Leonard Bernstein's Children Have Always Focused on Preserving His Legacy

The Gist:

• Maestro has put renewed attention on Leonard Bernstein and his three children, Jamie, Alexander, and Nina.
• Each of Leonard's children has worked to preserve their father's legacy, and all three of them seem to be thrilled with Maestro.
• It isn't clear exactly how many grandchildren Bernstein had, but Jamie had at least one child named Francesca.

So far, Bradley Cooper's Maestro is earning very solid reviews and reminding many people of the incredible work Leonard Bernstein did throughout his life. In Maestro, the famous conductor and composer is the central subject, but his career is only part of the focus. The film also spends time on Leonard's private life — specifically on his relationship with his wife Felicia Montealegre.

Leonard and Felicia had three children together, and all three of them were involved to some extent in the making of Maestro. Following its release, many who have seen the film are naturally wondering where Leonard and Felicia's children are now, and what they think of the film.

Leonard and Felicia had three children, Jamie, Alexander, and Nina. Jamie has the most prominent role of the three in Maestro, as she reckons with rumors that her father is having affairs with men.

Jamie has carried on her father's legacy by working as a concert narrator and filmmaker. She speaks about music all over the world, and has also shared her reflections about her father at various points over the years.

Alexander is president of Artful Learning, Inc., and Vice President and Treasurer of The Leonard Bernstein Office, Inc. He previously worked as a teacher in Brooklyn for five years and has also worked professionally as an actor.

Nina began her career working as an actor. Eventually, she transitioned to working on preserving her father's legacy, including working with the Library of Congress to make sure his archives were made available online to the public.

Leonard's children have largely kept their private lives out of public view, so it's difficult to say for sure how many grandchildren Bernstein may have had. Jamie had one daughter, Francesca, with her husband David Thomas, although it seems like the couple got divorced sometime after their marriage in 1984. It isn't clear if Alexander or Nina ever had any children because they don't speak about that part of their lives publicly.

As Maestro has become an awards contender, all three children have been sitting for joint interviews where they discuss their father's legacy. Although they said they didn't have any firm ideas of how the story should be told, they were thrilled when they saw the script.

“It would be absolutely on the right track as far as I was concerned," Alexander explained. "It was wonderful that he decided to make it about the marriage and not a strict biopic. It was such a beautiful idea.”