America’s Maestro
Leonard Bernstein is America’s maestro. He is one of the most important conductors and composers of his time, and the first American conductor to receive international acclaim. According to music critic Donal Henahan, Bernstein was "one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history." He was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, the son of Ukrainian-Jewish parents who immigrated to the U.S. from Rivne, in present-day Ukraine. Unlike many famous conductors and musicians, Bernstein did not come from a musical family. He began by teaching himself piano and music theory at age 10, and the rest is history.
