program notes by composition > C > Candide Suite
Leonard Bernstein /
adapted by
Clare Grundman
Candide Suite
In Leonard Bernstein’s comic operetta which premiered on Broadway in 1956, Candide, a young innocent who lives in a sheltered paradise, is mentored by Dr. Pangloss, who believes they live in “the best of all possible worlds.” This optimism is tested as Candide endures one abhorrent trial after another. When everything he has ever loved withers away amidst death, destruction and deceit he amends his philosophy to the more pragmatic “let us cultivate our garden.”
Candide Suite
Last updated on November 11, 2018 by Palatine Concert Band