As part of a worldwide celebration of renowned composer Leondard Bernstein (1918鈥�90), the College of Music's CU Bernstein at 100 comprised听nearly 20 events on听campus over the course of the fall 2018 semester.听
The Eklund Opera Program鈥檚 moving production of West Side Story听brought to a close the university鈥檚 celebration of the听iconic musical figure.听Every major ensemble of the college; the departments of Music Education, Musicology听and Music Theory;听the Entrepreneurship Center for Music;听the American Music Research Center;听and the Music Library, along with the Program in Jewish Studies and the Department of Cinema Studies & Moving Image Arts, paid tribute to the multifaceted Bernstein.
Leonard Bernstein, photo courtesy the Leonard Bernstein office
Famed conductor of the New York Philharmonic, composer of renowned symphonic and stage works, concert pianist, author, educator, television personality, recording artist听and humanitarian, Bernstein was passionate about creating, presenting听and teaching music. He also realized the impact that the arts can have on society, and he did not shy away from transmitting messages, overt or subtle, about peace and compassion. Indeed, West Side Story鈥檚 themes of acceptance and love are just as timely today as when the show opened on Broadway in 1957.
Highlights of CU鈥檚 Bernstein at 100 festival included a recreation of a Young People鈥檚 Concert in Macky Auditorium with the composer鈥檚 daughter Jamie taking on the role of her father and teaching nearly 1,000 local third-graders about the fun in 鈥淥verture to Candide,鈥� the epic story of the On the Waterfront symphonic suite, and the beauty of 鈥淏arber鈥檚 Violin Concerto,鈥� performed splendidly by legendary former New York Philharmonic concertmaster Glenn Dicterow. Bernstein鈥檚 Young People鈥檚 Concerts, broadcast from Carnegie Hall on CBS from 1958 to 1972, instilled a love for music in the hearts of hundreds of thousands of children across the country.
Bernstein scholar and William Powell Mason Professor of Music at Harvard, Carol Oja, gave a fascinating and meaningful keynote speech 鈥淟eonard Bernstein and the Performance of Social Justice鈥� and participated on an Entrepreneurship Center for Music panel focusing on Bernstein鈥檚 role as artist-citizen.
As a nod to Bernstein鈥檚 Jewish side, the college鈥檚 combined choirs sang Bernstein鈥檚 Chichester Psalms with Hebrew texts, and the Program in Jewish Studies screened Micha艂 Waszy艅ski鈥檚 1937 fantasy film The Dybbuk, which served as inspiration for Bernstein鈥檚 ballet of the same name, choreographed by West Side Story collaborator Jerome Robbins. Another film screening featured the 1961 film adaptation of West Side Story, introduced by expert Ernesto Acevedo-Mu帽oz.
The CU Wind Symphony, Symphonic Band听and Marching Band all programmed Bernstein works. Students from the Roser Piano and Keyboard Department, along with a few guests, performed all 29 鈥淎nniversaries,鈥� short piano pieces dedicated to the composer鈥檚 friends and family. Two Faculty Tuesdays featured jazz arrangements and chamber music of Bernstein. The college鈥檚 Music Theory department, sponsored by CU鈥檚 Office of Outreach and Engagement, opened the festival with a CU on the Weekend presentation, 鈥淏ernstein as Teacher: Exploring the Language of Music.鈥�
The College of Music is proud that its Bernstein at 100 festival has provided a special opportunity for the CU Boulder campus and surrounding community to come together in celebration of the arts, and it looks forward to celebrating its own centennial in 2020!
