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GERSHWIN HEADING DOWNTOWN

“Summertime,” which has been covered more than 25,000 times, and the rest of George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess is heading to Downtown Music Publishing as part of a deal that includes more than 300 previously unpublished songs.

Downtown has signed a publishing administration and catalog marketing agreement for the George Gershwin catalog with the Godowsky family and Heyward Memorial Fund, respective successors to the historic American songwriter and Porgy and Bess authors DuBose and Dorothy Heyward.

The agreement covers many of Gershwin’s most well-known compositions, among them “They Can't Take That Away From Me,” “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off,” “Love is Here to Stay” and “Nice Work if You Can Get It.”

“The George Gershwin catalog, including his work on Porgy and Bess with DuBose and Dorthy Heyward, features not only some of the most iconic songs in the Great American Songbook, but represents the building blocks of popular music,” said Justin Kalifowitz, CEO of Downtown Music Holdings, parent company of Downtown Music Publishing. “To be entrusted with these legendary works—which remain as culturally relevant today as ever—is a true honor and a testament to our team.”

The Metropolitan Opera in New York will be staging a revival of Porgy and Bess in September. Gershwin and his brother Ira wrote Porgy and Bess based on DuBose Heyward's novel Porgy, which his wife Dorothy and he adapted into a play.

“In thinking about the next home for these celebrated works, we wanted a focused, creative and energetic music publisher,” said Jonathan Keidan, great-nephew of George Gershwin and Trustee for the Gershwin/Godowsky Trust. “Downtown understands both the importance of nurturing these American classics—ensuring that they remain beloved and relevant today while also finding new ways to bring them to the next generation of Gershwin fans.”