:  Unless the performer is an automaton, individual
performances of the same music by the same performer will vary slightly
or greatly each time.  Even the most talented pianists have days when
the fingers just won't do what he/she wants.  Unless there is a major
mistake, many of these variances are indiscernible to all but the most
knowledgeable and discriminating ears.  Furthermore, the performer's
performance will vary over time.  Just listen to live performances by
some of today's recording artists, especially performances that have
been recorded years apart.  There is a difference!

When Gershwin recorded the original piano rolls, that is how he played
on that particular date, at that particular time.  If he had recorded
the rolls a month earlier or later, or five years earlier or later,
they would have sounded different.  As long as present day
"reengineered" recordings capture Gershwin's style and flair, I have no
problem with minor editing changes.

The one person who has been left out of this discussion is Gershwin
himself.  We can only speculate what he would have thought of our late
20th century technology.  Thankfully, he had the foresight to use the
technology available to him to produce the piano rolls for later
generations.  By bringing his music to the masses, he insured his
popularity for years to come.  I wonder how many of Gershwin's talented
contemporaries failed to do this, or worse, thought it beneath their
dignity to record a piano roll?  Well, those contemporaries are long
forgotten, and Gershwin is still "alive" and well today through his
music.

Thanks.

Joyce Brite