# For New York

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/For_New_York
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/For_New_York.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_New_York
> Source revision: 1259243889
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

{{Italic title}}
'''''For New York (Variations on Themes of Leonard Bernstein)''''' (originally titled '''''To Lenny! To Lenny!''''') is a one-movement [orchestra](/source/orchestra)l composition by the American composer [John Williams](/source/John_Williams).  Written as a tribute to fellow composer and [conductor](/source/conducting) [Leonard Bernstein](/source/Leonard_Bernstein), the piece premiered on the last day of Bernstein's 70th birthday gala at [Tanglewood](/source/Tanglewood) on August 28, 1988.<ref name="NYT1">{{cite web |last=Rockwell |first=John |authorlink=John Rockwell |title=Review/Music; Finale for Bernstein's Birthday Gala |work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times) |date=August 30, 1988 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/30/arts/review-music-finale-for-bernstein-s-birthday-gala.html |accessdate=January 30, 2015}}</ref>  The premiere was performed by the [Boston Symphony Orchestra](/source/Boston_Symphony_Orchestra) under Williams,<ref name="NYT1" /> who was then conductor of its sister orchestra, the [Boston Pops](/source/Boston_Pops_Orchestra).<ref>{{cite web |last=Rockwell |first=John |authorlink=John Rockwell |title=Birthday Party for a 70-Year-Old Prodigy |work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times) |date=August 26, 1988 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/26/arts/birthday-party-for-a-70-year-old-prodigy.html |accessdate=January 30, 2015}}</ref>  Music critic [John Rockwell](/source/John_Rockwell) of ''[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)'' described the work as "feathery and flashy."<ref name="NYT1" />

==Composition==
''For New York'' utilizes themes from Bernstein's [musicals](/source/Musical_theatre) ''[On the Town](/source/On_the_Town_(musical))'' and ''[West Side Story](/source/West_Side_Story)'' ("[New York, New York](/source/New_York%2C_New_York_(On_the_Town))" and "[America](/source/America_(West_Side_Story_song))", respectively), though the climax also contains subtle references to "[Happy Birthday to You](/source/Happy_Birthday_to_You)".<ref>{{cite web |last=Stevenson |first=Joseph |title=For New York, variations on themes of Leonard Bernstein for orchestra |work=[AllMusic](/source/AllMusic) |url=http://www.allmusic.com/composition/for-new-york-variations-on-themes-of-leonard-bernstein-for-orchestra-mc0002492137 |accessdate=January 30, 2015}}</ref>  A performance of the piece lasts approximately three minutes.

==Discography==
A recording of ''For New York'' was released January 15, 2002 on a compilation album by [Sony Classical Records](/source/Sony_Classical_Records).  The album also featured Williams' [1996](/source/Summon_the_Heroes) and [2002](/source/Call_of_the_Champions) [Olympic](/source/Olympic_Games) themes, the [NBC Nightly News](/source/NBC_Nightly_News) theme ''[The Mission](/source/The_Mission_(theme_music))'', the six part ''[American Journey](/source/American_Journey)'', and various other celebratory works and fanfares for orchestra.<ref>{{cite web |first=Christian |last=Clemmensen |title=John Williams: American Journey |url=http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/american_journey.html |publisher=[Filmtracks.com](/source/Filmtracks.com) |accessdate=January 30, 2015}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

{{John Williams}}
{{Authority control}}

Category:Compositions by John Williams
Category:1988 compositions
Category:Compositions for symphony orchestra
Category:20th-century classical music
Category:Music of New York City
Category:Leonard Bernstein
Category:Composer tributes (classical music)
Category:Variations

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [For New York](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_New_York) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_New_York?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.