Leonard Bernstein: the 100 most inspiring musicians of all time

American conductor, composer, and pianist Leonard Bernstein (b. Aug. 25, 1918, Lawrence, Mass., U.S.—d. Oct. 14, 1990, New York, N.Y.) was noted for his accomplishments in both classical and popular music, for his flamboyant conducting style, and for his pedagogic flair, especially in
concerts for young people.

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Bernstein played piano from age 10. He attended Boston Latin School; Harvard University (A.B., 1939), where he took courses in music theory with Arthur Tillman Merritt and counterpoint with Walter Piston; the Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia (1939–41), where he studied conducting with Fritz Reiner and orchestration with Randall Thompson; and the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood, Mass., where he studied conducting with Serge Koussevitzky.

In 1943 Bernstein was appointed assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic; the first signal of his forthcoming success came on Nov. 14, 1943, when he was summoned unexpectedly to substitute for the conductor Bruno Walter. His technical self-assurance under difficult circumstances and his interpretive excellence made an immediate impression and marked the beginning of a brilliant career. He subsequently conducted the New York City Center orchestra (1945–47) and appeared as guest conductor in the United States, Europe, and Israel.

In 1953, he became the first American to conduct at La Scala in Milan. From 1958 to 1969 Bernstein was conductor and musical director of the New York Philharmonic, becoming the first American-born holder of those posts. With this orchestra he made several international tours in Latin America, Europe, the Soviet Union, and Japan. His popularity increased through his appearances not only as conductor and pianist but also as a commentator and entertainer. Bernstein explained classical music to young listeners on such television shows as “Omnibus” and “Young People’s Concerts.” After 1969 he continued to write music and to perform as a guest conductor with several symphonies throughout the world.

As a composer Bernstein made skillful use of diverse elements ranging from biblical themes, as in the Symphony No. 1 (1942; also called Jeremiah) and the Chichester Psalms (1965); to jazz rhythms, as in the Symphony No. 2 (1949; The Age of Anxiety), after a poem by W.H. Auden; to Jewish liturgical themes, as in the Symphony No. 3 (1963; Kaddish).

His best-known works are the musicals On the Town (1944; filmed 1949), Wonderful Town (1953; filmed 1958), Candide (1956), and the very popular West Side Story (1957; filmed 1961), written in collaboration with Stephen Sondheim and Jerome Robbins. He also wrote the scores for the ballets Fancy Free (1944), Facsimile (1946), and Dybbuk (1974), and he composed the music for the film On the Waterfront (1954), for which he received an Academy Award nomination. His Mass, written especially for the occasion, was performed at the opening of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., in September 1971.

In 1989, he conducted two historic performances of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D Minor (1824; Choral), which were held in East and West Berlin to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall. Bernstein published a collection of lectures, The Joy of Music (1959); Young People’s Concerts, for Reading and Listening (1962, rev. ed. 1970); The Infinite Variety of Music (1966); and The Unanswered Question (1976), taken from his Charles Eliot Norton lectures at Harvard University (1973).

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The Best of Leonard Bernstein

THE BEST OF LEONARD BERNSTEIN 00:00 André Previn, London Symphony Orchestra – Candide: Overture 04:18 Edo de Waart, Minnesota Orchestra – 3 Dance Episodes from On the Town: No. 3, Times Square 1944 09:47 Paavo Järvi & City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra – Symphonic Dances from West Side Story: No. 1, Prologue 14:12 Sir Simon Rattle, Audra McDonald, Kim Criswell – Bernstein: Wonderful Town, Act 2: “Wrong Note Rag” (Ruth, Eileen, Villagers)

16:37 Edo de Waart, Minnesota Orchestra – 3 Dance Episodes from On the Town: No. 2, Lonely Town. Pas de deux 20:16 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 1 “Jeremiah”: I. Prophecy (Largamente) 27:29 Antonio Pappano, Marie-Nicole Lemieux, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 1 ‘Jeremiah’: II. Profanation (Vivace con brio) 34:44 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 1 “Jeremiah”: III. Lamentation 45:49 Edo de Waart, Minnesota Orchestra Symphonic – Dances from West Side Story: No. 4, Mambo 48:16 George Bühl, London Symphony Orchestra – Prelude, Fugue and Riffs: No. 1, Prelude for the Brass

50:02 George Bühl, London Symphony Orchestra – Prelude, Fugue and Riffs: No. 2, Fugue for the Saxes 51:55 George Bühl, London Symphony Orchestra – Prelude, Fugue and Riffs: No. 3, Riffs for Everyone 56:06 Lambert Wilson, John McGlinn – Bernstein: West Side Story, Act 1: “Maria” 58:56 Choir of King’s College, Cambridge & Stephen Cleobury – Chichester Psalms: I. Psalm CVIII. “Urah, hanevel, v’chinor!” – Psalm C. “Hari’u l’Adonai kol ha’arets” (Version for Choir, Organ, Harp and Percussion)

01:02:51 Choir of King’s College, Cambridge & Stephen Cleobury – Chichester Psalms: II. Psalm XXIII. “Adonai ro-i, lo ehsar” – Psalm II. “Lamah rag’shu goyim” (Version for Choir, Organ, Harp and Percussion) 01:07:58 Choir of King’s College, Cambridge & Stephen Cleobury – Chichester Psalms: III. Psalm CXXXI. “Adonai, Adonai” – Psalm CXXXIII. “Hineh mah tov” (Version for Choir, Organ, Harp and Percussion) 01:16:53 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: Ia. Invocation (Adagio)

01:19:54 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: Ib. Kaddish 1 (L’ istesso tempo – Allegro molto) 01:25:23 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: IIa. Din – Torah – Di nuovo adagio 01:32:15 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: II. (b) Kaddish 2 01:39:46 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: IIIa. Scherzo – Presto scherzando, sempre pianissimo 01:44:50 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: IIIb. Kaddish 3

01:47:45 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: IIIc. Finale – Adagio come nel Din-Torah 01:53:17 Antonio Pappano, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Symphony No. 3 “Kaddish”: Fuga – Allegro vivo con gioia