The Leonard Bernstein Letters (93 page)

Dear Maestro,

I want to say thank you for the recital! I loved so much, no: I
love
so much to make music with you! I heard the tape and I think we shall do it again. My voice is sometimes unsteady and breathless. And I also think that the placement of the microphone is too close. So, let's do it in Vienna.

Best regards.

Yours,

Christa

Dear Mr. Bernstein,

I would like to thank you very much for the fantastic time I had in Washington D.C. in September. It was thrilling to be in as big and important a production as your
Mass
. I think it is a great piece of music, and my favorite parts are the Epistle, and from the “Agnus Dei” to the end. I was an alternate in the Berkshire Boy Choir and I was in over half the performances and all of the recording (the two easiest sessions I have ever seen or been in).

Recently, I heard the piece on radio and was so excited about it that I didn't do my homework so I could listen to it! I can't wait until I can get the record, but the stores around here are slow getting it in. Wasn't the recording changed a little from the performances? (Ron Young singing the first “I don't know”).

Is
Mass
going on Broadway or to Los Angeles or any place like that? I'm sure if you took it around to different cities, the crowds would be miles long.

I wish I could re-live the fantastic experience I had in Washington, but anyway it will benefit me in many ways all my life.

Sincerely,

Your friend and admirer,

David Abell

Berkshire Choirboy

Dear Mr. Bernstein,

This is a big thankyou letter. I gather from Sam Spiegel that you put in a very kind word for me over
Nicholas and Alexandra
, and I am very grateful indeed. It was a very happy and I think successful job altogether, and both Sam and the director, Franklin Schaffner, were splendid to work for, considerate and helpful. So altogether I feel pleased and satisfied and without your kindness it would not have happened. There will be a sound-track album very soon and I will make sure they send you a copy.

I was hoping that André Previn would be conducting it, and I know he wanted to do it, but there were contractual problems. The man who always does my films for me
²⁵
– I have a mortal dread of conducting – did it, and did a very good job.

Congratulations, very late in the day, on the huge success of the Kennedy
Mass
. I have been reading avidly about it, and long to hear an English performance. I'm sure plans for it are well under way.

Now I think of it, I hope you won't be
dismayed
when you hear the
Nicholas
score … It's rather a curious mixture stylistically.

Excuse frightful typing.

Yours ever,

Richard Bennett

All my love,

Ben

Dear Leonard,

Is there anything you don't do better than anyone else? Your playing last night was so simple and pure that it gave a grace that little song never had before.
²⁶
Your words were kind, too, but taking the trouble to be there was the kindest of all. I appreciate it tremendously.

Fondly,

Dick

Dear H,

This is a brief moment grabbed out of a monstrous schedule just to send love and say that all is well with health – though not with the schedule. There's been some poor planning (too much at once) and the Vienna Philharmonic simply doesn't know Mahler
²⁷
– so it's all from scratch. Besides, I don't feel like performing much these days: I'd rather be quietly composing. But I'll get through it, somehow – and there is the compensation of beautiful music.

The sun is just beginning to show itself for the first time since I arrived here.

I hope all is well with you, and thanks for all the envelopes filled with goodies.

Love,

Lenny.

Felicia is in Venice for a few days, returning on the weekend. Then, I guess, she'll return to NYC on Monday.

Dearest Hilee,

I think of you with every puzzle (and in Europe that's 2 or 3 a day). But when a
Nation
puzzle arrived from la Belle with a
whole wrong diagram
then I had to write. It's not enough to think: one must share. What is happening to our world?

What indeed?

I want to write music.

I've had Vienna.

I think I've had performing.

Spring is
not
here, and all is somewhat sad, foolish, exaggerated. Very tiring indeed.

Why don't you ever write me, you thriving, prosperous, presidential wonder?

Please call BB & Ellen & send my love. I can't write any more – Mahler calls.

And special hugs for Ofra.

And mostly to mein Schwest –

L

21 Ape, '72

Caro Leonardo,

I want to thank you once more for your precious contribution to
C'è musica e musica
.
²⁹
The 9th program, where you led the way deeply into yourself and through American music, was certainly one of the best. I hope you will be able to see it soon. In 10 days this incredible TV adventure will be finally over – and now, because of these 12 TV hours on music I have more “enemies” in Italy than I ever had (mainly singers and conservatory professors and one music critic wrote that I have prostituted music).

I will be in NY very soon and I hope to see you.

Love, as ever,

Luciano

P.S. Maybe a correspondent of an Italian newspaper (“Messaggero”) will call you for a short interview. Please give him a few minutes – even on the phone. I promised him that you will not push him away.

Love moöahs,

L

Len,

Tried to reach you before departing.

If the ballet isn't working out (I think it
is
, and is mostly there) then we'll do it next year when you are less pressured.
³¹
I'll tell the N[ew] Y[ork] C[ity] B[allet]
not
to count on it for their Gala of June 7th – that way they don't get fucked up on their money raising – and if by chance something breaks there for you, and you feel more optimistic – or one of your miracles occurs – we can always do it in June with less commotion around it. Anyway, write me in London, care of Royal Ballet, Covent Garden Opera House.

Love to all,

J.

(
Interplay
³²
went very well!)

My dear Lenny,

Please forgive p. c. (I'm not supposed to write!) – but I was very touched by your wire. The present little medical blow is maddening, boring & v. painful! I am just coming up to one of these miracle modern operations and shall be
inactive for several months – which means I'll miss
Owen Wingrave
(first time on stage)
³³
&
Death in Venice
(first time ever!).
³⁴
But they must look after themselves. It was so good of you to think of me with the 1001 things you have to do.

Yours ever,

Ben

Birthday reflections.

This seventy five year
young
mother and grandmother is counting her blessings, moments filled with joy and pleasure. I am indeed blessed to have such precious children and grandchildren. All these wonderful things in my life will keep me happy and young. How do I love you all, let me count the ways?

With all my love,

Jennie (Elizabeth Browning)

Circa 1898.

My dear Lenny,

I am so sorry I haven't answered your last letter – but writing is still very difficult for me. I do want to write a proper letter to you, & to say how touched both P. & I are that you have come on to the board of the Maltings Friends, how deeply I have been touched personally by your concern about me, & several other things too! Can I have your address to write to, please?

With much Xmas love from

Ben

Dear Lennie,

My warm congratulations on the success of
Candide
.
³⁷
Way back in 1945, when I used to help out the French radio with broadcasts of American music from discs available through U.S. Information Service, by far the most popular with the public were excerpts from
On the Town
. And the French musicians around simply could not get over their astonishment that in New York an
opérette
composed in so advanced a musical style could be successful.

So still, with
West Side Story
and
Candide
you remain world master of the “musical”. All honor to you!

Now that I have been through the Norton lectures (three by video, all six by reading) it is clear that your skill in explaining music is also tops, as indeed it was when you used to do it at Carnegie Hall.

Myself I find nothing reprehensible about your bringing in linguistics. You needed an authority to support an “innate musical grammar” and Chomsky's heavy artillery is surely that. Especially since post-war researches in the physiology of hearing, though they do support a syntax based on the harmonic series as unquestionably built into the human ear, are being treated by both the Germanic twelve-tone world and the French-based solfeggio world as “controversial”.

So the linguistic argument, though merely an analogy, as you pointed out, does carry weight. And it enables you to by-pass vested musical interests.

I am sure your conclusions are valid, and I see no reason why you should not have used any material conveniently to hand for expounding them. All the more so since that material is relatively familiar and hence easily acceptable. I enjoyed everything.

Many thanks for the courtesies of your office.

I am returning the borrowed scripts with gratitude.

Ever warmly your admirer,

Virgil

Dear Lenny,

Blessings tonight. I can't wait to see it and hear it.
³⁹

If Jerry wants any more changes after tonight I'll put a contract out on him.

I'm starting the second act
⁴⁰
and waiting for you like Duse for D'Annunzio. The room is ready, the piano has been tuned, the plane is revved up and I have fired my children.

Hurry,

Always,

Alan

Dear Lennie,

Please accept my apologies for having taken so long to thank you for your lovely telegram. I passed it on to all the participants who thank you for your kind message.

The two performances went exceedingly well and were highly successful, and your
Mass
was exceedingly impressive and moving even in the very large auditorium. We had in excess of 12,000 attending between the two consecutive nights.

In addition to the fact that I felt it essential to present
Mass
in our city, I felt very gratified that it was only possible through cooperation among our orchestra, Repertory Dance Theatre, some people from Ballet West, the Music and Theatre Departments of the University of Utah, in addition to three other
universities in the state from which we borrowed sound equipment and robes. As far as I know, it is the first time so many organizations worked together for the common goal. 6,195 University of Utah students attended, which is almost one-third of the total enrolment.

I discovered that you and I are part of the establishment and were therefore (especially!) outrageously censured by a small but very vocal group. Also, our top Roman Catholic personage was personally against
Mass
, but even though quite a few of his people prompted him to do something about it, he refused to take any stand against it.

My associate conductor, Ardean Watts, did a fantastic job of organization and conducting. He used our entire orchestra plus a dozen extras, 185 singers and 10 dancers. The set was terrific, and I think that you would have been very happy with the whole thing. Of course I knew that you were working on
Dybbuk
which is a much more important thing.

I was putting in a strong pitch for asking you to serve again on the National Council on the Arts. I realize that right now, as I was told, it would be hopeless to expect President Nixon to appoint you, but I would like to know whether you would be ready to again serve. Even if you could attend meetings but rarely, your name alone would mean a great deal to the Endowment and in particular to its music component.

I am not quite sure that you yourself know how much your name means and how much more it could mean for us, the hewers of wood, who have to confront day in and day out the unrelenting putdown of the symphony orchestra in America.

Forgive me for having written such a long letter. Again, many thanks for having written
Mass
and so much other beautiful music, and for having done so much for music in our nation.

With best wishes always.

Affectionately yours,

Maurice