Bernstein in Berlin, 1989
Soundcheck | May 3, 2010
On Christmas Day, 1989, conductor Leonard Bernstein decided to organize a concert in Berlin designed to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall. The music was Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, which culminates in the immortal setting of Schiller's "Ode to Joy." But in a controversial move, Bernstein changed Schiller's words to "Ode to Freedom.” The concert has been reissued on a DVD and joining us with his recollections of the event is Craig Urquhart, who was Leonard Bernstein's former assistant.
