Leonard Bernstein

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3FxT3j5Vju9jqdtJvy4ZSFThe first Labor Day was celebrated in 1882. The labor movement is long, varied, and complex. But…

Many of us admire our musical idols from afar - maybe through keepsakes like concert ticket stubs, autographs or posters taped to our walls. Marin Alsop had two posters up in her New York City bedroom growing up - one of the Beatles and the other of the man who inspired her to become a conductor - Leonard Bernstein. Bernstein ended up becoming more than the man on her poster - her biggest hero became her mentor, teaching her how to be the “messenger of the composer” and passing along his gifts for storytelling.

Born 100 years ago on Aug. 25, 1918, Bernstein was a larger-than-life character — on stage as a conductor, at the piano as a composer, on TV as an educator and in a sometimes tangled personal life.

“Moynik!” (“Music!”), the young Leonard Bernstein would exclaim, even before his second birthday. He was clearly fascinated by the sounds emanating from…

Leonard Bernstein loved the stories behind the music he conducted, and insisted that every story has a moral. As a young man, Bernstein discovered many specific sources of inspiration.