West Side Story (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |
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Soundtrack album by | |
Released | December 3, 2021 |
Recorded | 2019–2021 |
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Genre | |
Label | Hollywood |
Producer |
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Singles from West Side Story (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |
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West Side Story is the soundtrack album to Steven Spielberg's 2021 film adaptation of the musical of the same name, produced by 20th Century Studios and Amblin Entertainment. The album features music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, with vocals from the film's ensemble cast including Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Mike Faist and Rita Moreno, who played Anita in the 1961 film adaptation and plays Valentina (a reworked version of the character Doc) in this film.
The soundtrack was released digitally in Dolby Atmos by Hollywood Records on December 3, 2021 and subsequently released on physical CD on December 10, the same day the film was released in theaters. [1] [2]
Composer David Newman arranged and adapted Bernstein's original score for the film, incorporating a number of alterations originally made to Bernstein's Broadway score by Johnny Green for the 1961 film (e.g., interpolation of the "Cool" fugue motif into the "Prologue" and the extended trumpet solo in "Mambo"). Gustavo Dudamel conducted the New York Philharmonic during the film's recording sessions in 2019, with additional recording by the Los Angeles Philharmonic done during the COVID-19 pandemic the following year. [3] Jeanine Tesori served as vocal coach, while frequent Spielberg collaborator John Williams served as music consultant. [4] [3] The film's version of "Tonight", sung by Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort, was released as a digital download single on December 1, 2021. [5] [6]
Alongside the soundtrack, "re-imagined" pop covers were also produced, including "Another Day in America" by Kali Uchis and Ozuna, which was released as a single on November 26 by Interscope Records. [7]
Like the film, the soundtrack received acclaim from critics and was nominated for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards.
All tracks are written by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Performer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Prologue" | Leonard Bernstein | Orchestra | 5:54 |
2. | "La Borinqueña (Sharks Version)" |
| 1:06 | |
3. | "Jet Song" |
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| 2:11 |
4. | "Something's Coming" |
| Ansel Elgort | 2:30 |
5. | "The Dance at the Gym: Blues, Promenade" | Bernstein | Orchestra | 2:11 |
6. | "The Dance at the Gym: Mambo" | Bernstein | Orchestra | 3:19 |
7. | "The Dance at the Gym: Cha-Cha, Meeting Scene, Jump" | Bernstein | Orchestra | 3:28 |
8. | "Maria" |
| Elgort | 3:05 |
9. | "Balcony Scene (Tonight)" |
|
| 5:24 |
10. | "Transition to Scherzo / Scherzo" | Bernstein | Orchestra | 2:14 |
11. | "America" |
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| 4:57 |
12. | "Gee, Officer Krupke" |
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| 4:20 |
13. | "One Hand, One Heart" |
|
| 3:45 |
14. | "Cool" |
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| 4:03 |
15. | "Tonight Quintet" |
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| 3:28 |
16. | "The Rumble" | Bernstein | Orchestra | 3:10 |
17. | "I Feel Pretty" |
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| 2:58 |
18. | "Somewhere" |
| Rita Moreno | 3:10 |
19. | "A Boy like That / I Have a Love" |
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| 5:25 |
20. | "Finale" | Bernstein | Orchestra | 3:36 |
21. | "End Credits" | Bernstein | Orchestra | 9:03 |
Total length: | 79:00 |
Source: [8]
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Chart (2021–2022) | Peak position |
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Japanese Albums (Oricon) [9] | 40 |
Japanese Hot Albums ( Billboard Japan ) [10] | 45 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [11] | 31 |
US Soundtrack Albums (Billboard) [12] | 10 |
US Top Album Sales (Billboard) [13] | 38 |
West Side Story is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents.
"Maria" is a song from the 1957 Broadway musical West Side Story, sung by the lead character Tony. The music was written by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The song was published in 1956.
West Side Story is a 1961 American musical romantic drama film directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, written by Ernest Lehman, and produced by Wise. The film is an adaptation of the 1957 Broadway musical of the same title, which in turn was inspired by Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. It stars Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, and George Chakiris and was photographed by Daniel L. Fapp in Super Panavision 70. The music was composed by Leonard Bernstein, with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
Gustavo Adolfo Dudamel Ramírez is a Venezuelan conductor. He is currently the music director of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He is scheduled to become the Music and Artistic Director of the New York Philharmonic in 2026.
"I Feel Pretty" is a song written by Stephen Sondheim and Leonard Bernstein from the 1957 musical West Side Story.
"Tonight" is a song from the 1957 musical West Side Story with music written by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. It was published in 1956.
"Cool" is a song from the 1957 musical West Side Story. Leonard Bernstein composed the music and Stephen Sondheim wrote the lyrics. This was the first song they wrote together, and Sondheim later recollects that Bernstein must have written the opening line since he himself was not prone to writing melismatically. This song is known for its fugal treatment of a jazz figure, described by one writer as "possibly the most complex instrumental music heard on Broadway to date". In the 1957 musical, the song is performed by Riff as he advises the Jets to stay cool before entering the Rumble. This is however changed in the 1961 and 2021 film adaptations.
West Side Story is the soundtrack album to the 1961 film West Side Story, featuring music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Released in 1961, the soundtrack spent 54 weeks at No. 1 on Billboard's stereo albums charts, giving it the longest run at No. 1 of any album in history, although some lists instead credit Michael Jackson's Thriller, on the grounds that this run for West Side Story was on a chart for stereo albums only at a time when many albums were recorded in mono. It did also spend 6 weeks at the top of the Billboard chart for mono albums. In 1962, it won a Grammy award for "Best Sound Track Album – Original Cast". In the United States, it was one of the best-selling albums of the 1960s, certifying three times platinum by the RIAA on November 21, 1986.
"Something's Coming" is a song from the 1957 musical West Side Story. It was composed by Leonard Bernstein with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and is sung solo by the male lead character and tenor 'Tony'. The part of Tony was played by Larry Kert in the original Broadway production, Richard Beymer in the 1961 film and Ansel Elgort in the 2021 film.
"Somewhere", sometimes referred to as "Somewhere (There's a Place for Us)" or simply "There's a Place for Us", is a song from the 1957 Broadway musical West Side Story that was made into films in 1961 and 2021. The music is composed by Leonard Bernstein with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
"America" is a song from the 1957 musical West Side Story. Stephen Sondheim wrote the lyrics and Leonard Bernstein composed the music.
"A Boy Like That/I Have A Love" is a song from the 1957 Broadway musical West Side Story, with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. In the musical, the song is sung by the characters Anita and Maria. For the original Broadway cast recording, the song was performed by Chita Rivera (Anita) and Carol Lawrence (Maria). In the 1961 film version the roles were played by Rita Moreno and Natalie Wood, but the songs were dubbed by Betty Wand and Marni Nixon. However, the repeat of the two stanzas, sung by Anita, along with Maria's counterpoint of her defense, was omitted because of the complexity of the song, as well as to avoid the repetition, which would have slowed down the pace of the film. In the 2021 film, the roles were played by Ariana DeBose and Rachel Zegler.
Ansel Elgort is an American actor and singer. He began his acting career with a supporting role in the horror film Carrie (2013). He gained wider recognition for starring as a teenage cancer patient in the romantic drama film The Fault in Our Stars (2014) and for his supporting role in The Divergent Series (2014–2016).
"One Hand, One Heart" is a song from the musical West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim. It is a duet sung between Maria and Tony while they have a make-believe wedding, as seen in the stage version and 1961 film, while in the 2021 film, they sing it as they pledge their love to one another inside a church at The Cloisters as part of their date. Larry Kert and Carol Lawrence introduced it in the 1957 Broadway production.
"Gee, Officer Krupke" is a comedy number from the 1957 musical West Side Story. The song was composed by Stephen Sondheim (lyrics) and Leonard Bernstein (music), and was featured in the Broadway musical and subsequent 1961 and 2021 films.
Karly Marina Loaiza, known professionally as Kali Uchis, is an American singer and songwriter. After releasing her debut mixtape Drunken Babble (2012), she gained recognition for her debut extended play, Por Vida (2015). She signed with Virgin EMI Records to release her debut studio album Isolation (2018), which peaked at number 34 on the Billboard 200 and saw widespread acclaim. She then signed with Interscope Records to release her second studio album and first Spanish-language project, Sin Miedo (2020). It spawned the single "Telepatía", which first gained virality on TikTok and marked her first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 25, also receiving double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Her third studio album, Red Moon in Venus (2023) peaked at number four on the Billboard 200, while her fourth album and second Spanish-language project, Orquídeas (2024), peaked at number two.
West Side Story is a 2021 American musical romantic drama film directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Tony Kushner. The second feature-length adaptation of the 1957 stage musical, which was itself inspired by William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, it stars Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler, the latter making her film debut, with Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Mike Faist, and Rita Moreno in supporting roles. Moreno, who starred in the 1961 film adaptation, also served as an executive producer alongside Kushner. The film features music composed by Leonard Bernstein with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
Caleb Zackery "Don" Toliver is an American rapper and singer-songwriter. His debut mixtape, Donny Womack (2018) was released a day prior to fellow Houston rapper Travis Scott's album Astroworld (2018), on which Toliver guest appeared on its song "Can't Say". In the following week, he signed with Scott's record label, Cactus Jack Records, in a joint venture with Atlantic Records.
Rachel Zegler is an American actress and singer. She came to prominence with her film debut playing María in Steven Spielberg's musical adaptation West Side Story (2021), for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.