The original West Side Story musical was a sensation when it hit Broadway in 1957. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the spellbinding play told the gritty tale of an unlikely romance between Tony, former cofounder of a local white street gang, and Maria, sister of Bernardo who was the head of a local Puerto Rican street gang.
Combining a deep narrative with lively musical numbers, West Side Story covered themes such as gang violence, racism, and the hardships of living up to the American Dream. And no more is this more evident than in ‘America,’ a supposedly pro-American song with a distinct Hispanic style and complex rhythm section.
Available for FREE throughout October 2022, download the sheet music to ‘America’ from West Side Story today. This arrangement is for piano and vocals.
Fun Facts About ‘America’ from West Side Story, by Leonard Bernstein:
- The music for ‘America’ was written by famed composer, Leonard Bernstein, with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
- ‘America’ has been covered numerous times by several recording artists, such as Metallica, who incorporated a few bars from it into their 1991 song, ‘Don’t Tread on Me.’
- This arrangement of ‘America’ is played in the key of G-minor at 100 BPM
- The 2021 film version of ‘America’ takes place at broad daylight on the streets, as opposed to the 1961 film version, which takes place at night on the rooftops.
This arrangement was transcribed by Tunescribers member Ranita B.
