Leonard Bernstein honored with Google Doodle on what would’ve been 100th birthday

For years, Leonard Bernstein was recognized as one of the foremost composers in the United States.

Now, Google has celebrated the life and career of Bernstein with a new Google Doodle in his honor for what would’ve been his 100th birthday on August 25, 2018.

Here’s everything you need to know about who Leonard Bernstein was, what some of his greatest musicals are and what a Google Doodle is.

Google has marked the life and work of composer Leonard Bernstein with a Google Doodle

Who was Leonard Bernstein?

Leonard Bernstein was a music composer and conductor known for being one of the most prominent in American history.

He was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts on August 25, 1918.

The son of Jewish immigrants from Russia, he fell in love with music at ten years old and chose to pursue it as a career at a young age.

‘I want to conduct. I want to play the piano. I want to write for Hollywood. I want to write symphonic music. I want to keep on trying to be, in the full sense of that wonderful word, a musician. I also want to teach. I want to write books and poetry. And I think I can still do justice to them all,’ he recalled.

After attending Harvard University and the Curtis Institute of Music, he relocated to New York City in 1940 and launched his professional musical career. He became the youngest Director of the New York Philharmonic in history and was noted for his long tenure with the prestigious orchestra.

In addition, Bernstein composed the music for a number of notable Broadway shows, including On the Town, Wonderful Town, Peter Pan and on the Waterfront. His most iconic work in West Side Story continues to enthrall audiences to this day in various productions.

Bernstein was also noted for his philanthropic work and won notable awards during his career 

Bernstein was also noted for his philanthropic work and won notable awards during his career 

Bernstein also earned acclaim for his philanthropic work, especially in regards to music education, and won a Grammy Award in 1961 for Best Documentary or Spoken Word Recording.

The celebrated composer passed away at age 76 on October 14, 1990, but his musical contributions have clearly stood the test of time and remain popular to this day.

Leonard Bernstein musicals

Though Bernstein enjoyed a prolific career that spanned everything from ballets to film scores to orchestral arrangements, he’s particularly noted for his popular musicals.

His first musical, On the Town, debuted in 1944 and included classic songs like New York, New York. The show, centered on a group of U.S. Navy sailors of leave in New York City, proved to be an enduring Broadway hit and was made into a movie in 1949.

After composing the music for Wonderful Town in 1953 and Candide in 1956, he produced the music for West Side Story in 1957, which ultimately became one of the most celebrated and well-known shows in Broadway history.

Later Broadway musical compositions by Bernstein include 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue 1976, A Party with Betty Comden and Adolph Green in 1977 and contributions to The Madwoman of Central Park West 1979.

Bernstein was noted for composing the music for West Side Story and other Broadway hits

Bernstein was noted for composing the music for West Side Story and other Broadway hits

What is a Google Doodle?

Google Doodles are temporary alterations of Google’s homepage logo that appear in honor of notable people, events, accomplishments, anniversaries and more.

They were first introduced in 1998 in recognition of the Burning Man festival by Google cofounders Sergey Brin and Larry Page. After initially being produced by outside contractors, they were eventually created by a special in-house team known as Doodlers established to make them on a more regular basis.

Most Google Doodles nowadays are used to commemorate holidays such as New Year’s Eve and St. Patrick’s Day and also to recognize notable people like Ismat Chughtai or events such as Hungary State Foundation Day and Ukraine Independence Day. 

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