Shortly before he died, my wife and I were invited to perform some of Aaron Copland's music for him at his home. During the afternoon he led us around his house and pointed out mementos and photographs that he wanted to share (Sarah got to hold his Academy Award). One of the photos was a shot, taken perhaps in the late 1960's or early '70's, of five or six of the most distinguished American composers of the time. The shot was posed with the composers seated on a bench and taken from one end of the bench so that they appeared to be in a line. Sarah asked Mr. Copland why it was that he — Copland — was seated in the middle of the pack and Leonard Bernstein was in the front. Mr. Copland replied, "I'm sure Lenny could tell you exactly why he's in the front."
Leonard Bernstein.com attempts to do just that. The site — "created by N2K Entertainment under the guidance and supervision of the estate of Leonard Bernstein (Amberson, Inc.)" — is not much short of an online biography of one of America's greatest musical resources. Falling somewhere between a museum and a CD-ROM profile, the site is organized around the metaphor of a "virtual" studio, the room (perhaps in the Dakota where he lived, or on the corner of 57th St. and 7th Ave. where he maintained an apartment) where Bernstein worked and entertained.
This is a beautifully designed site, with gorgeous graphics, oodles of images, RealAudio sound files, and QuickTime movies (with audio). Click on his:
- Piano and see music and scores he was studying, working on and writing — there are even some images of handwritten pages of his work;
- Bookshelf and see books and articles by and about him, including The Red Book which is the most complete listing of his entire output, musical and prose;
- Coffee table and find programs from shows and concerts, and jump to the guestbook where you can read entries from a variety of well-known visitors;
- Entertainment Area and discover audio and video clips from his TV appearances, recordings, shows, interviews, and performances;
- Desk and examine telegrams and letters, notes and a biographical timeline.
Scattered throughout the site are comments from Bernstein, as well as notes and comments he wrote about the creation of some of his works. There's also an online store where you can purchase books and CD's through Music Boulevard (another N2K site), and
Go To Page: 1 2
