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Leonard Bernstein's personally-owned and -used custom-made baton, used to conduct a New York Philharmonic performance of Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 in the spring of 1967. Made to Bernstein's specifications by NY Philharmonic timpanist Saul Goodman, the baton measures 15˝ long overall and weighs a mere 6 grams; it features a cork bulb grip and a thin, lightweight wooden rod. The cork exhibits a distinctive patina from Bernstein's use.
The consignor describes receiving the baton from Bernstein: 'When I was 12, I became friends with Lenny and I went to at least one concert a week while he was with the NY Philharmonic as his guest, sat (usually) in the viewing room and then we all gathered in to his dressing room after the concert to 'hang out' for a while. One concert we talked about my conducting the Candide Overture, and he told me to bring the score so he could go over it with me. After a concert where he’d conducted the Shostakovich 5th, he proceeded to go over every note on the Candide score, and then gave me the baton he’d just used to conduct the Shostakovich 5th. He also signed the Candide score. Because I didn't want to risk breaking the baton (very thin wood) or damaging the score I didn't use either for the Candide performance, I bought another score and used another baton.'
Includes three pieces signed by Leonard Bernstein: a program for the Philharmonic Hall's 1963–64 season, signed and inscribed on the front cover in black ballpoint, "For Bruce, Leonard Bernstein"; a program for the New York Philharmonic French-American Festival, July 14–July 31, 1965, signed and inscribed in blue ballpoint on the program page for the debut of Bernstein's Chichester Psalms, "Work hard Bruce! Leonard Bernstein," "Zino Francescatti," and "Philippe Entremont"; and the "Overture to 'Candide'" score referenced in the consignor's story, signed and inscribed on the front cover in black felt tip, "For Bruce—Best of everything, Leonard Bernstein."
A 1962 piece in the New York Times profiled Philharmonic timpanist Saul Goodman and his rise as Bernstein's preferred baton maker: 'Mr. Bernstein did not use a baton until he became permanent conductor of the Philharmonic and Mr. Goodman had never made a baton until the conductor asked him to do so. 'I became Lennie's 'official' baton maker purely by accident…Since Lennie had never used a baton, he wouldn't be too apt to make comparisons with whatever I fashioned for him. He showed me samples of several batons he had inherited from Serge Koussevitzky and suggested one for himself patterned in general after these…Lennie, being a pianist as well as a conductor, has strong hands and wants something firm to clasp in his hands when he conducts. The cork piece gives him a grip without adding to the baton's weight' ('A Good Man with the Baton' by Howard Bailey, September 2, 1962).
