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The Final Years

Donald Macleod reveals how after his wife's death in 1978, Leonard Bernstein began thinking his own mortality and creating a legacy.

Donald Macleod discovers that Bernstein's final years were anything but quiet despite declining health with much of his work being autobiographical. Felicia Bernstein's death in June 1978, not long after the reconciliation with her husband, left a gaping void in Bernstein's life. He began contemplating his own mortality and leaving a legacy in his final decade is including a song cycle named after a remark by President Eisenhower who preferred music with a good tune, "not all them Arias and Barcarolles". Works featured in this programme include 'The Great American Opera' and 'A Quiet Place'.

1 hour

Last on

Fri 10 Sep 2010 12:00

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Music Played

  • Leonard Bernstein

    Arias and barcarolles for soprano, baritone and 2 pianos: No 1 – Prelude; No 2 – Love due

    Performer: Judy Kaye (soprano), William Sharp (baritone), Michael Barrett, Steven Blier (pianos)

    • KOCH 37000 2.
  • Leonard Bernstein

    Divertimento for orchestra

    Performer: Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Marin Alsop (conductor)

    • NAXOS 8.559245.
    • 7.
  • Leonard Bernstein

    A Quiet Place: Postlude to Act I

    Performer: Austrian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein (conductor)

    • DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 429 231-2.
    • 11.
  • Leonard Bernstein

    Concerto for orchestra 'Jubilee Games': Diaspora Dances

    Performer: Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein (conductor)

    • DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 429 231-2.
    • 11.
  • Leonard Bernstein

    Missa Brevis

    Performer: Richard Baker (counter tenor), Ö÷²¥´óÐã Singers, Richard Benjafield, Christopher Brannick (percussion), Justin Doyle (conductor)

    • CHANDOS CHAN 10172.
    • 11.

Broadcasts

  • Fri 14 Mar 2008 12:00
  • Fri 14 Mar 2008 20:45
  • Fri 10 Sep 2010 12:00

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