DOWNLOAD

BERNSTEIN – Miniature based on the song ‘America’ (from ‘West Side Story’) – FOUR CELLOS (easy)

Other Identification:
West Side Story is a famous American musical with music by Leonard Bernstein. It loosely follows a traditional story line coming from at least as far back as William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. As a musical, it presents the slums of New York as teen gangs of white American ne’er-do-wells and tough Puerto Rican immigrants battle it out. The idea was first conceived in 1949, but first brought before the Broadway public in 1957. Interestingly, the first reviews were actually quite mixed. But over the following decades ‘West Side Story’ continues to increasingly captivate, intoxicate, jolt its listeners, and even compel one to dance.

Movements or sections:
The song ‘America’ is a high-energy challenge dance between Puerto Rican girls, set on a tenement rooftop.

Instrumentation: QUARTET OF FOUR CELLOS (EASY)
Arranged by David Johnstone

Downloads of 2 PDFs:
[1 – General Score
[2 – All individual parts

Approximate difficulty: EASY
The fragment for cello ensemble is playable by even modest cello groups. All parts do not venture beyond fourth position (extended) and the octave harmonic ‘A’ (for first cello), and all have brief moments of melodic prominence!

Go back to this section and continue searching for more music

Go to COLLECTION POINT to receive all selected items

Poster of Johnstone-Music

Who plays Johnstone-Music?

Johnstone Music has been performed by orchestras and conservatories worldwide, earning international recognition in cello repertoire.

Free sheet music

Instantly download a wide variety of scores – from cello solos and chamber works to orchestral parts and educational material

How do free downloads work?

Please enjoy looking around the very large selection of music offered, and the information given for each piece or work. When you find music you want, simply click “Yes, I wish to download this music”.

You can then either continue searching or go to the Collection Point to receive the music. You can order up to ten PDFs in each session (once per day).

The very first time you receive music, you will need to register on this site with the briefest details, of course at no cost at all. Then, on subsequent visits, you simply ‘log in’.

It is hoped to launch a special viewer subscription for unlimited access in the near future.

Practising good intentions

This site includes a wealth of historical and modern documents, photos, and music — some obviously of unknown or untraceable origin. Johnstone-Music makes no intent of financial gain from sharing the material; any royalties happily belonging to the original owners.

We believe that virtually anyone would appreciate the educational and academic value of sharing, and we’re happy to credit (and thank) any name. However, please be assured that if any copyright holder were to firmly object to the inclusion of something in their domain we would promptly remove said item upon request.

Personal

David Johnstone lives near Pamplona (Navarre, Spain) with his wife Rosa and their two “Spanglish” children, close to the Atlantic Pyrenees. The nearest international airport is Bilbao.

He is interested in world affairs, politics, animal rights, and most sports (including being a lifelong suffering Reading FC fan!). Also passionate about Celtic culture and genealogy, he has traced his ‘English’ family back to 1280, although Scotland and Ireland have also shaped his background. And yes — he is half-ashamed to admit it, he loves silly jokes!

Social Work

David Johnstone supports animal rights, he is against any form of abuse towards them, and says a loud “NO” to bullfighting, foxhunting and any other animal cruelty.

TORTURE IS NOT CULTURE !