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Leonard Bernstein was a towering American composer, conductor, pianist, music educator, and author, renowned as one of the most significant and influential musical figures of the 20th century. Born in Massachusetts to Ukrainian Jewish immigrants, Bernstein studied at Harvard and the Curtis Institute. He achieved overnight fame in 1943 substituting for Bruno Walter as conductor of the New York Philharmonic. He served as the Philharmonic's Music Director from 1958 to 1969. Bernstein composed across genres, including symphonies, ballets, operas, film scores, and groundbreaking musical theater works like 'West Side Story'. He was a globally celebrated conductor, famed for his passionate and demonstrative style. Bernstein was also a dedicated music educator, reaching millions through his televised 'Young People's Concerts'.

• Bernstein became a sensation overnight on November 14, 1943, when, as the 25-year-old assistant conductor, he stepped in at the last minute to conduct the New York Philharmonic for an ailing Bruno Walter, a concert broadcast nationally on radio.
• His personal life was complex; he married actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn in 1951, and they had three children. While he reportedly struggled with his bisexuality throughout his life, the marriage endured until Felicia's death in 1978, despite periods of separation.
• Bernstein faced scrutiny from the FBI during the McCarthy era due to his left-leaning political views and associations, though he was never formally charged.
• He played a pivotal role in the mid-20th-century revival of interest in the music of Gustav Mahler, both through his passionate interpretations as a conductor and his scholarly advocacy.
• Bernstein died on October 14, 1990, from a heart attack brought on by progressive lung failure caused by emphysema and a pleural tumor, exacerbated by years of heavy smoking.