Leonard Bernstein at 100

Wynton Marsalis discusses Bernstein's legacy, addressing the topics of race, Jewish music, and African American spirituals.

This interview was conducted in 2018 by the National Museum of American Jewish History, located on Historic Independence Mall in Philadelphia, as part of the original exhibition "Leonard Bernstein: The Power of Music".

I took this photo of Leonard after a rehearsal. A woman had presented him a stuffed lion and when he posed with it I quickly reacted and grabbed this photo. One of my all time favorites!

I produced this recording for Deutsche Grammophon in the fall of 1972. After several months of post-production in Hannover, I brought discs of the preliminary edit back to New York in March of 1973 and played them for LB at his Amberson Productions offices on Sixth Avenue.

He liked it, and didn't ask for any of the 692 edits to be changed, but he requested a number of subtle but important changes in the mix. I went back to Germany, made those changes and sent him a new set of discs, along with a note expressing my admiration and thanks. This is the note which I received from him in reply.

The recording was released later that spring to wide acclaim. It was DG's best-selling opera recording, and Maestro and I each received a Grammy Award for it.

My father hit me only twice. Once when came home at 4 am, without calling, after an evening at the Fillmore East. The first time, though, I was three years old. I was in his studio while he was studying a score. I thought it would be funny to pretend to sharpen a pencil in his ear. I believe I did deserve that slap!

One of the most memorable days of my life. (Listen to the audio below)

Candide opened in 1956. I was four. My parents were all dressed up; clearly they were about to do something exciting. “Where are you going?” I asked. “We’re going to see Candide!” Mummy said, with a little shiver of anticipation. They were going to see candy? That sounded wonderful. “I want to go too!” I said. “No, darling, this is for grownups.” Candy – for grownups? Impossible. “But I want to see the candy! I want to see the can-deee...!” I was still kicking my nanny's shins in the throes of my tantrum as Mummy and Daddy scurried out the door in their opening night finery.

I had never met Lenny, but like thousands of musicians around the world he had a tremendous influence on my early interest in music. In 1988 when Zubin Mehta commissioned my Concerto for Trumpet for the NY Philharmonic I wrote a note to Mr. Bernstein in hopes of inviting him to the premiere. Unfortunately I never knew if he had received it or not.

Several years later the Chamber Music Society commissioned me to write a piece for string trio, horn, clarinet and piano. They wanted a short piece that could open the 1990 season in October. I composed RIFFS & FANFARES and throughout the writing process I thought a lot about Bernstein and the wonderful music he had composed and in particular for the film ON THE WATERFRONT. I attended the Chamber Music Society’s first rehearsal at Alice Tully on October 14, and afterwards I remember crossing the street to Avery Fisher Hall. I remember passing Nick Webster in the lobby and noticed that he seemed depressed and sad. I asked, “How are you” and he replied “not well.” I later found out that Leonard Bernstein had passed away that day. It was at that time I dedicated Riffs and Fanfares to Lenny’s memory. The premiere was to take place the week of his passing.

The amazing coincidence is that the review of the concert in the NY Times on Oct. 22, 1990, by James Oestreich was as follows:

"As it happened, this addition merely enhanced the symmetry of an already well-balanced program, which alternated larger European standards with brief contemporary American works. What's more, another of the recent works, Joseph Turrin's well-crafted "Riffs and Fanfares" for clarinet, horn, string trio and piano, commissioned by the society and receiving its premiere, also made a nod toward the late composer, with a brief melodic figure right out of Bernstein's score for the movie "On the Waterfront." This may, of course, have been inadvertent, in a work completed before Bernstein's death, but perhaps not; as a film composer himself, Mr. Turrin must surely know the older score."

West Side Story, "Somewhere (Ballet)", — but, only the Broadway version of the score. Lenny added a 49 - 50 bars of a syncopated melody to the Somewhere ballet. This was about 90 seconds of music that has blown my mind since i was a little boy. ( about 55 years ago).
There are only a few pieces of music in my long life that have affected me as severely as this ballet music.
1. Bix Beiderbecke's, "In A Mist"
2. Claude Debussy, "Clair de Lune" & "Golliwogg's Cakewalk".
3. Thelonious Monk. "Epistrophy".
4. Mozart's, "The Magic Flute".
And Lenny achieved this in 50 bars. Dear Lord, what hath God wrought?

I was recommended to Jack Gottlieb by Sid Ramin to come into the apartment at the Dakota and help Lenny program a synthesizer for the American premiere of "A Quiet Place". What should have only taken a few hours took all day, because Lenny loved to talk about everything from his recent recording of "Tristan and Isolde" to Cicero's orations in the Roman Senate. But, since I brought my own Prophet 5, I had to plug into something to hear it, and so I set up next to his stereo system to plug into that. And I vividly remember what he had on his turntable : Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing".

One of the most amazing gifts one can have as it relates to music is being raised in New York City.

While I was privy to many music lessons both as a young girl and my parents giving me piano lessons and then in junior high where I was assessed as being musically inclined and had the privilege of joining the school orchestra during the three years I was there; some of the most amazing musical experiences I have ever had was having been able to attend many of Leonard Bernstein's young people concerts growing up and then having seen him once in Tanglewood in The Shed during a summer that I worked as a counselor nearby... and now at 70 years old I have just had the amazing experience of completed the reading of his daughter Jamie Bernstein book "Famous Father Girl". Having always searched out any article or piece of written material about Leonard Bernstein throughout my lifetime I must say I have to thank Jamie for sharing information about her father that simply has allowed me to know more about him and his amazing family that I never knew before...thank you.

My parents with Leonard Bernstein on opening night of the LA premier of Mass. My father directed the boys choir in the production, who were selected from the St. Luke’s Choristers in Long Beach.

I remember listening to Leonard Bernstein's interpretation of the Grand Canyon Suite when I was about 10 years old.

To this day, his performance of the Grand Canyon Suite with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra is a "must listen" for anyone who wants to conduct an orchestra and do it brilliantly.

I am still in awe of his talent.

1957-58 - Staged in Manchester Opera House - We emerged, shaken, thrilled, and said, "WHAT WAS THAT?!?" One of our group, with a beautiful voice, started to sing "Maria" and it went on from there - "Officer Krupke," etc.

I vividly remember my father sitting me down in front of our television - one of the first - to watch Leonard Bernstein conducting the Marriage of Figaro on Omnibus. To this day I can still sing Figaro's aria in English, which I learned watching that program. I must have been 5 or 6. And of course, I have loved that opera ever since. And just as he remembered hearing Beethoven in Boston, so I remember his Mozart.

In 1984 I was a PhD. student from Lima, Peru, at the University of Pittsburgh and working part time as an architect to support myself.

I have always been interested in classical music since childhood as my two older brothers played it at home. West Side Story was later one of my favorite movies and musicals of all times.

When I learned that Leonard Bernstein, the composer of the music of the film that I loved and identified with would be in town that February in a gala concert to benefit the Pittsburgh Symphony Society, I immediately purchased two tickets to attend the performance with my girlfriend, later my beloved wife.

I don't remember what the program was, but just because one of my favorite composers was the conductor of the orchestra, it was the opportunity of my lifetime to see him in person.

After the concert, I rushed backstage with other attendees to meet him.

After a few moments, he appeared in the rehearsal room where a grand piano was, dressed in a silk smoking jacket and his typical turtleneck shirt and smoking a cigarette as usual. He greeted everyone and was very charming and funny. After standing in line with many others to greet him, he readily signed my program and chatted briefly with me. I was very impressed by his simplicity and kindness. I admired him not only for being one of the best American composers of modern times, but his openness with everyone, young or old, of any walks of life. I was very fortunate that he came to Pittsburgh and that I could meet him personally.

As a coda, I became a US citizen in 1992, thanks to the influence his music had in me. Unfortunately the signed program of that benefit concert that he autographed was given to one of my brothers, and it is long lost now.

Some of my oldest memories are of my grandmother singing along to West Side Story. She was a Puerto Rican immigrant whose lipstick was as bright as her personality. The sound of her voice, mixed with laughter and pride, emulating the kinship she felt with Maria: both loyal to family and heart, both seamstresses in love with gringos; inspired a lifelong love of musicals, dance, music and the arts. Lenny touched the hearts, minds and spirits of generations. So blessed to be included among the many!

The first time I heard what is now my favorite LB composition was when my brother sang it in his high school choir. They were the first below a collegiate level to perform the work, and they invited the maestro to attend. His office had to send regrets, as his schedule was committed about five years out at that point (early '70s)! They did send him a recording, which he complimented them on eventually. And the school did the piece again when I was in that same choir in 1976.

I played oboe in high school. My first oboe solo was playing Overture to Candide. I feel in love with Bernstein during our performance. It was as if the entire stage was on fire. Every musician had smiles on their faces when we were finished.

In the fall of 2018, a course covering the legacy of Leonard Bernstein was offered at Indiana University in Bloomington, IN, by Professor Constance Glen. Bernstein's legacy includes not only his compositions, but his role as a conductor, pianist, educator, and social activist. Viewing his mission as one of "social change" through the arts, Bernstein's larger-than-life persona is fascinating to discover. This course covered his music, career(s), and his model for musical and personal activism. Students even got the chance to video conference with Bernstein's son, Alexander Bernstein!

Here, I have gathered several testimonies from other students in the class who have gotten to experience Leonard Bernstein through education, as well as my own testimony.

"I will always cherish my time and memories of this course. My time in this course has taught me not only how to listen to Leonard Bernstein's work more thoughtfully, but it has given me a larger and more intense appreciation for classical music as a whole. I especially am fond of the conversation we had with Leonard's son, Alexander. Alexander was humble and sweet telling stories of his father, while also showing us Leonard's passion and will to change the world." - Bailey Hull

"Our talk with Alexander Bernstein helped bring Leonard to life for me. It has been wonderful learning about his accomplishments and works, but connecting them all together with Alexander's personal stories was the most enriching part." - Lily Rexing

"It's been so cool to get an inside look at Bernstein's life and see how many accomplishments he had outside of just music" - Hannah Jacko

"This has been one of my favorite classes here, and I think one memory of many amazing ones that stands out was the memory Alexander shared with us during our video chat: he recalled a performance Lenny made in an empty bar in Jamaica shortly after Felicia passed away. Rhapsody in Blue. The overwhelming love Bernstein has conveyed through his music to fans has really changed my perspective on music for the better." - Kenzie Conrad

"When I think of Bernstein, I think of hope. He brought hope to the whole country with his Resurrection Symphony after JFK's death. I will always remember Bernstein as a light through all darkness." - Marie O'Neill

"This class has been absolutely eye-opening to the person Bernstein was. I loved how he was such a passionate artist and person. The passion came through in everything he did, every piece he wrote, and every piece he conducted. My absolute favorite piece to listen to, I feel, will now always be Kaddish or Mahler's Resurrection Symphony, all because of the passion and emotion he instilled in each." - Abby Tauber

"Bernstein brings so many gifts to the world. He leads people to think more about love and peace. His music heals the people from different cultures. I also think he is a hero who creates a musical melting pot!" - Ning Sun

"My favorite memory of our course is the valuable conversation we were lucky to have with Alexander Bernstein. He has so much of Leonard in him and was so willing to share amazing stories about their time as a family. They have the same vocal inflections, laugh and smile, as well as infectious enthusiasm to teach others. I have never known a love for Mahler so strong...I'm also now obsessed." - Hannah Estabrook

"Perhaps my most profound memories of Bernstein are from teaching and reading some of the more poignant essays and then sharing them with undergraduates. To this day, every time I read Lenny’s “This I Believe” to a class, the room gets very quiet as students try to digest the importance of the essay, the lively and inspiring commentary, and the fact that I’m talking about “love” in a college classroom. It is an important moment to realize that art, communication, and love all belong in the same realm and that we should talk about them.

Thank you, Leonard Bernstein, for such a rich legacy of music, conducting, essays, and video broadcasts of your brilliant explanations. You left us with so many things that we can enjoy again and again and I’ll always be grateful for that." - Professor Constance Glen

I remember nothing – not one detail. My parents said we watched Young People’s Concerts on TV when we were very young, but the only aspect that feels familiar is the idea of LB himself: electric, fascinating, always teaching. Leonard Bernstein's marvelous lessons have been a fact of my life all my life, like being right-handed or being Jewish or knowing how to read. Without a sliver of doubt, I know that everything I love about music sprang from LB’s lessons in one way or another.

My father gave me a treasure: a record of LB’s Omnibus lecture about Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Lenny’s description of Beethoven could easily fit Lenny himself: “[T]he great artist… will give away his life and his energies just to make sure that one note follows another with complete inevitability. [He] leaves us at the finish with the feeling that something is right in the world… something we can trust that will never let us down.”

Merci, Lenny. Danke. Todah rabah. Thank you.

I was hired as a percussionist in the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra on 12 September 1978. My first experiences with the orchestra began the next day under Lenny's baton at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. We performed Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Lenny's Chichester Psalms that Saturday, and repeated the program the next day at Carnegie Hall. After that performance, I had a few weeks to tidy up my affairs and move to Tel Aviv.

My first flight there was difficult. The scheduled flight was cancelled. I was booked on another flight that traveled through different cities than my original itinerary, and after a flight delay, I arrived in Israel later than planned. I was picked up at Lod Airport by a gentleman from the orchestra who said "We've got to hurry - rehearsal starts in ten minutes!" We were rehearsing Lenny's "Serenade for Violin" for our recording with Gidon Kremer. Rehearsal had already started by the time we arrived at Mann Auditorium.

As I got out of the car, another percussionist met me, placed chime mallets in my hands, and said "We have about twenty-four measures until your entrance!" (All this after thirteen or so hours on a Boeing 707!) I hurried onto the stage - trying not to be disruptive - and looked at my part. The moment came for me to play, and it passed just as quickly. Lenny stopped the orchestra, undoubtedly wondering where the chime part was. He looked at me, then turned to the violins and said something about their bowing (or something - I was too scared to really know), looked back at me, and said "Let's try that section again." As my entrance approached, I thought to myself "Don't miss it!" Of course, once again, the chime part was absent. Again, Lenny stopped. This time, he looked at the clarinets, said something to them about their articulation (as I recall), looked directly at me, and said "one more time - back to the beginning of that section." Now, the pressure was really on. "Here it comes, here it comes - and there it goes!" I missed it - again!

Lenny stopped the orchestra. He looked up at me and said "Ron, I know you just got off the plane from the states, but next time through, try to get a few of the notes, okay?" I had no idea he even knew my name! Talk about making a first impression... But, that's the kind of guy I remember him as being. Someone who treated his musicians as collaborators and colleagues. A larger-than-life man who was never Mr. Bernstein or Maestro, but just Lenny. The kind of guy who would share pizza and beer with you after a rehearsal. Who would delight his guests by improvising at the piano at his sixty-first birthday party. Kind, gentle, patient - a real mensch. A blessing to all who have ever known him or experienced his art. He will always be a part of us.

From 1980-1996, my father, Gustav Meier, headed the Conducting Fellow program at Tanglewood's Berkshire Music Center. Bernstein was a frequent guest during the conducting seminars held at Seranak, Koussevitzky's former home. I didn't take this photo of Dad (in the middle) with Leon (left) and Lenny (right) as my Dad called him. This was one of only two photos my father had hanging in his office at the Peabody Conservatory from which he retired as Director of the Conducting Fellows Program at 85. I had the pleasure of sitting in these seminars over the years and watching my father or Bernstein or Ozawa coach young conductors. It was a magical thing to watch.

My grandparents were Benjamin and Esther Weissman, who owned American Textile Co, later Robert Allen Fabrics. My grandfather used to give a lift to Leonard Bernstein for his piano lessons from the lake in Sharon into Boston on his way to work.

The Weissman’s and Bernstein’s were next door neighbors in Sharon. My grandmother was friends with, and lived for some time in a building on Route 9 in Chestnut Hill, MA, with Leonard Bernstein’s mother until late in life. I can remember my grandmother late in life telling me that little Lenny was always playing the piano, and that if she knew that little Lenny would become Leonard Bernstein that she would have spent more time listening to him play.

Leonard Bernstein is probably the only conductor who has made me shed a tear owing to beauty, truthfulness and pathos found in the music he was creating. A Brahms symphony from Vienna came at time of great personal fatigue. The Beethoven’s 9th from Berlin captured history as none else could. And then a piano accompaniment to Eileen Ferrell to the song “Some Other Time”; the level of truth, love, sadness and wistful memories in those two people is amazing and says so much. In each of these instances, the synergy of conductor and music reaches the heart and just grabs hold of you.

Lenard Bernstein represented all the best of Americans after the War. He drew people in and was not afraid of differences. He sought to share, learn and create new music which would both appeal to all yet respect respect where it was coming from. The world of classical music is fortunate that he stayed true to his tonal roots, and the desire to touch peoples hearts.