"Leonard Bernstein’s Boston Years: Team Research in the Classroom” emerged initially from the course, “Before West Side Story: Leonard Bernstein's Boston” taught by Professors Carol J. Oja and Kay Kaufman Shelemay at Harvard University in Spring, 2006. The seminar explored the childhood and early career of one of the 20th century's most renowned musicians and composers. Working in teams, students fused ethnography and archival research to explore the interlinking communities and institutions (Congregation Mishkan Tefila, Boston Latin High School, Harvard class of '39, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, among others) that shaped Bernstein's formative years, and they prepared an exhibit for Harvard's Bernstein festival. This website is the cumulative result of their classroom and festival-related interviews and projects.

If you wish to use content for any reason other than personal, noncommercial educational and scholarly purposes, you must obtain any required permission from the participants. Selected documents require permission to cite for public presentation or publication, and student names, in some cases, are kept anonymous. 

Questions about use and access may be directed to: Kerry Masteller, Music Librarian for Scholarly Communications and Digital Programs, [email protected].