Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Thank you to everyone who donated this month and helped us reach our Bach Pot goal of 500 donations. There is still time to get your donation in - make your contribution today!
Join The Classical Network as we celebrate the legacy of Leonard Bernstein for the 100th Centennial of his Birth (August 25). Our live hosts will highlight recordings of Bernstein as composer, conductor, pianist and educator the week of Aug. 20, 2018, including all-day tributes Friday Aug. 24 and Saturday Aug. 25. Many of our specialty programs will also put the focus on Bernstein, as listed below.In addition, enjoy a special week of Exploring Music with Bill McGlaughlin weeknights at 7 pm. McGlaughlin is spending the week at the 6th annual Tucson Desert Song Festival for their celebration of Leonard Bernstein at 100. George Hanson, artistic director of the festival, welcomed Exploring Music to a week of lectures, workshops, master classes, along with performances of Candide, Trouble in Tahiti, Mass and the Kaddish Symphony, featuring a narration written and performed by the Maestro's daughter, Jamie Bernstein. The New York Philharmonic This Week is also featuring all-Bernstein programs on its weekly radio broadcasts, which you can hear Wednesdays at 8 pm.Pipedreams with Michael Barone pays tribute to Bernstein with Chichester Psalms and organ arrangements of the overture to Candide several other works Sunday at 7 am.

Grammy Awards Pay Tribute to Bernstein in Broadcast, Exhibit

During this year’s Grammy Awards, the televised program Sunday will include a tribute to Leonard Bernstein, just one of the many ways the music world this year is marking what would have been the 100th anniversary of his birth in August 1918. 

The Recording Academy has also created an exhibit, Leonard Bernstein at 100, that is touring the US and is currently on display at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, located at Lincoln Center. While the Los Angeles-based Grammy Museum has previously celebrated the centenaries of Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and Woody Guthrie, Bernstein is the first figure in the classical music world to be highlighted  – in part because of Bernstein’s nearly universal musical legacy.

“When we realized that 2018 would be the centennial of Leonard Bernstein’s birth, we thought, wow, what a perfect opportunity,” Santelli said. “He’s a great, very, very important figure, not just in American classical music, but world classical music. To be given the opportunity to tell his story for the long-time fans, of which there are very many, as well as young fans, young people, for instance, who may not even know the name, but might know some of the work, like West Side Story, and to interpret his life and interpret his music and his significance, is something that we’ve been honored to do.” 

Credit New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
/
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts

Among the items on display are album covers, performance recordings (including his New York Philharmonic debut), the family piano from his childhood home, scores with handwritten notes, programs from concerts and benefits he gave supporting the causes he championed, such as peace and social justice, and several of his Grammy and Emmy awards. There are are also interactive displays, such as a karaoke-style booth inviting visitors to sing along with West Side Story’s "America."

This week on A Tempo (1/27), host Rachel Katz visits the exhibit and speaks with Santelli and Jonathan Hiam, the library’s curator of music and recorded sound. which contributed items from its own collection. The exhibit is presented in cooperation with the Bernstein Family, The Leonard Bernstein Office, Inc., Brandeis University and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. 

Credit New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
/
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts

“I’ve been taken by just the love people had for him, and the trust, and the sort of hope he represented for people,” said Haim, adding that Bernstein displayed a love and appreciation for all forms of music throughout his career. The exhibit also focuses on his work with children, including excerpts from his Young People’s Concerts.

A Tempo airs Saturdays at 7 pm.

Rachel Katz is the host of A Tempo which airs Saturdays at 7 pm.
Related Content