Search Results - Copland, Aaron

Aaron Copland

Aaron Copland Aaron Copland (, ; November 14, 1900December 2, 1990) was an American composer, critic, writer, teacher, pianist, and conductor of his own and other American music. Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as the "Dean of American Composers". The open, slowly changing harmonies in much of his music are typical of what many consider the sound of American music, evoking the vast American landscape and pioneer spirit. He is best known for the works he wrote in the 1930s and 1940s in a deliberately accessible style often referred to as "populist" and which he called his "vernacular" style. Works in this vein include the ballets ''Appalachian Spring'', ''Billy the Kid'' and ''Rodeo'', his ''Fanfare for the Common Man'' and Third Symphony. In addition to his ballets and orchestral works, he produced music in many other genres, including chamber music, vocal works, opera, and film scores.

After some initial studies with composer Rubin Goldmark, Copland traveled to Paris, where he first studied with Isidor Philipp and Paul Vidal, then with noted pedagogue Nadia Boulanger. He studied three years with Boulanger, whose eclectic approach to music inspired his own broad taste. Determined upon his return to the U.S. to make his way as a full-time composer, Copland gave lecture-recitals, wrote works on commission and did some teaching and writing. But he found that composing orchestral music in a modernist style, which he had adopted while studying abroad, was unprofitable, particularly in light of the Great Depression. He shifted in the mid-1930s to a more accessible musical style that mirrored the German idea of ("music for use"), music that could serve utilitarian and artistic purposes. During the Depression years, he traveled extensively to Europe, Africa, and Mexico, formed an important friendship with Mexican composer Carlos Chávez, and began composing his signature works.

During the late 1940s, Copland became aware that Stravinsky and other fellow composers had begun to study Arnold Schoenberg's use of twelve-tone (serial) techniques. After he had been exposed to the works of French composer Pierre Boulez, he incorporated serial techniques into his ''Piano Quartet'' (1950), ''Piano Fantasy'' (1957), ''Connotations'' for orchestra (1961), and ''Inscape'' for orchestra (1967). Unlike Schoenberg, Copland used his tone rows in much the same fashion as his tonal material—as sources for melodies and harmonies, rather than as complete statements in their own right, except for crucial events from a structural point of view. From the 1960s onward, Copland's activities turned more from composing to conducting. He became a frequent guest conductor of orchestras in the U.S. and the UK and made a series of recordings of his music, primarily for Columbia Records. Provided by Wikipedia
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  1. 1

    Appalachian spring. by Copland, Aaron, 1900-

    Book
  2. 2
  3. 3

    Copland : 1900 through 1942 / by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1984
    Book
  4. 4

    Dance panels ; Eight poems of Emily Dickinson ; Short symphony by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1992
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
  5. 5

    Billy the Kid ballet suite / by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1941
    Online Access (via Alexander Street Press)
    Electronic Musical Score Book
  6. 6
  7. 7

    Inscape by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1968
    Online Access (via Alexander Street Press)
    Electronic Musical Score Book
  8. 8

    Sextet ; Piano variations ; Piano quartet by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1987
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
  9. 9

    Third symphony ; Quiet city by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1986
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
  10. 10

    Complete works for violin and piano by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 2002
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    Online Access
    Electronic Audio
  11. 11

    Four early songs : for voice and piano / by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1989
    Musical Score Book
  12. 12

    Piano works by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1988
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
  13. 13

    Four dances from Rodeo by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 2006
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
  14. 14

    Copland. by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1989
    Book
  15. 15

    Symphony no. 1 ; Piano concerto ; Inscape by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1990
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
  16. 16

    Appalachian spring ; Nonet for strings ; Two pieces for string quartet by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1990
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
  17. 17

    Stomp your foot : from The tender land / by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1954
    Musical Score Book
  18. 18

    Aaron Copland : a reader : selected writings 1923-1972 / by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 2004
    Book
  19. 19

    Poet's song / by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1967
    Book
  20. 20

    Appalachian spring (suite) Billy the Kid (suite) ; Lincoln portrait ; Fanfare for the common man / by Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990

    Published 1996
    Other Authors: “…Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990…”
    CD Audio
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