Bernstein Reimagined

Bernstein Reimagined

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Bernstein Reimagined, due out January 29, 2021 via MCG Jazz, explores lesser-known Bernstein pieces through the transformative lens of five gifted jazz arrangers
Legendary composer Leonard Bernstein once called jazz “the ultimate common denominator of the American musical style.” The music made a profound impact on Bernstein’s work, not only in the more explicit “jazziness” of his work in musical theater, but throughout his “serious” orchestral music as well. Jazz artists in turn felt the influence of Bernstein’s innovations, with interpretations of his work recorded by such icons as Bill Evans, Dave Brubeck, Oscar Peterson, Wes Montgomery, Wayne Shorter and countless others.
With the stunning new album Bernstein Reimagined, the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra mines the composer’s vast repertoire for a vibrantly diverse new set of music that delves into pieces rarely if ever performed in a jazz context. Due out January 29, 2021 via MCG Jazz, this dazzling music was originally commissioned as part of the worldwide celebration of Bernstein’s centennial year in 2018.
“After a series of discussions with directors of artistic programs in Washington D.C. on the topic of ways in which to honor Bernstein's centennial citywide, I imagined the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra presenting a grand concert of Bernstein's music,” explains SJMO Artist Director and conductor Charlie Young. “Re-imagining Leonard Bernstein for this occasion required examining some of his compositions rarely associated with jazz. The resulting concert was a blast!”
 
The album features none of the usual suspects – the oft-explored West Side Story songs (“Maria,” “Somewhere”) or those that have become jazz standards (“Some Other Time,” “Big Stuff”). Instead, the project’s five inventive arrangers – Jay Ashby, Darryl Brenzel, Scott Silbert, Mike Tomaro and Steve Williams– find inspiration in the lesser known corners of Bernstein’s output: the symphonic works, spiritual music, operas, lesser-known musical theater pieces and even his sole film score, for the classic On the Waterfront. The results are, as the title promises, surprising acts of re-imagination as revelatory to Bernstein aficionados as they will be to newcomers unfamiliar with the original compositions.

Track List

  1. Times Square Ballet (from “On the Town”) [07:24]
  2. Dream With Me (from “Peter Pan”) [06:03]
  3. Dance of the Great Lover (from “On the Town”) [06:22]
  4. Lonely Town (from “On the Town”) [06:24]
  5. Morning Sun (from “Trouble in Tahiti”) [03:16]
  6. Waltz (from “Divertimento for Orchestra”) [06:17]
  7. Meditation #1 (from “Mass”) [09:00]
  8. Chichester Psalms I [07:26]
  9. Postlude (from “A Quiet Place”) [07:09]
  10. Symphonic Suite (from “On The Waterfront”) [10:35]

Credits

Leonard Bernstein: Composer
Marty Ashby, Ken Kimery, Renee Govanucci: Producers
Jay Dudt, Bob Dawson, Mike Monsuer: Engineers

(P) 2020 MCG Jazz
(C) 2020 MCG Jazz