Kay Swift
Encyclopedia
Kay Swift was an American
composer of popular and classical music, the first woman to score a complete musical. Written in 1930, Fine and Dandy includes some of her best known songs; the title song
has become a jazz standard. "Can't We Be Friends?" (1929) was another important hit. Swift also arranged some of the music of George Gershwin
posthumously, such as the prelude
"Sleepless Night" (1946).
). Her teacher of composition was Charles Loeffler, while harmony and composition were taught to her by Percy Goetschius
. Her father, a music critic, died when she was young. She had played professionally with the Edith Rubel Trio. While performing at a social event, she met the sister of her future husband, who arranged their meeting. James Paul "Jimmy" Warburg
was a member of a distinguished Jewish family that had made a fortune in banking. Swift was not Jewish, and Jimmy's uncle by marriage Jacob Schiff
objected to the marriage. But his parents accepted the marriage. Swift had three children by Warburg between 1919 and 1924. She was also grandmother to the novelist Katharine Weber
.
Before meeting George Gershwin in 1925, she was said to have been elitist about classical music. Gershwin encouraged her to write popular pieces. Kay and George were more and more frequently seen together. Frequently out of town on business, her husband Jimmy was tolerant, later saying that he liked Gershwin although he had some resentment toward the "self-centered genius" who had interfered with his life. Jimmy—under the pen name of Paul James— wrote Kay's lyrics, an attempt to compete with her interest in Gershwin. But Swift's marriage dissolved in 1934. Gershwin and Swift's affair, due to their similar personalities and musical interests, lasted perhaps ten years in all. Gershwin frequently consulted Swift about his musicals and other works. After Gershwin's death in 1937, his brother Ira Gershwin
collaborated with Swift to complete and arrange some of his unpublished works. Despite their long relationship, Kay and Gershwin never married, likely because, as her granddaughter Katharine Weber has suggested, Gershwin's mother Rose was unhappy that she was not Jewish.
Before her 1930 hit show Fine and Dandy, Kay Swift contributed numbers to The First Little Show
("Can't We Be Friends?") and The Garrick Gaieties
. In 1952, Paris '90, a one-woman performance by Cornelia Otis Skinner
, featured a score by Kay Swift. In the intervening years Swift had composed a ballet for George Balanchine
, been staff composer at Radio City Music Hall
where she wrote musical numbers for The Rockettes
, and been Director of Light Music for the 1939 World's Fair
.
Swift met a cowboy at a rodeo in 1939, and eloped with him two weeks later. Her 1943 book about life on his Oregon ranch, "Who Could Ask For Anything More?" was made into the 1950 movie Never a Dull Moment
, which featured Fred MacMurray
as the cowboy and Irene Dunne
as Kay.
Her later years were devoted to transcribing, performing, and annotating Gershwin's music, which she did until being diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in 1991. She died at the Alzheimer's Resource Center in Southington, Connecticut on January 28, 1993 at the age of 95.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
composer of popular and classical music, the first woman to score a complete musical. Written in 1930, Fine and Dandy includes some of her best known songs; the title song
Fine and Dandy (song)
"Fine and Dandy" is a popular song from the 1930 Broadway musical of the same name.The music was written by Kay Swift, the lyrics by Paul James . The song was published in 1930....
has become a jazz standard. "Can't We Be Friends?" (1929) was another important hit. Swift also arranged some of the music of George Gershwin
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
posthumously, such as the prelude
Prelude (music)
A prelude is a short piece of music, the form of which may vary from piece to piece. The prelude can be thought of as a preface. It may stand on its own or introduce another work...
"Sleepless Night" (1946).
Biography
Swift was educated as a classical musician and composer at the Institute of Musical Art (now known as the Juilliard SchoolJuilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
). Her teacher of composition was Charles Loeffler, while harmony and composition were taught to her by Percy Goetschius
Percy Goetschius
Percy Goetschius won international fame in the teaching of the theory of composition.-Life:Born in Paterson, New Jersey, Goetschius was the piano pupil of Robert E. H. Gehring, a prominent teacher of that era. Goetschius was the organist of the Second Presbyterian Church from 1868–1870 and of the...
. Her father, a music critic, died when she was young. She had played professionally with the Edith Rubel Trio. While performing at a social event, she met the sister of her future husband, who arranged their meeting. James Paul "Jimmy" Warburg
James Warburg
James Paul Warburg was an American banker and financial adviser to Franklin D. Roosevelt. His father was Paul Warburg.- Biography :...
was a member of a distinguished Jewish family that had made a fortune in banking. Swift was not Jewish, and Jimmy's uncle by marriage Jacob Schiff
Jacob Schiff
Jacob Henry Schiff, born Jakob Heinrich Schiff was a German-born Jewish American banker and philanthropist, who helped finance, among many other things, the Japanese military efforts against Tsarist Russia in the Russo-Japanese War.From his base on Wall Street, he was the foremost Jewish leader...
objected to the marriage. But his parents accepted the marriage. Swift had three children by Warburg between 1919 and 1924. She was also grandmother to the novelist Katharine Weber
Katharine Weber
Katharine Weber is an American novelist.Weber was born in New York City. She grew up in the Forest Hills Gardens section of Queens, New York. She attended The Kew-Forest School and Forest Hills High School before attending the Freshman Year Program at The New School for Social Research in 1972...
.
Before meeting George Gershwin in 1925, she was said to have been elitist about classical music. Gershwin encouraged her to write popular pieces. Kay and George were more and more frequently seen together. Frequently out of town on business, her husband Jimmy was tolerant, later saying that he liked Gershwin although he had some resentment toward the "self-centered genius" who had interfered with his life. Jimmy—under the pen name of Paul James— wrote Kay's lyrics, an attempt to compete with her interest in Gershwin. But Swift's marriage dissolved in 1934. Gershwin and Swift's affair, due to their similar personalities and musical interests, lasted perhaps ten years in all. Gershwin frequently consulted Swift about his musicals and other works. After Gershwin's death in 1937, his brother Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century....
collaborated with Swift to complete and arrange some of his unpublished works. Despite their long relationship, Kay and Gershwin never married, likely because, as her granddaughter Katharine Weber has suggested, Gershwin's mother Rose was unhappy that she was not Jewish.
Before her 1930 hit show Fine and Dandy, Kay Swift contributed numbers to The First Little Show
The Little Show
The Little Show is a musical revue with lyrics by Howard Dietz and music by Arthur Schwartz. This was the first of 11 musicals that featured the songs of Dietz and Schwartz. The revue opened on Broadway in 1929.-History:...
("Can't We Be Friends?") and The Garrick Gaieties
The Garrick Gaieties
The Garrick Gaieties is a revue with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart, the first of many musicals by this songwriting team....
. In 1952, Paris '90, a one-woman performance by Cornelia Otis Skinner
Cornelia Otis Skinner
Cornelia Otis Skinner was an American author and actress.-Biography:Skinner was the daughter of the actor Otis Skinner and his wife Maud Skinner. After attending the all-girls' Baldwin School and Bryn Mawr College and studying theatre at the Sorbonne in Paris, she began her career on the stage...
, featured a score by Kay Swift. In the intervening years Swift had composed a ballet for George Balanchine
George Balanchine
George Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet...
, been staff composer at Radio City Music Hall
Radio City Music Hall
Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue located in New York City's Rockefeller Center. Its nickname is the Showplace of the Nation, and it was for a time the leading tourist destination in the city...
where she wrote musical numbers for The Rockettes
The Rockettes
The Rockettes are a precision dance company performing out of the Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan, New York City. During the Christmas season, the Rockettes have performed five shows a day, seven days a week, for 77 years...
, and been Director of Light Music for the 1939 World's Fair
1939 New York World's Fair
The 1939–40 New York World's Fair, which covered the of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park , was the second largest American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904. Many countries around the world participated in it, and over 44 million people...
.
Swift met a cowboy at a rodeo in 1939, and eloped with him two weeks later. Her 1943 book about life on his Oregon ranch, "Who Could Ask For Anything More?" was made into the 1950 movie Never a Dull Moment
Never a Dull Moment (1950 film)
Never a Dull Moment is a 1950 RKO comedy film starring Irene Dunne and Fred MacMurray. The film is based on the 1943 book Who Could Ask For Anything More? by Kay Swift.-Cast:*Irene Dunne ... Kay*Fred MacMurray ... Chris*William Demarest ... Mears...
, which featured Fred MacMurray
Fred MacMurray
Frederick Martin "Fred" MacMurray was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 movies and a successful television series during a career that spanned nearly a half-century, from 1930 to the 1970s....
as the cowboy and Irene Dunne
Irene Dunne
Irene Dunne was an American film actress and singer of the 1930s, 1940s and early 1950s. Dunne was nominated five times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, for her performances in Cimarron , Theodora Goes Wild , The Awful Truth , Love Affair and I Remember Mama...
as Kay.
Her later years were devoted to transcribing, performing, and annotating Gershwin's music, which she did until being diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in 1991. She died at the Alzheimer's Resource Center in Southington, Connecticut on January 28, 1993 at the age of 95.