Awarded four Emmys and hailed by Variety as "a rare moment in the symbiosis
of the arts and broadcasting," Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts
left their mark on television history. Aired on CBS from 1958 to 1972,
these 53 one-hour programs were written and hosted by Leonard Bernstein.
With the New York Philharmonic and guest artists providing the live music,
these programs brought musical concepts and music history to life for
generations of viewers. "Lectures accompanying music might not sound like
the formula of a hit kids' TV program, but Bernstein was the secret
ingredient who made it work" (Variety). Balancing scholarship and
showmanship, Maestro Bernstein brings the full range of his magnetic
personality to play in these programs. And he succeeds in infecting viewers
young and old, connoisseurs and the uninitiated, with his overwhelming love
of music.
Using the examples of Mozart's "Jupiter" Symphony and Tchaikovsky's Fourth
Symphony, Bernstein demonstrates the techniques of repetition and variation
in the development of symphonic music. After conducting part of
Tchaikovsky's "Romeo and Juliet," he asks the audience to sing "Frère
Jacques", demonstrating the uses of sequencing and imitation in symphonic
composition. The final movement of Brahms' Second Symphony is then analyzed
and played.
