MUSICIANS CASH IN
WRITING POPULAR SONGS CLASSICS ADAPTED NEW YORK, Nov. 24. The Russian-born composer Igor Stravinsky, now living in America, is writing popular songs from his classical pieces. Listening to a swing band playing to the strains of a Tcnaikowsky symphony, dancing in New York cafes to the music of Ravel or RimskyKorsakov, he determined to cash in on the fortune-whirling dime juke boxes. He converted his Firebird Suite into a ballad that Sinatra could croon, called it Summer Moon. Now r 5, he hopes Summer Moon and other pieces will make him wealthy before he dies. Others Cashed In Stravinsky has many examples of famous composers, who could have cashed in on their music. Claude Debussy's estate received more money from the modern commercial version of My Reverie than he earned from all his compositions. Chopin, whose Fantaisie Impromptu has been sung for years as I’m Always Chasing Rainbows would have made a fortune from the song’s profits. Another Chopin melody set to modern words. Till the End of Time, sold 150,000.000 copies of sheet music and 5,000,000 phonograph records. Ted Mossman, who adapted the song, made nearly half a million dollars from it Maurice Ravel’s Pavanne sold 100,000 copies when it was introduced in modern tempo 10 years ago as The Lamp is Low. Tchaikowskv’s Fifth Symphony strain titled Moon Love, sold 200,000 copies and made 400,000 records-
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Bibliographic details
Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22511, 15 December 1947, Page 6
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231MUSICIANS CASH IN Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22511, 15 December 1947, Page 6
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