For Christmas this year, we’re giving Katyana a set of 25 of Leonard Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts with the New York Philharmonic, the program that introduced me and many more children of my generation to classical music and the orchestra.
I remember watching the programs, which aired between the time Bernstein became Music Director of the orchestra in 1958, until he stepped down in 1969.
It may seem like a strange present for a four-year-old. The programs are black-and-white, and Bernstein introduces music theory and modern masters and conducts the orchestra in a piece that illustrates the topic.
Bernstein considered the shows “among my favorite, most highly prized activities of my life.”
Beginning with the first, on “What Does Music Mean?” they cover a broad range of topics and are based on the repertory of that year's concert season. Bernstein drafted the scripts himself, then they were edited and simplified by the production staff.
The concert day began at 6 a.m. with technical rehearsals followed by rehearsal with the orchestra at 10 a.m. The concert was at noon. The programs were broadcast live before an audience including many childen.
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