''Thirteen Anniversaries'' is a composition for solo piano by

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

, published in 1988, commemorating 13 people who played an important role in his life.

Background

Bernstein wrote this set after similar collections, ''

Seven Anniversaries ''Seven Anniversaries'' is a collection of short piano pieces by American composer Leonard Bernstein, written between 1942 and 1943. It is the first installment in a series of ''Anniversaries'', followed by '' Four Anniversaries'' (1948), ''Five ...

'' (1943), ''

Four Anniversaries ''Four Anniversaries'' is a composition for piano written in 1948 by the American composer Leonard Bernstein. Background ''Four Anniversaries'' consists of four movements, each written for a different person in Bernstein’s life. Leonard Be ...

'' (1948) and ''

Five Anniversaries ''Five Anniversaries'' is a set of short pieces for piano by American composer Leonard Bernstein and the third installment in the series of ''Anniversaries'' for piano. It was composed between 1949 and 1951. It is known for presenting some of the ...

'' (1949–1951). Each movement celebrates a person. Some movements are dedicated to a person close to the one commemorated. The work was given its first performance by Alexander Frey in Berlin in 1998.

Movements

The titles, referencing the persons, are: # For Shirley Gabis Rhoades Perle # In Memoriam: William Kapell (an American pianist who died young in a plane crash). # For

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

# For

Craig Urquhart __NOTOC__ Craig may refer to: Geology * Craig (landform), a rocky hill or mountain often having large casims or sharp intentations. People (and fictional characters) *Craig (surname) *Craig (given name) Places Scotland *Craig, Angus, aka Barony o ...

# For Leo Smit (an American composer) # For My Daughter, Nina # In Memoriam: Helen Coates (one of Bernstein's most esteemed teachers) # In Memoriam: Goddard Lieberson (former executive of Columbia Records) # For Jessica Fleishmann # In Memoriam: Constance Hope # For Felicia, on our 28th Birthday (and her 52nd) # For Aaron Stern # In Memoriam: Ellen Goetz

References

Sources

* Horowitz, Mark Eden
Leonard Bernstein Collection
Library of Congress. 11 February 2008. * Truesdell, F. Donald. “The Complete Works for Solo Piano by Leonard Bernstein.” ''American Music'', vol. 4, no. 1 (British-American Musical Interactions, Spring, 1986). pp. 120–21. {{DEFAULTSORT:Anniversaries, Thirteen Piano compositions by Leonard Bernstein 1988 compositions Compositions for solo piano