Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as the dean of american composers. His piano concertos blazing fusion of jazz and stravinsky proved too much for the 1927 premieres boston audience. In the first volume of his autobiography, aaron copland writes. Aaron copland 1900 1990 the son of immigrant jewish parents from poland and lithuania, aaron copland was born in brooklyn in 1900 and lived to become the doyen of all american composers. The first part is very slow and languid, and then a technically demanding solo cadenza leads straight into part 2. Aaron copland s piano sonata comes chronologically from the very heart of his vernacular period, but bears little stylistic resemblance to the works around it. They were dedicated to american writer and literary critic gerald sykes c. Composed at the behest of his traditionalist teacher rubin goldmark, coplands sonata in g major is his. Both of those performances are significantly faster than the present one, particularly in the first movement. Copland s concerto for piano and orchestra is an early composition 1927 and in it you can hear the young composers interest in jazz as well as a heavy influence of the.
The open, slowly changing harmonies in much of his music are typical of what many people consider to be. Bennett lerner, pianist zubin mehta, conductor new york philharmonic november 14, 1985. Silverman plays with conviction and grace as he soars through classic repertoire. The work was commissioned by the conductor serge koussevitzky who was then music director of the boston symphony orchestra. Print instantly, or sync to our free pc, web and mobile apps. The copland piano collection by aaron copland 19001990. Concerto for piano and orchestra sketchscore library. For clarinet and string orchestra, with harp and piano 1948 edited by. Written in the late 1940s for benny goodman, the king of swing, the works incorporation of popular elements, particularly jazz, has. Piano variations has special effects, such as silently depressing the keys, in addition to multistaff reading, complex rhythms, and thick textures. A broad selection of piano works by aaron copland, conveniently published in a single volume. Both copland and menotti seldom wrote in the concerto format and the first concerto they each wrote were for piano.
Aaron copland composer 19001990 play streams in full or download mp3 from classical archives, the largest and best organized classical music site on the web. Coplands concerto for piano and orchestra is an early composition 1927 and in it you can hear the young composers interest in jazz as well as a heavy influence of the. In december 1940, copland was named by nelson rockefeller to an advisory panel within. Aaron copland s concerto for clarinet and string orchestra, with harp and piano holds a prominent place in the twentiethcentury clarinet repertoire. Aaron coplands clarinet concerto also referred to as the concerto for clarinet, strings and harp was written between 1947 and 1949, although a first version was available in 1948. Aaron copland, benny goodman, the columbia string orchestra, the new york quartet. Works for violin and piano complete classical naxos. These works are also probably still under in the u. The opening sketches date from june 1939, just after copland had completed the incidental music he would later fashion into the tone poem quiet city. For copland, jazz was the first genuinely american major musical movement. Aaron coplands piano sonata comes chronologically from the very heart of his vernacular period, but bears little stylistic resemblance to the works around it. Coplands second concerto was for benny goodman in 1948.
My only reservation is copland and the symphony of the air. Copland piano concerto, soloist aaron copland conducted by leonard bernstein. It is interesting to compare this recording of copland s piano concerto with two that the composer made, one as conductor with earl wild at the piano, and one as soloist with leonard bernstein on the podium. Preface aaron coplands concerto for clarinet and string orchestra, with harp and piano holds a prominent place in the twentiethcentury clarinet repertoire. Piano concertos wild, copland, mester release date. The written permission of the owners andor holders of other rights such as publicity andor privacy rights is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. Unlike other copland piano discs, cedilles includes only original piano works. Piano concerto, 1926 jazz concerto leo smit, piano radio rome symphony orchestra aaron copland, conductor i. It was first performed on january 28, 1927, by the boston symphony orchestra conducted by koussevitzky with the composer. When i originally agreed to compose the piano sonata, i had asked playwright clifford odets 2 january 1939. Copland wrote only two concertos this one for piano in the 1920s and, two decades later, the popular clarinet concerto. Order from your preferred classical music cd store arkivmusic.
These are the 16 most essential concertos in all of classical music. Its usually referred to as his jazziest work, and there are lots of elements to back this up, particularly the second movement, where copland clearly has. The most famous of beethovens piano concertos and perhaps of all. An exhaustive list of all the reasons we love leonard bernstein. Copland clarinet concerto performed in belgrade, yugoslavia, on june 2, 1961, by milenko stefanovic and belgrade philharmonic orchestra, conducted by aaron copland benny goodman premiered the concerto on an nbc radio broadcast with the nbc symphony orchestra conducted by fritz reiner, on november 6, 1950. Chandos records is one of the worlds premier classical music record companies, best known for its ground breaking search for neglected musical gems. This is from the new york philharmonic young peoples concert, jazz in the concert hall and was recorded february 8, 1964.
The piano variations of american composer aaron copland were written for piano solo from january to october 1930. Aaron copland bio, albums, pictures naxos classical music. Copland s complex work, sometimes beautiful, sometimes grotesque, is, quite simply, a masterpiece by the doyen of american composers and a landmark of its genre in twentieth century music. Here is my program note on the copland sonata that i will be playing wednesday night at penn. Martin frost is the soloist when alain altinoglu conducts gothenburg symphony in aaron coplands clarinet concerto. This is from the new york philharmonic young peoples. The cat and the mouse down a country lane four piano blues in evening air midsummer nocturne night thoughts passacaglia petit portrait piano sonata piano variations three moods midday thoughts proclamation for piano. Like the other great american concerto from this time, coplands for the. The menotti fizzes and sings with a light touch, and jorge mester matches wild with an accompaniment that sparkles. Copland, menotti, wild, symphony of air piano concerti. Concerto for clarinet and string orchestra, quartet for piano and strings.
Coplands piano concerto may have been influenced by gershwins piano concerto composed two years earlier. Copland cant keep the crossrhythms in his own concerto quite together, and the orchestra sounds in spots like theyre holding on. The piece, symphony for organ and orchestra 1925 was coplands entry into the life of professional american music. Jun 15, 2016 copland piano concerto, soloist aaron copland conducted by leonard bernstein. If copland had not written the jazzy second movement of his early piano concerto, bernstein would have had to do so in his fancy free mode. Aaron copland november 14, 1900 december 2, 1990 was an american composer, composition teacher, writer, and later in his career a conductor of his own and other american music. Aaron copland born november 14, 1900, brooklyn, new york. Contact us cd subscription email signup submit a proposal facebook instagram twitter youtube. A further step in coplands compositional development originated from the impact of stravinskys adoption of a neoclassic style. Aaron copland wrote his clarinet concerto between 1947 and 1949, as a commission for the great clarinetist benny goodman. Jan, 2016 aaron copland november 14, 1900 december 2, 1990 was an american composer, composition teacher, writer, and later in his career a conductor of his own and other american music. Copland completed work on the piano concerto in november 1926. With its curious, halting commas in the solo part and the crossrhythms between piano and orchestra it makes a perfect companion to the more austere first section. Photo 102 aaron copland, nadia boulanger, walter piston at the old france restaurant, boston, 1945.
Like george gershwins rhapsody in blue composed two years prior, the piece demonstrates an early use of jazz and blues in an orchestral setting instrumentation. Heres a video of leonard bernstein conducting coplands piano concerto with aaron copland himself at the piano during the new york. Concerto for piano and orchestra sketchscore library of. The renowned jazz clarinetist benny goodman asked copland to compose a work for him. Serge koussevitzky conducted the first performance on october 18, 1946, in boston. Works, such as the octet 1923 and concerto for piano and wind instruments.
Both of those performances are significantly faster than the. Both have strong elements of popular music and use the same form. He followed this with music for the theater 1925 and piano concerto 1926, both of which relied heavily on the jazz idioms of the time. Copland learned to play piano from an older sister. The season 1415 martin frost is artist in residence in gothenburg and he will both be the soloist and conduct the orchestra in several programs over tjhe year. It is interesting to compare this recording of coplands piano concerto with two that the composer made, one as conductor with earl wild at the piano, and one as soloist with leonard bernstein on the podium. It is a highly rhythmical, work which makes heavy use of blues and jazz themes especially in the piano set against a background of more traditional music in the orchestral part. This recording showcases the exquisite artistry and musicianship of pianist robert silverman, and the quintessential musical intelligence of composer aaron copland. A newly engraved and researched edition from the composers manuscript held in the aaron copland collection at the library of congress with extensive critical commentary by the ed. I did prefer bernsteins recording with copland as soloist sony 60177 or 2cd set sony 47232. November 14, 1900 december 2, 1990 was an american composer, composition teacher, writer, and later a conductor of his own and other american music. His musical works ranged from ballet and orchestral music to choral music and movie scores. The concerto for piano and orchestra is a musical composition by the american composer aaron copland.
Shop and buy the copland piano collection sheet music. Copland clarinet concerto mp3 download piano accompaniment. The piano concerto is firmly rooted in the 1920s, though once again the glorious introductory bars, where horns, trumpets and trombones exchange bold fanfares, points to his later style. Coplands clarinet concerto frost altinoglu on vimeo. The tender land suite piano concerto old american songs arr. The composer later wrote, i was trying to give young american singers material that they do not often get in the opera house. Clarinet, harp, orchestra, piano sheet music book by aaron copland 19001990. The underlying idiom is very american, with evocative melodies and blues influences. Classical music is something which will last forever and it has been proven to be the music of intelligence. Copland, aaron all original works compositions and arrangements of this person are still under in canada, the eu, japan and elsewhere and are thus subject to immediate deletion. This is full of jazz rhythms with a latin american vibe in some sections. For the better part of four decades aaron copland was considered the premier american composer. Choose from aaron copland sheet music for such popular songs as lauries song, at the river, and long time ago.
Apr 06, 20 rather than relying on a smattering of mediocre performances of individual movements, puts together two cds of generally great performances of entire works. Concerto for clarinet and string orchestra, quartet for piano and strings label. Concerto for clarinet and string orchestra with harp and piano 194748 martin frost, clarinet. Copland s second concerto was for benny goodman in 1948. Victor kraft, 90 edgewood avenue, cranston, ri 0290544. The complete music for solo piano, an album by aaron copland, leo smit on spotify we and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes. Concerto for piano and orchestra sketchscore library of congress.