Beyond his prolific work as a composer and conductor, Leonard Bernstein made an impression on the world of classical music as a formidable educator. According to his own website, he himself was proudest of this work. His daughter, Jamie Bernstein, writes that “it wasn’t enough for (him) to compose music and conduct orchestras. He felt equally compelled to talk about music. What he loved most was to communicate his excitement to others.”
In 1957, Bernstein collaborated with the television network CBS to get his Young People’s Concerts broadcast on TV. Featuring the New York Philharmonic, these hour-long specials included both musical performance and verbal explanations of the repertoire on offer. Bernstein attempted to answer questions like “What is classical music?” and “What is sonata form?” He invited audiences to sing along with the television—to experiment with recreating melodies and intervals from the comfort of their homes, so as to bring them into the music, as more than passive listeners.
The Young People’s Concerts were on air for 14 years, during which time CBS ran 53 instalments of the series. “My siblings and I have often thought that, in a way, our dad was writing the Young People’s Concerts to us,” Jamie says on Leonard Bernstein’s website. She describes the ways in which the programming, originally intended for young children, evolved and ultimately “turned into college lectures when his own kids became college age.” Bernstein also taught the marvels of classical music to adults in the Omnibus series hosted by Alistair Cooke.
Bernstein received a liberal arts education from Harvard University, and had studied with musical giants such as Dimitri Mitropoulos, Serge Koussevitzky, and Aaron Copland. Jamie writes that “people often say that Leonard Bernstein was a born teacher, but actually it’s more accurate to say that he was a born student who just couldn’t wait to share what he learned. In his whole life, he never stopped studying.” In the early 1970s, he returned to his alma mater to present six Charles Eliot Norton Lectures. During these lectures, Bernstein attempted to approach music through the lens of linguistics. The lectures were presented over the course of 18 months.
The composer and conductor was committed to providing musical knowledge to audiences of all demographics. Today, this commitment stands as one of the most significant parts of his musical legacy. Audiences, students, and musicians alike were welcomed into the joyful musical world of Leonard Bernstein each time he put pen to paper, took to the podium, or picked up a microphone.
