What’s up: The New York Philharmonic has placed their Leonard Bernstein archives at the disposal of Aaron Cohen, creator of the podcast “Embrace Everything: The World of Gustav Mahler.” This week, Cohen released a special video episode of the podcast that explores performances of Gustav Mahler at the New York Philharmonic conducted by Leonard Bernstein. Many of the instances explored are also featured in the Netflix movie starring Bradley Cooper, Maestro.
Digging deeper: Many music critics criticized Bradley Cooper’s film for leaving out important details regarding Bernstein’s contributions to classical music. These included his introduction of the public to the works of Gustav Mahler, as well as his Young Peoples’ Concerts. Cohen’s podcast includes interviews with Bernstein’s daughter, Jamie Bernstein, who discusses the impact of these programs, among other things.
Bottom line: While the classical music community appreciates a bit of glamour and attention from Hollywood, it’s still nice to have a nuanced podcaster or filmmaker tell the whole story. Check out the video or podcast or share the Young People’s Concerts with the kids in your life by catching up with them on Youtube.
