Leonard Bernstein: influences, peers and legacy

Every connection with its receipt

Bernstein was three careers braided into one: the Mahler-channeling podium titan, the composer of Broadway and the concert hall, and the television educator who taught America how to listen. This mix traces the Copland-and-Blitzstein lineage of his composing, the Boston-Tanglewood soil he grew in, the poems and philosophy he set to music, and the conductors who still talk like him.

The Kynda mix for Leonard Bernstein

• Key Influence · Piano Variations by Aaron Copland (1930). Bernstein met Copland at a dance recital in New York in 1937 and played the Piano Variations for him at a birthday party; the austere, percussive piece became Bernstein's party trick and lifelong calling card. Copland became his unofficial composition teacher, editor and conscience, pruning Bernstein's scores for decades. The angular American modernism of the Variations echoes through Bernstein's early piano writing and the jagged ballet rhythms of his theatre music.','.0'.replace.','
• Influencia Obscura · The Cradle Will Rock by Marc Blitzstein (1937). As a Harvard undergraduate in 1939 Bernstein staged and played the piano for a student production of Blitzstein's agitprop opera, with the composer himself attending; the two became close friends. Blitzstein's fusion of Brechtian politics, vaudeville idiom and operatic ambition is the missing link between Broadway and the concert hall that Bernstein spent his life exploiting, and his 1952 Threepenny Opera translation shaped Bernstein's theatrical voice.
• Local Roots · Concerto for Double Bass by Serge Koussevitzky (1905). Koussevitzky, the bass-virtuoso-turned-maestro of the Boston Symphony, took Bernstein on at the first Tanglewood season in 1940 and made him his assistant; Bernstein called him Lenushka's spiritual father and conducted wearing his cufflinks for the rest of his life. The Russian's advocacy of living American composers, and his insistence on conducting as moral theatre, shaped Bernstein's entire podium persona and his Tanglewood teaching.
• Beyond the Medium · The Age of Anxiety: A Baroque Eclogue by W. H. Auden (1947). Bernstein read Auden's long poem about four strangers drinking in a Manhattan bar and built his Symphony No. 2 directly on its six-part structure, keeping Auden's title, sections and spiritual itinerary from masquerade to dawn. The symphony's piano soloist stands in for the poem's searching modern self, and its jazz-combo interlude answers Auden's barroom setting — an unusually literal translation of verse architecture into symphonic form.
• Peer · Symphony No. 5 by Dmitri Shostakovich (1937). Bernstein and Shostakovich were the century's two great symphonists of public catastrophe, and Bernstein's blazing New York Philharmonic Fifth, played for the composer himself on the 1959 Soviet tour, became the performance against which others were measured. Shostakovich's mixing of parade music, Mahlerian irony and private grief is close kin to Bernstein's own symphonic method, and he programmed the Russian relentlessly.
• From the Canon · West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein (1957). The Romeo and Juliet transplant conceived with Jerome Robbins, Arthur Laurents and the young Stephen Sondheim fused Latin dance rhythms, bebop, operatic ensemble writing and the tritone cell that generates almost every tune. It is the fullest realization of Bernstein's conviction that the American vernacular could carry symphonic weight, and the score's Symphonic Dances arrangement moved it permanently into the concert repertoire.
• Key Collaborator · Company by Stephen Sondheim (1970). Sondheim was twenty-five and almost unknown when Bernstein handed him the West Side Story lyrics, and later ceded sole lyric credit to him; Sondheim also contributed to the troubled Candide revisions. Company shows what the apprentice did with the inheritance — Bernstein's harmonic restlessness and rhythmic bite turned toward acid urban psychology, and the proof that the 1957 collaboration launched Broadway's next major composer.
• Legacy · Keeping Score by Michael Tilson Thomas (2004). Tilson Thomas was Bernstein's protégé from Tanglewood and the New York Philharmonic, and has spoken often of inheriting both the podium style and the pedagogic mission. Keeping Score is the direct descendant of the Young People's Concerts: a conductor on camera dismantling a score at the piano, insisting that analysis is itself exciting. The San Francisco Symphony series carries Bernstein's belief in broadcast music education into the cable era.

What influenced Leonard Bernstein

• George Gershwin. The article explicitly names Gershwin as a strong musical influence. (also via West Side Story, Rhapsody in Blue) “Among his strong musical influences was George Gershwin .” (Wikipedia)
• Marc Blitzstein. Blitzstein became a mentor to Bernstein. (also via The Cradle Will Rock) “Blitzstein, who attended the performance, subsequently became a close friend and mentor to Bernstein.” (Wikipedia)
• William Shakespeare (1564). West Side Story (Leonard Bernstein) — legacy for William Shakespeare (via West Side Story, Romeo and Juliet) (wikidata.org)
• Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. West Side Story is explicitly described as a contemporary version of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. (via West Side Story) “West Side Story is a contemporary version of Romeo and Juliet , set on the Upper West Side .” (Wikipedia)
• Aaron Copland (1900). Bernstein sought Copland's compositional advice and described him as a teacher-like figure. (also via Symphony No. 1 "Jeremiah", Piano 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."” (Wikipedia)
• Gustav Mahler. The article reports Bernstein's personal identification with Mahler's work. (also via Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection") “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.” (Wikipedia)
• Noam Chomsky. The preceding account of The Unanswered Question says Bernstein applied Chomsky's linguistic theories in his lectures. “Bernstein based much of the lectures on the linguistic theories Noam Chomsky set out in his book, "Language and Mind."” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Walter Piston. Bernstein studied music with Piston at Harvard. (also via Symphony No. 2) “In 1935, Bernstein enrolled at Harvard College , where he studied music with, among others, composers Edward Burlingame Hill and Walter Piston .” (Wikipedia)
• Serge Koussevitzky. Bernstein studied conducting with Koussevitzky, whom the article also calls an inspiration. (also via Concerto for Double Bass) “Bernstein studied conducting with the BSO's music director, Serge Koussevitzky , [ 58 ] who became a profound lifelong inspiration to Bernstein.” (Wikipedia)
• Voltaire (1694). Candide (Leonard Bernstein) — legacy for Voltaire (via Candide, Candide, ou l'Optimisme) “Lillian Hellman originally brought Bernstein her idea of adapting Voltaire's novella.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection" by Gustav Mahler (1894). Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection" (Gustav Mahler) — titan for Leonard Bernstein “Bernstein was also a critical figure in the modern revival of the music of Gustav Mahler, in whose music he was most interested.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin. Rhapsody in Blue (George Gershwin) — titan for Leonard Bernstein “Among his strong musical influences was George Gershwin.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Cradle Will Rock by Marc Blitzstein (1937). The Cradle Will Rock (Marc Blitzstein) — ghost for Leonard Bernstein “Bernstein mounted a student production of The Cradle Will Rock, directing its action from the piano as the composer Marc Blitzstein had done at the premiere.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Candide, ou l'Optimisme by Voltaire (1759). Candide, ou l'Optimisme (Voltaire) — culture for Leonard Bernstein “Lillian Hellman originally brought Bernstein her idea of adapting Voltaire's novella.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Symposium by Plato. Symposium (Plato) — culture for Leonard Bernstein “Bernstein's works include the Broadway musical West Side Story, 1957, which continues to be regularly performed worldwide, and has been adapted into two (1961 and 2021) feature films, as well as three symphonies, Serenade (after Plato's …” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Boléro by Maurice Ravel (1928). The article identifies Boléro as a work that strongly impressed Bernstein. “There, Bernstein first heard Ravel 's Boléro , which impressed him greatly.” (Wikipedia)
• David Prall. The article names Prall as an intellectual influence on Bernstein. “One of Bernstein's intellectual influences at Harvard was aesthetics professor David Prall ,” (Wikipedia)
• Dimitri Mitropoulos. Mitropoulos influenced Bernstein's decision to conduct. “As a sophomore at Harvard, Bernstein met the conductor Dimitri Mitropoulos , who was an influence on Bernstein's eventual decision to become a conductor.” (Wikipedia)
• Edward Burlingame Hill. Bernstein studied music with Hill at Harvard. “In 1935, Bernstein enrolled at Harvard College , where he studied music with, among others, composers Edward Burlingame Hill and Walter Piston .” (Wikipedia)
• Fritz Reiner. Bernstein studied conducting with Reiner. “At Curtis, Bernstein studied conducting with Fritz Reiner ; piano with Isabelle Vengerova ; orchestration with Randall Thompson ; counterpoint with Richard Stöhr ; and score reading with Renée Longy-Miquelle .” (Wikipedia)
• Isabelle Vengerova. Bernstein studied piano with Vengerova. “At Curtis, Bernstein studied conducting with Fritz Reiner ; piano with Isabelle Vengerova ; orchestration with Randall Thompson ; counterpoint with Richard Stöhr ; and score reading with Renée Longy-Miquelle .” (Wikipedia)
• Randall Thompson. Bernstein studied orchestration with Thompson. “At Curtis, Bernstein studied conducting with Fritz Reiner ; piano with Isabelle Vengerova ; orchestration with Randall Thompson ; counterpoint with Richard Stöhr ; and score reading with Renée Longy-Miquelle .” (Wikipedia)
• Richard Stöhr. Bernstein studied counterpoint with Stöhr. “At Curtis, Bernstein studied conducting with Fritz Reiner ; piano with Isabelle Vengerova ; orchestration with Randall Thompson ; counterpoint with Richard Stöhr ; and score reading with Renée Longy-Miquelle .” (Wikipedia)
• Renée Longy-Miquelle. Bernstein studied score reading with Longy-Miquelle. “At Curtis, Bernstein studied conducting with Fritz Reiner ; piano with Isabelle Vengerova ; orchestration with Randall Thompson ; counterpoint with Richard Stöhr ; and score reading with Renée Longy-Miquelle .” (Wikipedia)
• Gottfried Leibniz. Candide was written as a satire targeting Leibniz's philosophy. (via Candide) “This satire on Leibniz's philosophy of optimistic determinism remains Voltaire's best-known work.” (Wikipedia)
• Piano Variations by Aaron Copland (1930). Piano Variations (Aaron Copland) — titan for Leonard Bernstein “In 1937, Bernstein sat next to Aaron Copland at a dance recital at Town Hall in New York City.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Symphony No. 2 by Walter Piston (1943). Symphony No. 2 (Walter Piston) — ghost for Leonard Bernstein “=== 1935–1941: College years === Harvard University In 1935, Bernstein enrolled at Harvard College, where he studied music with, among others, composers Edward Burlingame Hill and Walter Piston.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Age of Anxiety: A Baroque Eclogue by W. H. Auden (1947). The Age of Anxiety: A Baroque Eclogue (W. H. Auden) — culture for Leonard Bernstein

Peers and kindred spirits

• Jerome Robbins (1918). Robbins commissioned Bernstein to score Fancy Free, beginning their collaboration. (also via Candide, West Side Story, Dances at a Gathering) “In 1944, Bernstein collaborated with his friend, the dancer and choreographer Jerome Robbins, on a new ballet entitled Fancy Free .” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Stephen Sondheim. Sondheim collaborated with Bernstein as the lyricist of West Side Story. (also via West Side Story, Leonard Bernstein, Company) “In 1957, Bernstein collaborated with Sondheim, Robbins, and Arthur Laurents to create the landmark musical West Side Story ,” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Michael Tilson Thomas. Bernstein and Tilson Thomas founded the Pacific Music Festival together. (also via Keeping Score) “Arrangements Orchestral Suite from A Quiet Place (arr. 1991) 25 min. arranged for orchestra by Sid Ramin and Michael Tilson Thomas with assistance of Michael Barrett” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Stephen Wadsworth. Wadsworth wrote the libretto for Bernstein's opera A Quiet Place. “In 1980, Bernstein discovered that a 30-year-old writer named Stephen Wadsworth had a similar idea of writing a sequel-opera to Trouble in Tahiti , so they began working together to achieve their common goals.” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Alan Jay Lerner. Lerner supplied lyrics for Bernstein's musical 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. “In 1976, Leonard Bernstein and lyricist Alan Jay Lerner presented their eagerly anticipated first Broadway collaboration, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue .” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Brandeis Festival of the Creative Arts. Bernstein created the Brandeis Festival of the Creative Arts. “The Festival of the Creative Arts at Brandeis, founded in 1952 by Brandeis faculty member Leonard Bernstein, was dedicated to the belief that” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute. Bernstein co-founded the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute. “His master classes at Tanglewood were famous, and he worked to establish the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute in 1982.” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Orchestra Academy of the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival. Bernstein founded the festival's Orchestra Academy. “To commemorate Bernstein’s legacy as an educator and founder of the Orchestra Academy, SHMF created the Leonard Bernstein Award in 2002.” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Pacific Music Festival. Bernstein co-founded the Pacific Music Festival. “He also helped create a world-class training orchestra at the Schleswig Holstein Music Festival , and founded the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan.” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Brandeis University. Bernstein held a visiting music professorship at Brandeis University. “Leonard Bernstein served on the Brandeis University Department of Music faculty from 1951-56 and was a prominent supporter of the young university.” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Harvard University. Bernstein held the Charles Eliot Norton professorship at Harvard. “Leonard Bernstein was invited to become the Charles Eliot Norton Professor of Poetry at Harvard University in 1971.” (Leonard Bernstein Office)
• Robert Wise. Credits list Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins as co-directors of West Side Story. (via West Side Story) “bring Robert Wise, the film’s brilliant director, back to Washington” (Evening Star (Washington, D.C.))
• Ernest Lehman. Credits Ernest Lehman as screenwriter of West Side Story. (via West Side Story) “SCRIINPiâ» B* ERNEST LEHMAN” (Milford Chronicle (Milford, Del.))
• Betty Comden. Comden wrote the book and lyrics for the musical developed by Bernstein and Robbins. (also via Singin' in the Rain) “Bernstein and Robbins decided to expand the ballet into a musical and invited Comden and Green to write the book and lyrics.” (Wikipedia)
• Adolph Green. The article explicitly identifies Green as Bernstein's collaborator on Wonderful Town. (also via Singin' in the Rain) “Bernstein collaborated with Comden and Green on Wonderful Town” (Wikipedia)
• Time Cycle by Lukas Foss (1960). Time Cycle (Lukas Foss) — geography for Leonard Bernstein “One of Bernstein's classmates, both at Curtis and at Tanglewood, was Lukas Foss, who remained a lifelong friend and colleague.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Vanessa by Samuel Barber (1957). Vanessa (Samuel Barber) — peer for Leonard Bernstein “In 1946 he was selected by the United States Department of State to be a member of the American delegation to the first Prague Spring International Music Festival where his music was showcased alongside other prominent American composers…” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Company by Stephen Sondheim (1970). Company (Stephen Sondheim) — collaborator for Leonard Bernstein “Bernstein collaborated with director and choreographer Jerome Robbins, book writer Arthur Laurents, and lyricist Stephen Sondheim.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Dances at a Gathering by Jerome Robbins (1969). Dances at a Gathering (Jerome Robbins) — collaborator for Leonard Bernstein “In the fall of 1943, Bernstein and Jerome Robbins began work on their first collaboration, Fancy Free, a ballet about three young sailors on leave in wartime New York City.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Sid Ramin. Ramin orchestrated Bernstein's West Side Story score following his instructions. “Bernstein's score for West Side Story blends "jazz, Latin rhythms, symphonic sweep and musical-comedy conventions in groundbreaking ways for Broadway". [ 102 ] It was orchestrated by Sid Ramin and Irwin Kostal following detailed instruct…” (Wikipedia)
• Irwin Kostal. Kostal orchestrated the West Side Story score following Bernstein's instructions. “It was orchestrated by Sid Ramin and Irwin Kostal following detailed instructions from Bernstein.” (Wikipedia)
• Arthur Laurents. Laurents collaborated with Bernstein as the book writer of West Side Story. (also via West Side Story) “Bernstein collaborated with director and choreographer Jerome Robbins , book writer Arthur Laurents , and lyricist Stephen Sondheim .” (Wikipedia)
• Stephen Schwartz. Schwartz collaborated with Bernstein as co-lyricist of Mass. “in 1971, Bernstein invited the young composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz , who had recently opened the musical Godspell off-Broadway, to collaborate as co-lyricist.” (Wikipedia)
• Amberson Productions. Bernstein founded Amberson Productions. “Bernstein founded Amberson Productions in 1969.” (Wikipedia)
• The Firstborn. Bernstein contributed two songs to the production. “Leonard Bernstein , recently appointed musical director of the New York Philharmonic , wrote two songs for the production.” (Wikipedia)
• Rita Moreno (1931). Identifies Rita Moreno as a star of the West Side Story film. (via West Side Story) “will be Rita Moreno and George Chakaris, two of the film's four outstanding stars.” (Evening Star (Washington, D.C.))
• George Chakiris (1934). Identifies George Chakiris as a star of the West Side Story film. (via West Side Story) “will be Rita Moreno and George Chakaris, two of the film's four outstanding stars.” (Evening Star (Washington, D.C.))
• Concerto for Double Bass by Serge Koussevitzky (1905). Concerto for Double Bass (Serge Koussevitzky) — geography for Leonard Bernstein “Bernstein studied conducting with the BSO's music director, Serge Koussevitzky, who became a profound lifelong inspiration to Bernstein.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Symphony for Classical Orchestra by Harold Shapero (1947). Symphony for Classical Orchestra (Harold Shapero) — geography for Leonard Bernstein “At 18 he entered Harvard, where he became friends with Leonard Bernstein and studied composition with Walter Piston in 1938.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Symphony No. 5 by Dmitri Shostakovich (1937). Symphony No. 5 (Dmitri Shostakovich) — peer for Leonard Bernstein “He also conducted US premieres of 19 major works from around the globe, including works by Dmitri Shostakovich, Pierre Boulez, and György Ligeti.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Medium by Gian Carlo Menotti (1946). The Medium (Gian Carlo Menotti) — peer for Leonard Bernstein (musicbrainz.org)
• Singin' in the Rain by Betty Comden and Adolph Green (1952). Singin' in the Rain (Betty Comden and Adolph Green) — collaborator for Leonard Bernstein “Fields and Jerome Chodorov and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Bob Fosse (1927). West Side Story (Leonard Bernstein) — peer for Bob Fosse (via West Side Story) (musicbrainz.org)
• Harold S. Prince. Credits list Harold S. Prince as original producer whose work the film is based upon. (via West Side Story)
• Robert E. Griffith. Credits list Robert E. Griffith as original producer whose work the film is based upon. (via West Side Story)

Who Leonard Bernstein influenced

• Keeping Score by Michael Tilson Thomas (2004). Keeping Score (Michael Tilson Thomas) — legacy for Leonard Bernstein “Founding of the Pacific Music Festival In 1990, Bernstein's final summer, he founded the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan with Michael Tilson Thomas and the London Symphony Orchestra.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Lin-Manuel Miranda. Miranda describes directing West Side Story in high school as pivotal in merging his love of theater and hip-hop culture. (via West Side Story) “My senior year in high school, I was the director of the school musical, and I picked "West Side Story," painfully aware that there were not enough Latino kids to play all the Sharks” (Fresh Air (NPR/WHYY))
• A More Interesting Question. Critic Kevin Whitehead identifies Bernstein's song as a source quoted in Bloom's composition. (via Some Other Time) “It starts very like Gershwin's "I Loves Ya, Porgy" and borrows a lick from Bernstein's "Some Other Time."” (Fresh Air (NPR))
• On the Town by Jerome Robbins (1944). On the Town was developed by expanding the ballet Fancy Free into a musical. (via Fancy Free) “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's Adelphi Theatre on December 28, 1944.” (Wikipedia)
• Nixon in China by John Adams (1987). Nixon in China (John Adams) — legacy for Leonard Bernstein (musicbrainz.org)