TO BERNSTEIN WITH LOVE
These are strange words from a composer who earlier in his career had proselytized for the breaking down of artificial barriers between popular music and “ serious ” art music . In West Side Story , he had triumphantly proved that the two can successfully fuse . Many a composer of symphonies and concertos would give his eyeteeth to be remembered as the creator of West Side Story .
Opening on Broadway on September 26 , 1957 , the musical updated Shakespeare ’ s Romeo and Juliet to contemporary New York City , where prejudice and feuding teen gangs separate the Polish Tony from the Puerto Rican Maria . For this timeless love story Bernstein created music that glorified every twist in the plot — from brash , streetwise dances to the most tender of romantic ballads .
As West Side Story moved on to its 1961 movie version ( which won ten Academy Awards ), Bernstein saw potential for a concert version scored for symphony orchestra . The orchestral arrangements for the Symphonic Dances were created by Sid Ramin and Irwin Kostel , but were closely supervised and edited by Bernstein . This work was premiered by the New York Philharmonic on February 13 , 1961 .
In the score , Bernstein associate Jack Gottlieb has provided a brief summary of the Dances — which follow each other without pause — and their connection to the West Side Story plot :
“ Prologue ( Allegro moderato )— The growing rivalry between two teenage gangs , the Jets and the Sharks .
“‘ Somewhere ’ ( Adagio ) — In a visionary dance sequence , the two gangs are united in friendship .
“ Scherzo ( Vivace leggiero ) — In the same dream , they break through the city walls , and suddenly find themselves in a world of space , air and sun .
“ Mambo ( Presto ) — Reality again ; competitive dance between the gangs .
“ Cha-Cha ( Andantino con grazia )— The star-crossed lovers see each other for the first time and dance together [ music based on “ Maria ”].
“ Meeting Scene ( Meno mosso )— Music [ solo violins ] accompanies their first spoken words .
Leonard Bernstein
“‘ Cool ,’ Fugue ( Allegretto ) — An elaborate dance sequence in which the Jets practice controlling their hostility .
“ Rumble ( Molto allegro ) — Climactic gang battle during which the two gang leaders are killed .
“ Finale ( Adagio ) — Love music [ based on Maria ’ s ‘ I Have a Love ’] developing into a procession , which recalls , in tragic reality , the vision of ‘ Somewhere .’”
Instrumentation : Three flutes including piccolo , two oboes , English horn , two clarinets , E-flat clarinet , bass clarinet , alto saxophone , two bassoons , contrabassoon , four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , harp , piano , celesta and strings .
THREE DANCE EPISODES FROM ON THE TOWN
Leonard Bernstein
The 13 months from November 1943 to December 1944 were heady times for Leonard Bernstein . On November 14 , 1943 , he made his legendary conducting debut with the New York Philharmonic , stepping in with less than 24-hours notice to replace the ailing Bruno Walter . His success was front-page news in The New York Times the next morning . Less than two months later ( January 28 , 1944 ), his First Symphony , “ Jeremiah ,” was premiered by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra under his baton to warm critical reviews .
On April 18 , his ballet collaboration with Jerome Robbins , Fancy Free , was unveiled at the Metropolitan Opera House . And on December 28 , his musical On the Town — an expansion of Fancy Free ’ s scenario — opened on Broadway . It was hailed as “ the freshest and most engaging musical show … since the golden days of Oklahoma !,” and it ran for 463 performances . ( In 1949 , it was made into a classic movie , starring Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra .) At this time , Bernstein was only in his mid-20s , and there seemed to be nothing he couldn ’ t do — and do brilliantly .
Written in collaboration with his friends Betty Comden and Adolph Green , On the Town told a light-hearted story about three sailors on 24-hours ’ shore leave in New York City during World War II . As Comden and Green wrote , it humorously expressed “ the poignancy of young people trying to cram a lifetime of experience into a day .” The sailors start their tour of Manhattan on the subway , where one of them is smitten by the poster image of “ Miss Turnstiles ,” the subway ’ s girl of the month . The three decide to go on a search for her . “ With the other two sailors picking off girls en route , On the Town sings and dances , joshes and handsprings its way from Central Park to the Museum of Natural History , from Carnegie Hall to Times Square , from a flock of night spots to Coney Island .”
Drawing on the show ’ s ballet music , Bernstein created the concert suite we ’ ll hear tonight . Its three movements blend the high-octane energy of jazz with the gift for writing slow romantic music that Bernstein would later display in West Side Story . A prominent trombone gives a jazz edge to “ The Great Lover Displays Himself ,” as the sailor Gabey dances a dream fantasy with Miss Turnstiles . The moody “ Lonely Town : Pas de Deux ” draws on the show ’ s wistful ballad of that name , while “ Times Square : 1944 ” is an extended fantasia on the show ’ s most famous song , “ New York , New York ” ( with which this concert began ).
Instrumentation : Flute and piccolo , oboe and English horn , three clarinets including E-flat and bass , alto saxophone , two horns , three trumpets , three trombones , timpani , percussion , piano and strings .
Notes by Janet E . Bedell , © 2018
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