Leonard Bernstein's PETER PAN, released on Koch International Classics.

Linda Eder, the voice of "Wendy," with Conductor Alexander Frey.

"I felt very honored to be chosen by Alexander Frey to sing the never before recorded songs from the long-lost Leonard Bernstein's PETER PAN. It was a challenge and a thrill that I won't soon forget."

Leonard Bernstein, one of the greatest American composers to ever live, was inspired by the story of Peter Pan and composed a full-length musical in 1950. The score was lush, vibrant and swarming with colorful musical montages. But for reasons that are still unclear and debated today, much of Bernstein's original music was cut from the version of the musical that made its stage debut in 1950 at the Imperial Theatre in New York City. The production, which was later moved to the St. James Theatre, starred Jean Arthur as Peter Pan and Boris Karloff in duel roles as Mr. Darling (Wendy's father) and the evil Captain Hook. It's been said that much of Bernstein's music was cut because the songs were too difficult to sing. In 1954, another musical version of PETER PAN, composed by Mark Charlap with additional music by Jule Styne, would become more widely known and revived multiple times — most recently in 1999 with Cathy Rigby in the lead role. Sadly, Bernstein's work would vanish into obscurity. That is, until now!

On June 21, 2005, PETER PAN was released in its entirety by Koch International Classics. Like buried treasure, the score was lovingly restored and brought back to life by conductor Alexander Frey. Only two characters have principal singing roles in the recording — Wendy and Captain Hook — expertly voiced by Linda Eder and Daniel Narducci. Here, for the readers of THE VOICE, Maestro Frey talks about the making of Leonard Bernstein's PETER PAN… a masterpiece that is at long-last able to take flight.

A Chat With Alexander Frey...

VOICE: Would you tell us more about your work with Leonard Bernstein and how you came to know him?

ALEX: I first met Leonard Bernstein in 1985 following a concert I gave at Lincoln Center in New York City. Bernstein's manager knew of my keen interest in his music, and organized a meeting for the maestro and me. I went over to Lenny's apartment in the Dakota for drinks after my concert. It was just the two of us, and we talked long into the wee hours of the morning. Our conversation ranged over a wide variety of subjects. He was very touched that I wanted to work on his music. After that, we would meet up in various places and I would talk with him about whatever piece of his I was studying at the time. I subsequently recorded his complete piano music for Koch International Classics and gave the world premiere live performances of his Five Anniversaries and Thirteen Anniversaries for piano. And now we've done the world premiere recording of Bernstein's PETER PAN.

Alexander Frey, Susan Delgiorno and Linda Eder

VOICE: Would you tell us more about the "restoration" process of the score? How did you even know where to begin? It seems like such a massive undertaking. Was this the first time you've accomplished such a task?

ALEX: In 1997, I read in a biography about Leonard Bernstein that in 1950 he had composed a musical setting of Sir J. M. Barrie's great classic, Peter Pan, and that there was a song entitled "Dream With Me" that had been cut from the original production. I knew some of the Bernstein songs from this show already, but this new bit of information piqued my curiosity completely. If there was one song cut from the original production, might there be more music existing that may have met a similar fate? Thus began a project that spanned 7 years.

I first talked about my idea of restoring and recording PETER PAN to Susan Delgiorno, General Manager of Koch International Classics, the label for which I record. Susan is a recording producer of great vision, and she immediately saw the important musical value of bringing this music to the public. She kept tabs on my progress throughout the whole process. I then started consulting with Craig Urquhart, Vice-President of the Leonard Bernstein Office and a dear friend of mine. He sent me to the right people for assistance in obtaining all the manuscript material. Two of those people were Garth Edwin Sunderland and Marie Carter who work in the Bernstein Office. They were two of my angels and were a huge help in my assembling of the materials. Garth took on the task of orchestrating a couple of the musical numbers, including the massive Captain Hook Soliloquy. He really did a superb job.

Anyway, I looked through all the material and discovered that Bernstein had actually composed an entire score consisting of more songs, choruses and instrumental music, and I began putting together the entire thing. I restored almost an hour of music, most of which was never heard before. Many of the musical numbers existed in piano/vocal manuscript and I had those orchestrated. It was like a jigsaw puzzle with putting together all the bits and pieces. To describe all that I did to restore the score would require a long essay in itself!

Alexander and Linda participate in an interview for a European TV station with Reporter Christian Reichhold.

When the score was finally put together, Susan organized the whole recording, which was a huge, complex task. She is also our amazing producer of the CD, and did an absolutely brilliant job. I learned much from observing her at work. And Susan, David Merrill and Silas Brown did a fantastic job engineering and mixing the album.

PETER PAN was indeed a massive undertaking that took 7 years to complete. I flew to New York whenever my schedule allowed to work on restoring the score. I've worked on many big projects before, although none this complicated. But I give my all to anything I believe in.

VOICE: Why did you choose Linda and Daniel as the soloists?

ALEX: I knew both Linda's and Daniel's singing and thought they were ideal for the roles of Wendy and Captain Hook, respectively. Linda and I have the same agent in Vienna, Michael Staringer, and I called him to ask about her. At the time, Daniel and I also shared the same agent in New York, George Martynuk, and I called to inquire about him. Both of my agents helped marvelously with the casting!

Linda's voice superbly portrayed the interesting duality found in Wendy: she is no longer a girl, but not yet quite a woman, either, even though she has adult responsibilities. I asked Linda to sing very long phrases, sometimes even singing two phrases together without any breath in between. She has superb control and was able to accomplish this with ease. And she has a great sense of color in her voice. Her use of nuance is a great lesson for any singer.

Michael-Shawn Lewis (who performs "Spring Will Come Again" with Linda on the CD) and Linda share a laugh during a recording session.

Daniel was wonderful as Captain Hook, and he completely ate up the part! In the original book by J. M. Barrie, Hook is definitely evil, brutally so. But Bernstein's music, in addition to portraying him as a nasty rapscallion, also shows him to be a lonely, frustrated character. This is particularly evident in the "Captain Hook's Soliloquy." Daniel conveyed the inside of Hook's soul with depth and gorgeous musicality. And he has a huge range. Those sustained high "F"s require a singer with a voice of power and control. Daniel is that kind of a singer, and he's a wonderful actor, too!

I had a great time working with Linda and Daniel. We had a lot of fun along the way, and worked hard and dug very deeply into the music to bring out all of the beauty in each song. Everyone was tremendously excited to be a part of this recording — the artists, the agents, the production group, everyone. I'm so very thankful for their enthusiasm and dedication.

VOICE: Could you tell us more about the song "Spring Will Come Again" and why you decided to include it on the PETER PAN album?

ALEX: "Spring Will Come Again" was a song intended for a musical version of Thornton Wilder's THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH, which was never finished. Bernstein used material from this piece later on in his "Chinchester Psalms." I found the song and thought it would be a fitting conclusion to the CD. Michael-Shawn Lewis came over from Broadway and sang the song beautifully with Linda.

VOICE: What was the most rewarding aspect of the project for you?

ALEX: For me, the most rewarding aspect of this project was that I could bring some beauty to people's lives through this wonderful and touching music. And through this experience, I think all of us involved in this recording discovered something really lovely within ourselves. But that has always been my own goal and reason for being an artist — to touch people's lives in a deep, meaningful way, and to help bring some beauty into our troubled world through the miracle of music.

All About Alexander Frey...

From the stages of the Hollywood Bowl to New York's Lincoln Center, from London's Wigmore Hall to Egypt's new Cairo Opera House and major international music capitals on five continents, Alexander Frey has received unanimous critical acclaim for his "breathtaking," "visionary," "intense," and "thrilling" performances (Leonard Bernstein once referred to him as "a wonderful spirit"). An extraordinarily prolific artist, each year finds him conducting many major orchestras and opera companies as well as performing as soloist in leading cultural centers. In great demand as one of the world's most versatile conductors, he has a long list of artistic triumphs in the opera house and concert hall, as well as in the music of Hollywood and Broadway.

A meeting between Alexander Frey and Leonard Bernstein.

Alexander Frey is currently conductor of Prague's historic Karlin Theater where he conducts 50 performances per season. The Karlin Theater, typical of most major European theaters, offers an eclectic mix of repertoire from CARMEN to WEST SIDE STORY, DIE FLEDERMAUS to JEKYLL & HYDE. Maestro Frey was Principal Conductor of the Rome Philharmonic Orchestra from 1996-2001. From 1992-1996, he was Music Director of Germany's most renowned theater, the Berliner Ensemble, founded by Bertolt Brecht, where he collaborated with the celebrated stage director Peter Zadek. He was the first American to hold a position at the Berliner Ensemble, as well as being the theater's first non-German Music Director; his historic predecessors include the composers Kurt Weill, Hanns Eisler and Paul Dessau.

Maestro Frey has also been Music Director for major productions at the Edinburgh International Festival (where he received a Critics' Prize), the Vienna Festwochen (Theater an der Wien), Venice Festival (Teatro La Fenice), Holland Festival, Fifth European Festival in Recklinghausen and the Heidelberg Festival. He was also Music Director of the Copenhagen Opera Festival. His many recent guest conducting appearances in Europe, North America, Asia, Africa and South America include performances with the Rio de Janeiro Philharmonic, Cairo Symphony Orchestra, Seoul Royal Symphony Orchestra, Sibelius Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra of Berlin, Symphony Orchestra of Sicily and the Brandenburg Chamber Orchestra, among others. He also conducted Ensemble Europa (members of the Israel Philharmonic and Deutsche Oper orchestras) in sold-out concerts in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa and Berlin commemorating the 50th anniversary of World War II and the liberation of the concentration camps.

A highly honored recording artist, Maestro Frey has received the Deutsche Schallplattenpreis (Germany's highest recording honor), Choice of the French Media Critics, Best Recording of the Year (Fi Magazine), the Bronze World Medal of the New York Festival, Record of the Month (MusicWeb in the UK), Best Instrumental CD of the Month (Galaxie Magazine, Canada) and Best CD of the Month (Best New Classics). June 2005 marks the release of a new CD of Maestro Frey conducting the world premiere recording of Leonard Bernstein's PETER PAN, which he restored from the composer's manuscripts. This historic recording features Broadway superstar Linda Eder in the role of Wendy, and internationally acclaimed baritone Daniel Narducci singing the role of Captain Hook. The CD debuted as #11 on the Billboard Classical Music Chart.

In the studio for PETER PAN (front row seated L to R) David Merrill (Sound Engineer), Susan Delgiorno (Producer), Michael Staringer (Executive Producer); (standing) Alexander Frey and Linda.

In opera and musical theater, Maestro Frey's engagements have often resulted in the most successful productions of the companies for which he has conducted, largely due to his musical direction. His conducting of Verdi's OTELLO in Cairo, which resulted in a 15-minute standing ovation and ecstatic reviews, caused such a sensation that RAI, the national radio of Italy, which covered and recorded the event, devoted two days of special programming to it, praising Frey's conducting as both "absolutely glorious" and "a miracle," and the performance as "one that will go into the opera history books." Of his Canadian conducting debut leading a new production of THE MERRY WIDOW, Stage Door Magazine wrote, "The vitality that courses through the stage action is matched by the taut conducting of the young American Alexander Frey. At every turn he chooses the perfect tempo and leads the orchestra to play this familiar music with such freshness that it sounds newly minted." Maestro Frey's recent engagement conducting a new production of RAGTIME in Chicago garnered unanimous praise for his conducting and the orchestra's playing, and the show proved to be the most successful for its company. He was music director for a new production of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF in New Orleans, the most successful production of any musical theater work in that city's history. Maestro Frey also worked with the German musical theater star Ute Lemper on the production of the musical stage version of the Marlene Dietrich film, DER BLAUE ENGEL (THE BLUE ANGEL).

As pianist and organist, Alexander Frey frequently performs with some of the world's leading symphony orchestras including recent performances with the Berlin Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Leipzig Gewandhaus, Munich Symphony, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Austrian Radio Symphony, Berlin Radio Symphony and Deutsches Sinfonie orchestras, the orchestra of the Teatro Regio di Torino (with which he performed the three opening gala concerts inaugurating the newly restored opera house in Turin), and Orchestra Filarmonica Italiana under such conductors as John Mauceri, Claudio Abbado and Michael Tilson Thomas. He enjoys an ongoing musical partnership with the renowned tenor and four-time Grammy Award winner Jerry Hadley. Maestro Frey's busy international schedule regularly includes annual worldwide recital tours. An hour-long radio program about Alexander Frey's life and work, hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Studs Terkel, was recently broadcast in the United States.

A resident of Berlin, Germany, Alexander Frey has been frequently invited by the city's diplomatic community to perform for many visiting heads of state, and he has given performances for President Clinton and the Dalai Lama, among others.

A Glimpse Into The Life Of A Master — Leonard Bernstein

• Leonard Bernstein pictured early and late in life. He dedicated his entire life to the art of music.

  Leonard Bernstein was born on August 25, 1918, in Lawrence,
  Massachusetts.
  
  
• He was born to Ukrainian immigrant parents, Samuel Joseph Bernstein and Jennie (Resnick) Bernstein. His father ran a beauty-supply store and hoped that Leonard would take over the business one day. When Leonard announced he would make music his life's work, his father refused to pay for music lessons. Samuel never approved of his son's career.
  
  
• Bernstein took his first piano lessons with Frieda Karp in 1928, but received most of his early piano training from Helen Coates starting in October 1932. Helen later became his personal secretary.
  
  
• On May 14, 1934, Bernstein played in his first piano recital at Roxbury Memorial High School in Roxbury, Massachusetts.
  
  
• Bernstein began composing while attending the W.L.Garrison Grammar School in Roxbury and the Boston Latin School. In 1939, he earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, where he made his first informal conducting debut, leading his own incidental score to THE BIRDS.
  
  
• After Harvard, he attended the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where he studied under Fritz Reiner, conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
  
  
• In 1940, he began working with his mentor, Serge Koussevitzky, conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
  
  
• On November 14, 1943, at the age of 25, Bernstein made his historic conducting debut with the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. He had been the Assistant Conductor when the guest conductor, Bruno Walter, became ill. He received a last minute call, put on his best suit, stepped onto the podium and made history. The concert was broadcast nationally on radio and brought nearly instant praise, which also led to invitations to conduct orchestras all over the world.
  
  
• The year 1943 brought another landmark for Leonard Bernstein as a composer. He completed Symphony No. 1: Jeremiah and conducted its world premiere with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in 1944. The symphony won him the New York Music Critics Award. He went on to compose two more symphonies.
  
  
• In 1944, Bernstein created his first Broadway hit, ON THE TOWN, collaborating with Jerome Robbins, Betty Comden and Adolph Green. This was the beginning of other shows to come including: PETER PAN (1950), WONDERFUL TOWN (1953), CANDIDE (1956), WEST SIDE STORY (1957), and 1600 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE (1976).
  
  
• During the late 1940s and the 1950s, Bernstein taught at Brandeis University and was a guest conductor in New York, Milan and Tel Aviv. He was the first American-born conductor to achieve international fame.
  
  
• Bernstein was also the first conductor to break with tradition by conducting informally dressed orchestras on Thursday nights. He strove to bring audiences closer to the music and its composer. He was always ready to give a piano concert. He was known to have frequent public performances — usually conducting the orchestra from the piano seat.
  
  
• In 1958, he began a series of "Young People's Concerts" for television to teach American children about music by listening to him explain his work.
  
  
• The scope of Bernstein's compositions is astounding. His music still "lives" on Broadway and in concert halls all over the world. For half a century, he brought his extraordinary talent to all the great orchestras around the world. His legacy still endures; he is responsible for over 500 recordings and filmed performances.
  
  
• In 1985, he received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award for his body of work.
  
  
• On Christmas Day, 1989, Bernstein conducted Beethoven's Symphony No.9 to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall. The concert was broadcast live in more than 20 countries to an estimated audience of 100 million people.
  
  
• Leonard Bernstein passed away on October 14, 1990, at the age of 72.

Source for Leonard Bernstein biography: Extraordinary Jewish Americans by Philip Brooks, Childrens Press, 1998; and Jacket to 33 1/3 RPM LEONARD BERNSTEIN CONDUCTS GERSHWIN: AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, "Copland Billy The Kid - Ballet Suite" with the RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra, CAL-439.

Get To Know "Captain Hook" — American Baritone Daniel Narducci

Renowned for his versatility as a performer, American baritone Daniel Narducci is equally at home on the operatic, musical theatre and concert stages. Since his professional debut with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra under the direction of Erich Kunzel, Daniel has appeared with many of the world's most prestigious orchestras in a variety of programs, ranging from the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein to Rossini. The Boston Pops, Philadelphia Orchestra, Naples Philharmonic, Chicago, Rochester, Baltimore, New World, Toronto, Indianapolis, Houston, and Detroit Symphonies are just some of the orchestras with which he has performed. Daniel has appeared regularly as a guest artist at many popular summer music venues throughout North America, including the Wolf Trap, Ravinia, Blossom, Saratoga, and Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festivals.

Daniel's face is becoming familiar to television audiences around the world. He was seen as a featured soloist in the BBC television documentary "Kurt Weill in America: I'm a Stranger Here Myself." He also starred with Frederica von Stade and the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra in a program broadcast worldwide by PBS entitled "Pops at the Phil: A Century of Broadway" with Erich Kunzel conducting.

On the operatic stage, Daniel Narducci has portrayed Count Almaviva in LE NOZZE DI FIGARO, Marcello in LA BOHÈME, Escamillo in CARMEN, Figaro in IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA, Guglielmo in COSÌ FAN TUTTE, and Belcore in L'ELISIR D'AMORE. He has appeared in these principal roles with the opera companies of Washington, New Orleans, Central City, Palm Beach, Kentucky, Nashville, Fresno, Indianapolis, Columbus, and Hawaii.

Daniel Narducci's combined talents have been seen on operetta and musical theatre stages throughout North America and Europe. He played the role of Lancelot during two national tours of CAMELOT, most notably opposite Robert Goulet's King Arthur, and portrayed Old Deuteronomy in the 10th anniversary production of CATS in Hamburg, Germany. Daniel's operetta credits include Jim Kenyon in ROSE MARIE with the Central City Opera, Count Danilo in THE MERRY WIDOW with the Chautauqua Opera, and Strephon in Cleveland Opera's production of IOLANTHE.

Check out Daniel's Web Site at www.danielnarducci.com.

Daniel Narducci in the studio recording the role of Captain Hook.

The Story of Peter Pan — A Synopsis

Peter Pan is a young boy who ran away from home to a magical place called "Neverland." Neverland is the place between sleep and awake, where dreams are born! Most importantly, in Neverland, no one grows old. Because it is a place of dreams, Neverland is inhabited by mystical and mysterious creatures and people — fairies, pirates, mermaids, Indians and more.

Peter is the leader of "The Lost Boys," who are really orphans or children who ran away from home to live in Neverland, just like him. Peter has a magic fairy named Tinkerbell, also known as "Tink," whose fairy dust allows people — who believe they can — to fly.

One night, Peter finds his way to the Darling home in England. He listens as Mrs. Darling tells bedtime stories to her children — Wendy, John and Michael. The stories are about him! The Darling children secretly believe in Peter. Somehow, Peter's shadow gets shut in the Darling children's nursery and he gets discovered by Wendy and her brothers. Peter befriends them and convinces them to come to Neverland with him. He teaches them to fly (they must believe that they can and "think lovely thoughts"). The four fly off to Neverland where many adventures follow.

In Neverland, Peter has an enemy named Captain Hook. The evil Captain is the leader of the pirates, and he is out to get Peter because Peter cut off his hand and fed it to a crocodile (the Captain replaced his hand with a hook, thus his name). His mission in life is to hunt down Peter Pan… however, Captain Hook is also being hunted — by the crocodile! The Croc thought the Captain's hand was so tasty that it is searching for the rest of him. Luckily for Captain Hook, the crocodile once swallowed a clock so it makes a ticking sound, always warning the Captain that it is near!

Wendy becomes like a mother to The Lost Boys and she also develops a crush on Peter, of which Tinkerbell becomes very jealous — for Tink herself is in love with Peter. She loves Peter so much that she drinks deadly poison that Captain Hook has intended for Peter. However, Tink doesn't die because all of the children believe in fairies and the power of their belief is a magic antidote that makes her stronger. Tink saves Peter and she lives!

Meanwhile, the Indians who live in Neverland are in a feud with The Lost Boys because the boys are always stealing from them (after all, they have had no motherly guidance in Neverland until now). However, when Tiger Lily, who is the leader of the Indian tribe, is kidnapped by Captain Hook, Peter rescues her and ends the feud. The Indians and The Lost Boys learn to live in harmony.

In a grand effort to capture Peter at long-last, Captain Hook hatches a scheme to kidnap Wendy and her brothers. Peter and The Lost Boys go to rescue them and a huge swashbuckling battle takes place aboard the pirate ship, The Jolly Roger. In the end, Peter and The Lost Boys win, Captain Hook meets his fate at the jaws of the Croc, and Wendy and her brothers are set free.

Although Peter and The Lost Boys don't want Wendy, John and Michael to leave Neverland, the siblings decide their place is at home. They remain together only in dreams, but in dreams where they will forever be happy and forever be young.