Leonard Bernstein only composed a handful of shows on Broadway, but he was a game-changer. From On the Town to West Side Story, Bernstein mixed genres and styles of music—incorporating jazz, blues, ragtime, Latin beats-- mixing them with popular song traditions and the rhythms of the streets and then filtering it all through his own distinctive voice. In this 2018 podcast, we explore it all with Rob Kapilow. You may know Kapilow from the public radio program "What Makes It Great" in which he takes listeners inside of music to explore that very question. Well, in this pod, Kapilow discusses what makes Leonard Bernstein's music for Broadway great. He talks about Bernstein's impact on Broadway, his refusal to accept musical silos, and his generosity and difficulty as a collaborator. Rob also illustrates the distinctiveness of the chords, rhythms, and melodic structures that Bernstein composed. It's a musical exploration of a great composer in musical theater.