Our Music Director John DeMain met Leonard Bernstein at Tanglewood Music Festival in 1971 – a meeting that would forever shape and influence his conducting career. In the centennial year of Lenny’s birth, John remembers his encounters with Bernstein in a recent conversation with WPR’s Norman Gilliland.
“He was so consumed with love for music … it just poured out of every ounce of his body, his being,” DeMain said. “When you worked with him, whether you were a performer or conducting his piece or whatever it may be, he brought that to you.”
Listen to the full interview with Norman Gilliland
The Madison Symphony Orchestra will celebrate Bernstein in our 2018-2019 season with concerts titled Remembering Lenny, November 9-11. The first half celebrates Lenny the composer, and features Overture to Candide, Three Dances from On the Town, and Symphony No. 2: Age of Anxiety with guest pianist Christopher Taylor. The second half celebrates Lenny the composer with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 – the last piece Bernstein ever conducted. Learn more and buy tickets.