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Why did George Gershwin leave school at age 15?
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George Gershwin
American composer George Gershwin working on the score for Porgy and Bess, 1935.
George Gershwin left school at age 15 to pursue a career in music, specifically to earn an income by making piano rolls for player pianos and performing in New York nightclubs. Following his departure from school, he also secured a position as a song plugger for the Jerome Remick music-publishing company in Tin Pan Alley, where he demonstrated sheet music for potential customers.1