Bernstein was the first American-born conductor to lead a major American symphony orchestra.[7] He was music director of theNew York Philharmonic and conducted the world's major orchestras, generating a legacy of audio and video recordings.[8] Bernstein was also a critical figure in the modern revival of the music ofGustav Mahler, in whose music he was most interested.[9] A skilled pianist,[10] Bernstein often conducted piano concertos from the keyboard. He shared and explored classical music on television with a mass audience in national and international broadcasts, includingYoung People's Concerts with the New York Philharmonic.[11]
Bernstein worked in support ofcivil rights;[12] protested against theVietnam War;[13] advocated nuclear disarmament; raised money for HIV/AIDS research and awareness; championedJanis Ian at age 15 and her song about interracial love, "Society's Child", on his CBS television show; and engaged in multiple international initiatives for human rights and world peace. He conducted Mahler'sResurrection Symphony to mark the death of presidentJohn F. Kennedy,[14] and in Israel at a concert,Hatikvah on Mt. Scopus, after theSix-Day War.[15] The sequence of events was recorded for a documentary entitledJourney to Jerusalem.[16] Bernstein was a member of the executive committee for Writers and Artists for Peace in the Middle East, a pro-Israel group.[17] On Christmas Day, 1989, Bernstein conducted a performance ofBeethoven'sSymphony No. 9 in Berlin to celebrate thefall of the Berlin Wall.[18] Less than a year later, in October 1990, he died of heart attack in New York, aged 72.
Bernstein was born inLawrence, Massachusetts, toJewish parents ofRussian/Ukrainian heritage, Jennie (née Resnick)[19] and Samuel Joseph Bernstein, both immigrants to the United States[7] fromRivne,Russian Empire (now in Ukraine).[20][21] His grandmother insisted that his first name officially beLouis, but his parents always called himLeonard. He legally changed his name to Leonard when he was 16.[22] To his friends and many others, he was simply known as "Lenny."[23]
His mother had moved in with her parents, in Lawrence, toward the end of her pregnancy with Leonard, her first child. Since he was sickly as an infant, he stayed there until he was strong enough for him and his mother to join his father inBoston. There, the boy attended theWilliam Lloyd Garrison School[24] and then theBoston Latin School, where he and classmate Lawrence F. Ebb wrote the class song.[25] When Leonard was 15, the family moved to nearbyNewton, Massachusetts.[26]
Samuel became a wealthy man as the owner of the Samuel J. Bernstein Hair Company, which, in the 1920s and 1930s, held the exclusive distribution rights for the Frederick's Permanent Wave Machine.[27]
In Leonard's early years, his main exposure to music was on Friday nights at Congregation Mishkan Tefila, in theRoxbury neighborhood of Boston.[28] When Bernstein was 10 years old, his Aunt Clara, Samuel's sister, deposited her upright piano at their house. Young Bernstein asked for lessons and subsequently studied with a variety of piano teachers, including Helen Coates, who would later become his secretary.[29] In the summers, the Bernstein family would retreat to their vacation home inSharon, Massachusetts, where Leonard conscripted all the neighborhood children to put on shows, ranging fromBizet'sCarmen toGilbert and Sullivan'sH.M.S. Pinafore.[30] He and his two younger siblings, Shirley and Burton, remained close their entire lives.[31]
Samuel initially opposed Leonard's interest in music and attempted to discourage it by refusing to pay for his son's piano lessons. So, Leonard took to giving lessons to young people in his neighborhood.[32] One of his students,Sid Ramin, would become a beloved lifelong friend and Bernstein'sorchestrator (along withIrwin Kostal) forWest Side Story.[33][34]
Eventually, Samuel came around, taking his son to orchestral concerts in his teenage years and ultimately supporting his music studies, as well.[35] In May 1932, Leonard attended his first orchestral concert with theBoston Pops, conducted byArthur Fiedler.[36] There, Bernstein first heardRavel'sBoléro, which impressed him greatly.[37]
Among his strong musical influences wasGeorge Gershwin. When news came of Gershwin's death, in July 1937, Bernstein, then a music counselor at a summer camp, interrupted lunch in the mess hall and played Gershwin's secondPrelude as a memorial.[39]
In 1935, Bernstein enrolled atHarvard College, where he studied music with, among others, composersEdward Burlingame Hill andWalter Piston. Bernstein's first extant composition,Psalm 148, for voice and piano, is dated 1935.[40] He majored in music with a senior thesis entitled "The Absorption of Race Elements into American Music" (1939; reproduced in his bookFindings). One of Bernstein's intellectual influences at Harvard wasaesthetics professorDavid Prall, and one of his friends at the school was future philosopherDonald Davidson. Bernstein wrote and conducted the musical score for Davidson's production of theAristophanes playThe Birds, performed in the original Greek. Bernstein recycled some of this music in future works. While a student, Bernstein composed for theHarvard Glee Club and was briefly its president while also serving as the unpaid pianist for Harvard Film Society'ssilent film presentations.[41]
Bernstein mounted a student production ofThe Cradle Will Rock, directing its action from the piano as the composerMarc Blitzstein had done at the premiere. Blitzstein, who attended the performance, subsequently became a close friend and mentor to Bernstein.[42] As asophomore at Harvard, Bernstein met the conductorDimitri Mitropoulos, who was an influence on Bernstein's eventual decision to become a conductor.[43] Mitropoulos invited Bernstein to come toMinneapolis for the 1940–41 season to be his assistant, but the plan fell through because of union issues.[44] In 1937, Bernstein sat next toAaron Copland at a dance recital atTown Hall in New York City. Copland invited Bernstein to his birthday party afterwards, where Bernstein impressed the guests by playing Copland's challengingPiano Variations. Although he was never a formal student of Copland's, Bernstein regularly sought his advice, often citing him as "the closest thing to a composition teacher [Bernstein] ever had."[45][46] Bernstein graduated from Harvard in 1939 with a Bachelor of Arts,cum laude.[47]
Soon after he left Curtis, Bernstein moved to New York City where he lived in various apartments inManhattan. Bernstein supported himself by coaching singers, teaching piano,[56] and playing the piano for dance classes inCarnegie Hall. He found work with Harms-Witmark, transcribing jazz and pop music and publishing his work under the pseudonym "Lenny Amber". (Bernstein means "amber" in German.)[57]
Bernstein would later make his New York Philharmonic conducting debut. On November 14, 1943, having recently been appointed assistant conductor toArtur Rodziński of the New York Philharmonic, Bernstein made his major conducting debut at short notice—and without any rehearsal—after guest conductorBruno Walter came down with the flu.[60][61] The challenging program included works byRobert Schumann,Miklós Rózsa,Richard Wagner, andRichard Strauss.[60][62]
The next day,The New York Times carried the story on its front page and remarked in an editorial, "It's a good American success story. The warm, friendly triumph of it filledCarnegie Hall and spread far over the air waves."[63] Many newspapers throughout the country carried the story, which, in combination with the concert's live nationalCBS Radio Network broadcast, propelled Bernstein to instant fame.[64] Over the next two years, Bernstein made conducting debuts with ten different orchestras in the United States and Canada, greatly broadening his repertoire and initiating a lifelong frequent practice of conducting concertos from the piano.[65]
Bernstein and Robbins decided to expand the ballet into a musical and invited Comden and Green to write the book and lyrics.On the Town opened on Broadway'sAdelphi Theatre on December 28, 1944. The show resonated with audiences duringWorld War II, and it broke race barriers on Broadway: Japanese-American dancerSono Osato in a leading role; a multiracial cast dancing as mixed race couples; and a Black concertmaster,Everett Lee, who eventually took over as music director of the show.[68]On the Town becamean MGM motion picture in 1949, starringGene Kelly,Frank Sinatra, andJules Munshin as the three sailors. Only part of Bernstein's score was used in the film and additional songs were provided byRoger Edens.[69]
Bernstein conducting the New York City Symphony (1945)
From 1945 to 1947, Bernstein was the music director of the New York City Symphony, which had been founded the previous year by the conductorLeopold Stokowski. The orchestra (with support from Mayor Fiorello La Guardia) had modern programs and affordable tickets.[70] In 1946, Bernstein made his overseas debut with theCzech Philharmonic at the inauguralPrague Spring International Music Festival.[71] He also recorded Ravel'sPiano Concerto in G major as soloist and conductor with thePhilharmonia Orchestra.[72] On July 4, 1946, Bernstein conducted the European premiere ofFancy Free with the Ballet Theatre at theRoyal Opera House in London.[73] On August 6 he conducted opera professionally for the first time, with the American premiere ofBenjamin Britten'sPeter Grimes at Tanglewood, commissioned by Koussevitzky.[74] That same year,Arturo Toscanini invited Bernstein to guest conduct two concerts with theNBC Symphony Orchestra, one of which featured Bernstein as soloist in Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major.[75][page needed]
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, television debut and Tanglewood
The 1950s comprised the most active years of Bernstein's career. He created five new works for the Broadway stage, composed several symphonic works and an iconic film score, and was appointed music director of the New York Philharmonic with whom he toured the world, including concerts behind the Iron Curtain. Bernstein also harnessed the power of television to expand his educational reach, and he married and started a family. In 1950, Bernstein composed incidental music for a Broadway production of J. M. Barrie's playPeter Pan.[81] The production, which opened on Broadway on April 24, 1950, starredJean Arthur asPeter Pan andBoris Karloff in the dual roles ofGeorge Darling andCaptain Hook. The show ran for 321 performances.[82]
In 1951, Bernstein composedTrouble in Tahiti, a one-act opera in seven scenes with an Englishlibretto by the composer. The opera portrays the troubled marriage of a couple whose idyllic suburban post-war environment belies their inner turmoil.[83] Ironically, Bernstein wrote most of the opera while on his honeymoon in Mexico with his wife,Felicia Montealegre. Bernstein was a visiting music professor atBrandeis University from 1951 to 1956. In 1952, he created theBrandeis Festival of the Creative Arts, where he conducted the premiere ofTrouble in Tahiti on June 12 of that year.[84] TheNBC Opera Theatre subsequently presented the opera on television in November 1952. It opened on Broadway at the Playhouse Theatre on April 19, 1955, and ran for six weeks.[85] Three decades later, Bernstein wrote a second opera,A Quiet Place, which picked up the story and characters ofTrouble in Tahiti in a later period.
In the three years leading up to Bernstein's appointment as music director of the New York Philharmonic, Bernstein was simultaneously working on the scores for two Broadway shows. The first of the two was theoperetta-style musicalCandide.Lillian Hellman originally brought Bernstein her idea of adaptingVoltaire'snovella.[87] The original collaborators on the show were book writerJohn Latouche and lyricistRichard Wilbur.Candide opened onBroadway on December 1, 1956, at theMartin Beck Theatre, in a production directed byTyrone Guthrie. Anxious about the parallels Hellman had deliberately drawn between Voltaire's story and the ongoing hearings conducted by theHouse Un-American Activities Committee, Guthrie persuaded the collaborators to cut their most incendiary sections prior to opening night.[88] While the production was a box office disaster, running for only two months for a total of 73 performances,[89] the cast album became a cult classic, which kept Bernstein's score alive. There have been several revivals, with modifications to improve the book. The elements of the music that have remained best known and performed over the decades are the Overture, which quickly became one of the most frequently performed orchestral compositions by a20th centuryAmerican composer; the coloratura aria "Glitter and Be Gay", whichBarbara Cook sang in the original production; and the grand finale "Make Our Garden Grow".
Bernstein gained prominence for the Original Broadway production ofWest Side Story in 1957
The other musical Bernstein was writing simultaneously withCandide wasWest Side Story. Bernstein collaborated with director and choreographerJerome Robbins, book writerArthur Laurents, and lyricistStephen Sondheim.[90] The story is an updated retelling ofShakespeare'sRomeo and Juliet, set in the mid-1950s in the slums of New York City'sUpper West Side. The Romeo character, Tony, is affiliated with the Jets gang, who are of white Northern European descent. The Juliet character is Maria, who is connected to the Sharks gang, recently arrived fromPuerto Rico.[91] The original Broadway production opened at theWinter Garden Theatre on September 26, 1957, and ran 732 performances. Robbins won theTony Award for Best Choreographer, andOliver Smith won the Tony for Best Scenic Designer.[92]
Bernstein's score forWest Side Story blends "jazz, Latin rhythms, symphonic sweep and musical-comedy conventions in groundbreaking ways for Broadway".[93] It wasorchestrated bySid Ramin andIrwin Kostal following detailed instructions from Bernstein. The dark theme, sophisticated music, extended dance scenes, and focus on social problems marked a turning point in musical theatre. In 1960, Bernstein prepared asuite of orchestral music from the show, titledSymphonic Dances from West Side Story, which continues to be popular with orchestras worldwide.[94] A1961 United Artists film adaptation, directed byRobert Wise and Robbins, starredNatalie Wood as Maria andRichard Beymer as Tony. The film won tenAcademy Awards, includingBest Picture and a ground-breaking Best Supporting Actress award for Puerto Rican-bornRita Moreno playing the role of Anita.[95] Afilm adaptation directed by Steven Spielberg opened in 2021.[96]
In addition to Bernstein's compositional activity for the stage, he wrote a symphonic work,Serenade after Plato's "Symposium" (1954); the scoreOn the Waterfront (1954); andPrelude, Fugue and Riffs, composed in 1949, but only premiered in 1955, for jazz big band and solo clarinet. In 1953, Bernstein became the first American conductor to appear atLa Scala in Milan, conducting Cherubini'sMedea, withMaria Callas in the title role. Callas and Bernstein reunited at La Scala to perform Bellini'sLa sonnambula in 1955. On November 14, 1954, Bernstein presented the first of his television lectures for the CBS Television Network arts programOmnibus. The live lecture, entitled "Beethoven's Fifth Symphony", involved Bernstein explaining the symphony's first movement with the aid of musicians from the "Symphony of the Air" (formerlyNBC Symphony Orchestra). The program featured manuscripts from Beethoven's own hand, as well as a giant painting of the first page of the score covering the studio floor. Six moreOmnibus lectures followed from 1955 to 1961 (later on ABC and then NBC) covering a broad range of topics: jazz, conducting, American musical comedy, modern music,J. S. Bach, andgrand opera.
Music director of the New York Philharmonic
Bernstein at the piano, annotating a musical score, 1955
Bernstein was appointed the music director of the New York Philharmonic in 1957, sharing the post jointly withDimitri Mitropoulos until he took sole charge in 1958. Bernstein held the music directorship until 1969 when he was appointed "Laureate Conductor". He continued to conduct and make recordings with the orchestra for the rest of his life.[98] Bernstein's television teaching took a quantum leap when, as the new music director of the New York Philharmonic, he put the orchestra's traditional Saturday afternoonYoung People's Concerts on the CBS Television Network. Millions of viewers of all ages and around the world enthusiastically embraced Bernstein and his engaging presentations about classical music. Bernstein often presented talented young performers on the broadcasts. Many of them became celebrated in their own right, including conductorsClaudio Abbado andSeiji Ozawa; flutistPaula Robison; and pianistAndré Watts. From 1958 until 1972, the 53 Young People's Concerts comprised the most influential series of music education programs ever produced on television.[99] They were highly acclaimed by critics and won numerousEmmy Awards.[100]
Some of Bernstein's scripts, all of which he wrote himself, were released in book form and on records.[101] A recording ofHumor in Music was awarded aGrammy award for Best Documentary or Spoken Word Recording (other than comedy) in 1961.[102] The programs were shown in many countries around the world, often with Bernstein dubbed into other languages, and the concerts were later released on home video byKultur Video.
Bernstein with members of the New York Philharmonic rehearsing for a television broadcast,c. 1958
In 1958, Bernstein and Mitropoulos led the New York Philharmonic on its first tour south of the border, through 12 countries in Central and South America. TheUnited States Department of State sponsored the tour to improve the nation's relations with its southern neighbors.[44] In 1959, the Department of State also sponsored Bernstein and the Philharmonic on a 50-concert tour through Europe and the Soviet Union, portions of which were filmed by theCBS Television Network. A highlight of the tour was Bernstein's performance ofShostakovich'sFifth Symphony, in the presence of the composer, who came on stage at the end to congratulate Bernstein and the musicians.
Bernstein championed American composers, especially those with whom he had a close friendship, such asAaron Copland,William Schuman, andDavid Diamond. This decade saw a significant expansion of Bernstein and the Philharmonic's collaboration withColumbia Records, together they releasedover 400 compositions, covering a broad swath of the classical music canon. Bernstein welcomed the Philharmonic's additions of its first Black musician,Sanford Allen, and its second woman musician,Orin O'Brien. Bernstein also shared the Philharmonic's commitment to connecting with as many New Yorkers as possible. That vision became a reality with the launch of the Concerts in the Parks in 1965, which Bernstein conducted often. Another milestone was the Philharmonic's first visit to Japan in 1961, when Bernstein led acclaimed Philharmonic concerts and engaged in cultural exchange. Over the years, he led the Orchestra on tours to 144 cities in 38 countries.
Bernstein initiated the Philharmonic's informal Thursday Evening Preview Concerts, which included Bernstein's talks from the stage, a practice that was unheard of at the time.[105][106] In one oft-reported incident, on April 6, 1962,[107] Bernstein appeared on stage beforea performance of theBrahms Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor to explain that the soloist,Glenn Gould, had chosen an idiosyncratic approach to the work. Bernstein explained that while he did not totally agree with it, he thought Gould's interpretation was an artistically worthy exploration.[108] Bernstein questioned: "In a concerto, who is the boss: the soloist or the conductor?"[109] The incident created a stir that reverberated in the press for decades; seeNew York Philharmonic concert of April 6, 1962 § Legacy.
In 1960, Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic marked the centennial of Gustav Mahler's birth with a series of performances. The composer's widow,Alma, attended some of Bernstein's rehearsals. That same year, Bernstein made his first commercial recording of aMahler symphony (the Fourth). Over the next seven years, he recorded the entireMahler symphony cycle with the New York Philharmonic (except forthe 8th Symphony, which was recorded with theLondon Symphony Orchestra). The combination of concert performances, television talks, and recordings led to a renewed interest in Mahler, especially in the United States.[110] Bernstein claimed that he identified with the works on a personal level, and once wrote of the composer: "I'm so sympathetic to Mahler: I understand his problem. It's like being two different men locked up in the same body; one man is a conductor and the other a composer ... It's like being a double man."[111][112]
Due to his commitment to the New York Philharmonic and his many other activities, Bernstein had little time for composition during the 1960s, composing just two major works. HisSymphony No. 3:Kaddish was written in 1963; Bernstein dedicated the work: "To the Beloved Memory ofJohn F. Kennedy." The work features a large orchestra, a full choir, a boys' choir, a soprano soloist, and a narrator. "Kaddish" refers to the Jewish prayer recited for the dead. Bernstein wrote the text of the narration himself; his wife, Felicia Montealegre, narrated the US premiere of the work.[116]
In 1965, Bernstein took a sabbatical year from the New York Philharmonic to concentrate on composition, during which he composedChichester Psalms. Commissioned by the Dean ofChichester Cathedral,Walter Hussey, the work premiered atPhilharmonic Hall in New York City on July 15, 1965, conducted by Bernstein himself, and subsequently at Chichester Cathedral, conducted by the cathedral's Organist and Master of the Choristers,John Birch. For his text, Bernstein chose excerpts from theBook of Psalms in the originalHebrew.[117] In 2018, Bernstein's Centennial year,Chichester Psalms was cited as the 5th-most performed concert work worldwide.[118]
Vienna Philharmonic debut
In 1966, Bernstein began a lifelong rich relationship with theVienna Philharmonic, conducting concerts as well as making his debut at theVienna State Opera inLuchino Visconti's production ofFalstaff withDietrich Fischer-Dieskau in the title role. Bernstein was largely responsible for restoring the works of Mahler to the Vienna Philharmonic's core repertoire. Bernstein recorded Mahler's Symphonies numerous times with the orchestra.[119] Bernstein returned to the State Opera in 1968 for a production ofDer Rosenkavalier and in 1970 forOtto Schenk's production of Beethoven'sFidelio.
During the 1970s, Bernstein's company, Amberson, in partnership withUnitel, produced and coordinated filmed recordings of his symphonic concerts around the world. For the rest of his life, Bernstein preferred to derive his audio recordings from live performances. Nearly 80% of Bernstein's recordings with his new recording partner,Deutsche Grammophon, were recorded live.[120]
Bernstein's score combines elements of musical theater, jazz, gospel, blues, folk, rock, and symphonic music, and the libretto combines Latin and English liturgy, Hebrew prayer, and additional lyrics written by Bernstein and Schwartz.[122]
Mass received both rapturous and critical reactions, from audiences and music critics alike. While some members of the Catholic Church praised the piece's expression of contemporary crises of faith, others considered it blasphemous. (In 2000,Pope John Paul II requested a performance ofMass at the Vatican itself.)[123]President Richard Nixon declined to attend the premiere due to its anti-Vietnam War message.[124][failed verification] Viewpoints onMass continue to evolve over time, andEdward Seckerson wrote in 2021, 50 years after its premiere: "Put simply, no other work of Bernstein's encapsulates exactly who he was as a man or as a musician; no other work displays his genius, his intellect, his musical virtuosity and innate theatricality quite likeMass."[125][failed verification]
The albumMass peaked at No. 53 on theBillboard Top LPs, during a twenty-week run on the chart.[126]
The Unanswered Question: Six Talks at Harvard
In the 1972–73 academic year, Bernstein was appointed to theCharles Eliot Norton Chair as Professor of Poetry at Harvard, where he delivered six lectures,The Unanswered Question, which explored such elements as tonality, harmony, and form through the lens ofNoam Chomsky's linguistic theories. Bernstein provided musical examples from the piano, and pre-recorded musical works with theBoston Symphony Orchestra.[127] Amberson arranged for the lectures to be videotaped at the WGBH studios in Boston. The six lectures were broadcast on PBS in 1976, and subsequently released on home video[128] and published as a book.[129]
Bernstein collaborated with Jerome Robbins to createDybbuk, a ballet based onS. Ansky's play of the same name. The ballet depicts Ansky's tale of a young woman possessed by a malicious spirit, known in Jewish folklore as a "dybbuk".Dybbuk was premiered by theNew York City Ballet at theNew York State Theater on May 16, 1974, with Bernstein conducting. A revision of the choreography and the score was made later the same year, titledDybbuk Variations. It received its premiere in November 1974.[130]
Songfest: A Cycle of American Poems for Six Singers and Orchestra
Bernstein'sSongfest: A Cycle of American Poems for Six Singers and Orchestra premiered on October 11, 1977, theKennedy Center in Washington, D.C., with the composer conducting theNational Symphony Orchestra. The work was intended as a tribute to the 1976American Bicentennial, but was not finished in time. The work sets an array of texts by 13 American poets spanning three centuries. Bernstein deliberately selected the widest possible array of literary voices to express the nation's essential diversity; the poets includeJune Jordan,Julia de Burgos,Walt Whitman, andLangston Hughes.[131] On July 4, 1985, Bernstein conducted a nationally televised performance ofSongfest as part of the National Symphony's annualA Capitol Fourth concert.[132]
International conducting and recordings
After becoming Conductor Laureate of the New York Philharmonic in 1969, Bernstein took advantage of his freed-up schedule to increase the pace of his world travel, conducting twenty-nine orchestras throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas, and making live recordings with them for bothUnitel andDeutsche Grammophon.[133] Bernstein founded Amberson Productions in 1969. In partnership with Unitel, Amberson created many video productions of concert performances, starting withVerdi's Requiem Mass in St. Paul's Cathedral with theLondon Symphony Orchestra in 1970, produced and directed byHumphrey Burton. Burton would go on to collaborate with Bernstein on his music video projects for the rest of Bernstein's life.[134]
Among the many noteworthy Amberson productions with Unitel were Bernstein conducting Mahler's Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection" with theLondon Symphony Orchestra atEly Cathedral in 1973 andFidelio at the Vienna State Opera in 1978.[138] In 1970, Bernstein wrote and narrated "Bernstein on Beethoven: A Celebration in Vienna," an in-depth exploration of Beethoven on the composer's 200th birthday, filmed on location in and around Vienna.[139] It features excerpts of Bernstein's rehearsals and performance ofFidelio at theVienna State Opera, directed byOtto Schenk (which was later revived and filmed in 1978); Bernstein playing thePiano Concerto No. 1 and conducting from the piano; and a performance ofSymphony No. 9 with theVienna Philharmonic, featuring the youngPlácido Domingo among the soloists. The show, produced and directed by Humphrey Burton, was broadcast around the world and won anEmmy Award.[140]
Also recorded by Unitel, in October 1976, was Bernstein's concert in Munich with theBavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and pianistClaudio Arrau to benefitAmnesty International.[141] To honor his late wife and to continue their joint support for human rights, Bernstein subsequently established the Felicia Montealegre Bernstein Fund of Amnesty International USA to provide aid for human rights activists.[142]
In 1979, Bernstein conducted theBerlin Philharmonic for the first and only time, in two charity concerts for Amnesty International featuring performances of Mahler'sNinth Symphony, recorded live on Deutsche Grammophon.[143] The invitation for the concerts had come from the orchestra and not from its principal conductorHerbert von Karajan. There has been speculation about why Karajan never invited Bernstein to conduct his orchestra. The full reasons will probably never be known—they were on friendly terms and respected each other, but sometimes practiced a little mutualone-upmanship such that they were described as fierce rivals.[144] It was often suggested that Bernstein could not conduct in Berlin while Karajan was alive (the Berlin Philharmonic was regarded as Karajan's own), the truth was that Berlin Philharmonic's managing director Wolfgang Stresemann actually invited Bernstein but as part of a subscription concert series, which Bernstein disliked.[145][146][147]
During the 1980s, Bernstein pursued a packed schedule, continuing to conduct, teach, compose, and produce several television documentaries. Bernstein's most significant compositions of the decade were his operaA Quiet Place;Divertimento for Orchestra;Ḥalil for flute and orchestra;Concerto for Orchestra "Jubilee Games"; and the song cycleArias and Barcarolles. Bernstein received theKennedy Center Honors award in 1980, aGrammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1985, France'sLegion of Honour (Commander) in 1985, and Japan'sPraemium Imperiale in 1990, among others.[148]
In the 1980s, Bernstein cemented his educational legacy by co-founding three music academies:Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute,Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival Orchestral Academy, and thePacific Music Festival.[149] Bernstein continued his longtime relationship withTanglewood to the end of his life, including a lavish televised gala in 1988 to celebrate his 70th birthday, as well as his final concert performance in August 1990.[150]
In 1983, Bernstein wrote a new opera,A Quiet Place, with a libretto by Stephen Wadsworth. The opera premiered at theHouston Grand Opera on June 17, 1983, conducted byJohn DeMain.[151] The opera was a sequel to Bernstein's 1951 operaTrouble in Tahiti, which preceded the new opera at the premiere. In 1984, Bernstein and Wadsworth reconfiguredA Quiet Place to includeTrouble in Tahiti in its middle. This version was performed at La Scala and the Kennedy Center, withJohn Mauceri conducting. In 1986, Bernstein himself conducted and recorded the work at the Vienna State Opera.[152]
On December 25, 1989, Bernstein conducted Beethoven'sSymphony No. 9 in East Berlin'sKonzerthaus as part of a celebration of the fall of theBerlin Wall. He had conducted the same work inWest Berlin the previous day. The orchestra consisted of members representing the two German States and the fouroccupying powers of post-war Berlin. The Christmas Day concert was broadcast live to an estimated audience of 100 million people in more than twenty countries.[160] For the occasion, Bernstein rewordedFriedrich Schiller's text of theOde to Joy, replacing the wordFreude (joy) with the wordFreiheit (freedom).[160] Bernstein added, "I'm sure that Beethoven would have given us his blessing."[161][162]
Bernstein suffered a coughing fit during the third movement of the Beethoven, but continued to conduct the piece to its conclusion, leaving the stage during the ovation, appearing exhausted and in pain.[165] The concert was later issued on CD asLeonard Bernstein – The Final Concert by Deutsche Grammophon.[166]
Amberson Productions
Bernstein's Amberson Productions continued its collaborations with Unitel throughout the 1980s. In 1982,PBS aired an Emmy-nominated seriesBernstein/Beethoven featuring all nine Beethoven symphonies and other works using films that Unitel had recorded of Bernstein conducting the Vienna Philharmonic in the late 1970s.[167] The series includes conversations between Bernstein and actorMaximilian Schell, who also read from Beethoven's letters.[168]
Bernstein conducting the Concertgebouw Orchestra, 1985
Other documentaries that Bernstein made during the 1980s includeThe Little Drummer Boy,[172] which delved into the music ofGustav Mahler, andThe Love of Three Orchestras,[173] exploring his work with the New York, Vienna, and Israel Philharmonics.
Educational activities
Bernstein's nurturing experience at the Tanglewood Music Festival inspired him to use his international influence to recreate that environment for young musicians in the final years of his life.[174] During summer 1987, Bernstein celebrated the 100th anniversary ofNadia Boulanger at theAmerican Conservatory in Fontainebleau. Bernstein gave a master class inside the castle of Fontainebleau.[175]
Orchestra Academy of the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival
In May 1986, Bernstein conducted theBavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus for the inaugural concert of theSchleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, in a performance of Haydn'sDie Schöpfung (The Creation). He returned the following year when he founded the festival's Orchestra Academy, once again recreating the nurturing atmosphere of Bernstein's Tanglewood experience.[178] Over three summers, Bernstein took the students on international tours to Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union.[179]
To commemorate Bernstein's legacy as an educator and founder of the Orchestra Academy, the festival created the Leonard Bernstein Award in 2002, which has honored young musicians includingLang Lang,Jonathan Biss, andAlisa Weilerstein, among many others.[180]
In his opening address, Bernstein said: "And my decision has been, without too much thought, to spend most of the remaining energy and time the Lord grants me in education and sharing, as much as possible, with younger people."[183] As artistic director, Bernstein worked with the students in that first summer, but had to cut his time short due to ill health.[133]
Bernstein Education Through the Arts (BETA) Fund
In 1990, Bernstein received thePraemium Imperiale, an international prize awarded by the Japan Arts Association for lifetime achievement in the arts. Bernstein used the $100,000 prize to establish The Bernstein Education Through the Arts (BETA) Fund.[184] He provided this grant to develop an arts-based education program. The Leonard Bernstein Center was posthumously established in April 1992, and initiated extensive school-based research, ultimately leading to the current Leonard BernsteinArtful Learning Program.[185]
Leonard and Felicia Bernstein leaving for Israel, 1957
Bernstein had two younger siblings, Shirley and Burton.[186] The three children lived with their parents, Samuel and Jennie, in the suburbs ofBoston, Massachusetts, in a community of mostlyEastern European Jewish immigrants.[187]
Bernstein hadasthma, and the condition kept him from serving in the military during World War II.[188]
Bernstein with his wife (Felicia) and three children at their Fairfield, Connecticut home, 1966
Bernstein married actressFelicia Montealegre on September 9, 1951.[189] They had three children: Jamie, Alexander, and Nina.[190] The Bernstein family lived in New York City andFairfield, Connecticut, and maintained a close-knit atmosphere surrounded by extended family and friends.[191] The family owned a house inRedding, Connecticut, which they sold in 1964.[192] Bernstein had a studio with a piano in each of his dwellings. The contents of his former studio at Fairfield, Connecticut are housed at theIndiana University Jacobs School of Music.[193]
Throughout his life, Bernstein hadaffairs with both men and women. In April 1943, he sought advice fromAaron Copland about living as a gay man in the public eye, a notion he brought up again in a letter toDavid Oppenheim in July of that year.[194] In a private letter written after their marriage, Felicia acknowledged her husband's sexual orientation. She wrote him: "You are a homosexual and may never change – you don't admit to the possibility of a double life, but if your peace of mind, your health, your whole nervous system depend on a certain sexual pattern what can you do?"[195][196]
In 1976, Bernstein left Felicia for a period to live in Northern California withTom Cothran, a music scholar who had assisted him on research for theCharles Eliot Norton Lectures that Bernstein delivered at Harvard.[197][198] The following year, Felicia was diagnosed with lung cancer. Bernstein moved back in with her and cared for her until her death on June 16, 1978.[199]
Bernstein continued to have relationships with men until his death on October 14, 1990.[200]
When he was not composing and conducting, Bernstein enjoyed skiing, playing tennis, and engaging in all manner of word games, especiallyanagrams.[201]
Bernstein announced his retirement from conducting on October 9, 1990.[202] He died five days later at the age of 72, in his New York apartment atThe Dakota, of a heart attack brought on bypleural tumor.[203][2][204] A longtime heavy smoker, Bernstein hademphysema from his mid-50s. On the day of his funeral procession through the streets of Manhattan, construction workers removed their hats and waved, calling out "Goodbye, Lenny".[205] Bernstein is buried near the summit ofBattle Hill[206] atGreen-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York,[207] next to his wife and with a copy of the score of Mahler'sFifth Symphony lying across his heart.[208]
On August 25, 2018 (the 100th anniversary of his birth), Bernstein was honored with aGoogle Doodle.[209] TheSkirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles created an exhibition titledLeonard Bernstein at 100 for his centennial.[210][211][212]
Bernstein sought to make music both intelligible and enjoyable to all. Through his educational efforts, including several books and the creation of two major international music festivals, Bernstein influenced several generations of young musicians.
Since earliest adulthood, Bernstein was committed to furthering social change and making the world a better place.[217] Throughout his life, Bernstein fought for a variety of political and humanitarian causes, from thecivil rights movement to theVietnam War protests tonuclear disarmament to advocacy during the AIDS crisis.[218]
Bernstein's first public efforts for social change became apparent in 1939 when, as a college student at Harvard, he organized and led a performance ofMarc Blitzstein's recently banned musical,The Cradle Will Rock, about the struggles of the working class.[219]
Bernstein was involved in numerous left-wing causes and organizations since the 1940s, at which time the FBI began its decades-long monitoring of Bernstein's activities "for his ties to communist organizations."[220] In the 1980s, through the Freedom of Information Act, he was able to view his FBI file, which was over 800 pages long.[221] In the early 1950s, he was briefly blacklisted by theUnited States Department of State andCBS, but he was never asked to testify before theHouse Un-American Activities Committee.[222]
Bernstein expressed his support of civil rights in the United States in numerous ways. Some examples include multiracial casting inOn the Town in the 1940s, instigating blind auditions at the New York Philharmonic in the 1960s and the robust support of artists of color in classical music.[223]
On March 24, 1965, at the invitation ofHarry Belafonte, Bernstein participated in the Stars for Freedom Rally, a star-studded performance in support of the marchers heading fromSelma to Montgomery to demand voting rights. The next day,Martin Luther King Jr., the leader of the march, delivered one of his most famous speeches, "How Long, Not Long".[12]
On January 14, 1970, Bernstein and his wife Felicia held an event at their Manhattan apartment seeking to raise awareness and funds for the defense of members of theBlack Panther Party, known as thePanther 21.[224]The New York Times initially covered the gathering in its society section, but later published an editorial harshly unfavorable to Bernstein.[225][226]
The story became widely publicized, climaxing in June of that year with the appearance of "Radical Chic: That Party at Lenny's", a cover story by journalistTom Wolfe inNew York Magazine.[227] The article led to the popularization of the pejorative term "radical chic".[228] Bernstein and his wife Felicia received hate mail, and their building was picketed byJewish Defense League protesters. Bernstein's FBI file later revealed that the Bureau had generated the letters, and had implanted agents to make the protests look more substantial.[229][230]
Program from "A Concert For Peace at Washington Cathedral", January 19, 1973
On January 21, 1968, Bernstein andPaul Newman co-hosted "Broadway for Peace" at Lincoln Center's Philharmonic Hall to support the Congressional Peace Campaign Committee, which funded congressional campaigns opposing the Vietnam War. For the occasion, Bernstein composed a song, "So Pretty", sung byBarbra Streisand accompanied by Bernstein on the piano.[231]
Bernstein played a key role in the release of renowned cellist and conductorMstislav Rostropovich from theUSSR in 1974. Rostropovich, a strong believer in free speech and democracy, had been officially held in disgrace; his concerts and tours both at home and abroad cancelled; and in 1972 he was prohibited to travel outside of the Soviet Union. During a trip to the USSR in 1974, U.S. Senator from MassachusettsTed Kennedy and his wifeJoan, urged by Bernstein and others in the cultural sphere, mentioned Rostropovich's situation toLeonid Brezhnev, the Soviet Union Communist Party Leader. Two days later, Rostropovich was granted his exit visa.[233][234]
Bernstein was a committed and outspoken supporter ofnuclear disarmament.[235] In 1980, he gave a commencement speech at Johns Hopkins University warning the graduating class of the dangers of nuclear proliferation.[236] In 1983, he dedicated the activities surrounding his 65th birthday to the issue of nuclear disarmament.[237] In 1985, he brought theEuropean Community Youth Orchestra on a "Journey for Peace" tour across Europe and Japan, performing at the Hiroshima Peace Ceremony to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the bombing.[238]
In the 1980s, Bernstein was frustrated that theReagan Administration took so long to acknowledge the existence of theAIDS epidemic, let alone provide resources for research and patient care.[239] Bernstein was galvanized to provide advocacy however he could. In a written statement for a June 1983 benefit for AIDS advocacy in Houston, Bernstein wrote: "AIDS isnot, repeatnot, the Gay Plague it is so often made out to be; it is part of the human condition, and must be universally researched and annihilated."[240]
Bernstein had a lifelong interest in integrating the arts into general education. When he won the Japan Art Association'sPraemium Imperiale award in 1990,[250] Bernstein used the $100,000 prize money to initiate a project in Nashville, Tennessee that would eventually lead to the current nationwide teaching model known asArtful Learning.[251][252][253]
Leonard Bernstein was one of the most significant conductors of the 20th century.[254] He was held in high regard by musicians around the world, including the members of theNew York Philharmonic, which he led for eleven seasons; theVienna Philharmonic, where he received an honorary membership; theBoston Symphony Orchestra, which he conducted principally atTanglewood for over 50 years; theLondon Symphony Orchestra, of which he was president; and theIsrael Philharmonic Orchestra, where he appeared regularly as their guest conductor.[255] Audiences worldwide eagerly anticipated Bernstein's performances, from New York to Tokyo to Caracas to Sydney.[256]
In 1943, Bernstein's last-minute conducting debut inCarnegie Hall with the New York Philharmonic, which was broadcast live nationwide, caused him to become famous overnight. He soon became the first American-born, American-trained conductor to achieve international status, at a time when conductors traditionally came from Europe.[257]
Bernstein's three major conducting mentors wereSerge Koussevitzky,Dimitri Mitropoulos, andFritz Reiner.[258] Bernstein's conducting was characterized by his physically expressive podium manner.[259] Orchestra members often remarked that Bernstein's every gesture conveyed a specific musical communication for them.[260]
Bernstein performed a wide classical music repertoire from the Baroque era to the music of his time.[261] Bernstein conducted and recorded definitive interpretations of works by traditional composers such as Haydn, Beethoven, Brahms, Schumann, and Tchaikovsky; championed music by lesser known composers such as Mahler, Sibelius, and Nielsen; and advocated modern composers such as Stravinsky, Hindemith, Shostakovich, and Ligeti.[262] Bernstein programmed American composers everywhere in the world that he conducted, sharing the music of Gershwin, Copland, and Ives.[263] He expanded the definitions of the genres that could be included in the concert hall by programming jazz, musical theater, and works from Latin America.[264]
A skilled pianist, he often conducted piano concertos from the keyboard, including works by Gershwin, Mozart, Beethoven, and Ravel.[265]
Bernstein's impact as an educator stretched far beyond his music students. Through the medium of television, Bernstein introduced millions of viewers worldwide to symphonic music. HisYoung People's Concerts with the New York Philharmonic brought in younger viewers, while hisOmnibus,Ford Presents, andLincoln Presents brought musical concepts to general audiences.[267]
Bernstein's music combined genres and musical styles. He wove together elements of classical,jazz, popular,Broadway,Latin,Jewish music, and more to create a musical fabric uniquely his own.[270]
Among the 20th century composers who influenced Bernstein wereAaron Copland,Igor Stravinsky,Maurice Ravel,George Gershwin, andMarc Blitzstein.[258] Bernstein's score forWest Side Story incorporated multiple elements from classical, Latin-Caribbean, and bebop jazz.[273] While his music was rooted in tonality, many of his works incorporated12-tone elements – from the atonal score of the balletDybbuk to hisSymphony No. 3: "Kaddish".[274]
Bernstein's Broadway shows —West Side Story,On the Town,Wonderful Town, andCandide — as well as his theatre pieceMASS continue to be produced worldwide. In addition to his works for the stage, all three of his symphonies, hisSerenade, and his song cycles, includingSongfest andArias and Barcaroles, are inspired by theatrical and literary sources. Bernstein himself said that virtually all his compositions "could in some sense be thought of as 'theatre' pieces".[275]
The eclectic nature of Bernstein's music often generated criticism, particularly from the academic community of the mid-20th century where theSecond Viennese School and its 12-tone approach held sway.[277] Bernstein received additional criticism for his theatre workMASS, which some members of the Catholic Church considered offensive. The work's thinly veiled antiwar stance was enough to prevent President Richard Nixon from attending the premiere at the 1971 opening of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.[278] While his eclecticism, as well as his fearlessness in taking on social issues, generated controversy in his lifetime, Bernstein is now considered a hero and role model for the next generation of composers.[279]
Despite frequent criticism in his lifetime, Bernstein's music has endured into the 21st century and is regularly performed, discussed, and recorded around the world. In 2008–09, his 90th anniversary year, Bernstein was the second-most frequently performed American composer (behind Aaron Copland).[280] In 2018, his centennial year, Bernstein was the third-most played composer worldwide for the year, alongside Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, and Brahms. That year, four of the five most-played concert works worldwide were Bernstein compositions:Symphonic Dances from West Side Story,Overture to Candide,Serenade (after Plato's Symposium), andChichester Psalms.[281]
Between 1945 and 1950, Bernstein recorded a variety of works forRCA Victor, primarily consisting of his own compositions and those of other American composers.[282] During this time, he also recorded forDecca Records and Hargail Records.[8] His recordings forDecca Records contains some "musical analysis" recordings in a form similar to hisYoung People's Concerts.[283]
On April 2, 1956, Bernstein signed his first long-term contract withColumbia Records regarding services as conductor, piano soloist, and as commentator. Between 1956 and 1979, Bernstein recorded over 500 compositions for Columbia, 455 of which were recorded with theNew York Philharmonic.[284] Bernstein's typical pattern of recording at that time was to record major works in the studio immediately following the orchestra's subscription concerts or on one of theYoung People's Concerts. Any spare studio time that remained was used to record short orchestral showpieces and other works.
In 1990,Sony Classical acquired Columbia/CBS Records. Between 1992 and 1993, Sony reissued and digitally remastered Bernstein's complete Columbia catalog as part of a 100-volume, 125-CD "Royal Edition", featuring watercolors byCharles, Prince of Wales on the covers.[285][286]
Between 1997 and 2001, Sony issued the "Bernstein Century" series, which was a combination of new re-releases and items from the "Royal Edition".[287] The rights to Bernstein's RCA Victor recordings became owned by Sony following its 2008 acquisition ofBertelsmann Music Group (BMG). The complete Bernstein Columbia and RCA Victor catalog was reissued on CD in a three-volume series of box sets (released in 2010, 2014, and 2018, respectively) comprising a total of 198 discs under the mantle "Leonard Bernstein Edition".[288]
In 1972, Bernstein made his first recording forDeutsche Grammophon: Bizet'sCarmen. On October 17, 1976, Bernstein made his first live recording on Deutsche Grammophon, leading to a 14-year collaboration until his death in 1990. The vast majority of the DG recordings were of live performances, which had become Bernstein's preferred approach to recording. From the 1970s onward, Bernstein's audio recordings were supplemented with films produced by Amberson Productions andUnitel, which were subsequently released onLaserDisc and DVD.[289]
^Bradley, Mark Philip (September 12, 2016).The World Reimagined – Americans and Human Rights in the Twentieth Century. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 13.ISBN978-0-521-82975-5.OCLC946031535.
^Jack Gottlieb (1998).Leonard Bernstein: Life, Musical Compositions & Writings (3rd ed.). New York: Leonard Bernstein Music Publishing Company.ISBN0-913932-82-5.OCLC40803989.
^Bernstein, Jamie (2018).Famous father girl: a memoir of growing up Bernstein (First ed.). New York, NY: Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers.ISBN978-0-06-264135-9.
^Wilson, Scott.Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3rd ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 3707–3708). McFarland & Company. Kindle Edition.
^"Radical Chic".Hope for America: Performers, Politics and Pop Culture. Library of Congress. Archived fromthe original on July 25, 2012. RetrievedDecember 12, 2010.
^Kennedy, Joan (September 1, 1994).The Joy of Classical Music: A Guide for You and Your Family (Reissue ed.). New York: Main Street Books.ISBN978-0-385-41263-6.
^Kristine Forney; Joseph Machlis (2007)."Leonard Bernstein".The Enjoyment of Music (10th StudySpace ed.). W. W. Norton.ISBN978-0-393-92888-4. Archived fromthe original on February 28, 2024. RetrievedFebruary 28, 2024 – via W. W. Norton & Company Study Space.
Laird, Paul R.; Lin, Hsun (2019).Historical Dictionary of Leonard Bernstein. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.ISBN978-1-5381-1344-8.OCLC1084631326.
Hurwitz, Johanna (1963).Leonard Bernstein: A Passion of Music. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society.ISBN978-0-8276-0501-5.
Ledbetter, Steven (1988).Sennets & Tuckets, A Bernstein Celebration. Boston: Boston Symphony Orchestra in association with David Godine Publisher.ISBN978-0-87923-775-2.
Reidy, John P. & Norman Richards (1967).People of Destiny: Leonard Bernstein. Chicago: Children's Press.ASINB0092UTPIW.
Robinson, Paul (1982).Bernstein (The Art of Conducting Series). New York: Vanguard Press.ASINB01K92K1OI.
Rozen, Brian D. (1997).The Contributions of Leonard Bernstein to Music Education: An Analysis of his 53 Young People's Concerts (PhD thesis). Rochester, New York:University of Rochester.OCLC48156751.
Harvey Fierstein / Marco Paguia, David Oquendo, Renesito Avich, Gustavo Schartz, Javier Días, Román Diaz, Mauricio Herrera, Jesus Ricardo, Eddie Venegas, Hery Paz, and Leonardo Reyna / Jamie Harrison, Chris Fisher, Gary Beestone, and Edward Pierce (2025)
.jpg)
_-_1944_-_foto_van_Vechten2.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
