Three Jewish Composers: Mahler, Schoenberg, and Bernstein

Gustav Mahler (1860-1911), Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951), and Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) are three musical masters whose Jewish backgrounds shed light on their musical projects. Examining each composer’s work through the lens of their Jewish identity reveals divergent manifestations of Jewishness in music, and yet draws out meaningful threads that contribute to a broader story of Jewish history and culture: Mahler, a Jew from Bohemia working in Vienna looking to build a place for himself in the Austro-German musical tradition by expanding it with a universalist sensibility; Schoenberg, a Viennese Jew forced into exile, reexamining his personal and musical identity and reimagining what it means to be a Jewish composer; Bernstein freely drawing from his Jewish heritage within the context of a relatively accepting multicultural milieu in America. In this course we will contextualize these composers’ music through readings which shed light on the Jewish circumstances and inspirations surrounding their works, and we will apply these ideas to close listenings of selected works from each of these composer’s catalogs.

Alex Weiser is the Director of Public Programs of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research in New York City, and a composer of music with broad gestures, rich textures, and narrative sweep, which has been called “compelling” (New York Times), and “shapely, melody-rich” (Wall Street Journal). Born and raised in New York City, Weiser creates acutely cosmopolitan music combining a deeply felt historical perspective with a vibrant forward-looking creativity. Weiser has been praised for writing “insightful” music “of great poetic depth” (Feast of Music), and for having a “sophisticated ear and knack for evoking luscious textures and imaginative yet approachable harmonies” (I Care If You Listen). An energetic advocate for contemporary classical music and for the work of his peers, Weiser co-founded and directs Kettle Corn New Music, an “ever-enjoyable,” and “engaging” concert series which “creates that ideal listening environment that so many institutions aim for: relaxed, yet allowing for concentration” (New York Times), and was for nearly five years a director of the MATA Festival, “the city’s leading showcase for vital new music by emerging composers” (The New Yorker). At YIVO, Weiser curates and produces programs that combine a fascination with and curiosity for historical context, with an eye toward influential Jewish contributions to the culture of today and tomorrow.

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