Leonard Bernstein- Lenny, The Best of Leonard Bernstein

Few personalities of our time unite so many diverse talents with such passion, generosity and charisma as the immensely gifted American composer, pianist, conductor and music communicator Leonard Bernstein, world citizen and all-round star. His death in October 1990 did nothing to diminish his legacy, still deeply felt to this day. Lenny, as he loved to be known, shaped the musical culture of America. His boundless energy and talent was his gift to the world, despite moments of self-doubt and ambivalence. The spectrum of his creative activity ranges from the famous musical West Side Story with it's pulsating Broadway rhythms to grave, complex works that embrace his Jewish faith or political sensitivity. He once framed his convictions thus: "What have we artists got to do with oil and commerce, with survival and honour? The answer is everything."

Track List

1. Candide Act I: Overture
2. Symphonic Dances from West Side Story: No. 1 Prologue
3. Symphonic Dances from West Side Story: No. 2 Somewhere
4. Symphonic Dances from West Side Story: No. 3 Scherzo
5. Symphonic Dances from West Side Story: No. 4 Mambo
6. Symphonic Dances from West Side Story: No. 5 Cha-Cha
7. Divertimento for Orchestra: V. Turkey Trot
8. West Side Story Act I: "Tonight" (Tony Maria)
9. West Side Story Act 2: 'I Feel Pretty'
10. Candide Act 1: Glitter and Be Gay
11. Wonderful Town Act II: "Wrong Note Rag" (Ruth Eileen Villagers)
12. Fancy Free: No. 3 Enter Two Girls
13. West Side Story Act I: "Maria" (Tony)
14. Prelude Fugue ; Riffs: I. Prelude for the Brass
15. Prelude Fugue ; Riffs: II. Fugue for the Saxes
16. Symphony No. 2 "The Age of Anxiety" Pt. 2: The Masque
17. 3 Dance Episodes from on the Town: No. 3 Times Square 1944