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Top 15 Facts About Aaron Copland

Born in 1900, Aaron Copland was a very versatile composer, composition teacher, and also conductor of American music. He played a huge role in bringing about change in composing music such that critics for a long time considered him the ‘Dean of American Composers.’ So many people have come to regard the shifting harmonies and wide range of it in most of his songs as the song of American music. Through his music, he has managed to express the vast American pioneer spirit. So what are some of the facts to know about the legendary Aaron Copland?

1. Aaron Copland  began writing music at only eight years old

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Copland started writing music at a very young age. He was only eight years old. He was the youngest of his siblings and was born to a very conservative Jewish family. His first notable music, which was seven bars long was written when he was 11 years old. It was good enough to be included in an opera scenario he had devised, known as Zenatello. By the time he was 15, Copland made the decision to fully become a music composer after watching a concert by a Polish composer and pianist, by the name of Jan Paderewski.

2. Spent three years studying classical music in Â鶹APP

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Aaron didn’t just become good by chance. As much as he was greatly talented, he also attended school to polish up his skills and become even better. Thus in the 1920s, he spent three years of his life studying classical music in Â鶹APP. He studied with Nadia Boulanger, another well-known educator who played a huge role in influencing Copland’s musical journey.

3. He wrote his music in so many different genres

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Aaron Copland had a knack for writing and composing music in very many different genres. This includes new music, vocal pieces, opera and film scores, and also ballets and orchestra music. He usually chose to compose music full-time that he also gave lecture-recitals and commission works in relation to musical composing.  He then discovered creating symphonic and new music in the modern style of music which he had earned while studying abroad. It came to be popularly appreciated and he was known quite well for this ability. This sound especially, was very much needed during the great depression as it came to be popular around this period.

4. He also used Schoenberg’s 12-tone system in his later compositions

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For him to be recognized as the greatest musical composer in history, he also used Arnold Schoenberg’s 12-note system in the later compositions he came up with. He was also greatly influenced by Pierre Boulez who was a French composer. This is the guy who showed him how to employ this method of composition in various ways. Later on, though, he became fascinated with jazz and popular music (previously studied in Europe) and this proved to be done very beautifully too by him. This is why many of his compositions, like ‘Four Piano Blues,’ has a bit of jazz influence in them.

5. Aaron is best known for the pieces he wrote in the 1930s and 40s.

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Between 1930s and 1940s copland managed to compose one of the best muiscals that earned him the title of one of the best American classical composers throughout the 20th century. He has come to best be known and recognized for the pieces he wrote during decade in an internationally accesible form known as ‘populist.’

6. Aaron came to earn the title, ‘Best Composer of the Century’

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As noted earlier. Copland was really good at composing music in different genres including filmscores, opera among others. He composed popular form of music that featured a combinationof jazz, folk, traditional and classical music. This earned him the title, one of the century’s best composers.  Pieces like ‘Fanfare for the Common Man’, ‘El Salon Mexico’, and ‘Appalachian Spring’, earned him the Pulitzer prize and to date they are some of the most well known works. In addition, the compositions he did for the North Star (1941), Our Town (1940), and Of Mice and Men (1939) also received Academy Award nominations.

7. He won Best Original Score for the Heiress in 1949

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The movie, ‘The Heiress,’ released in 1949 had ana amzing score that fans couldn’t help but take note of. This score was an original composition of Copland and this won him the Best Original Score award. Copland admitted taht he never really saw himself as a professional writer but somehow it all managed to catch up with him that he even described his wrotings as a type of modern music salesperson. We all know that he was just being modest because he truly is a talented composer.

8. Aaron’s piano skills are top notch

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Sure enough Copland’s paino skills were out of this world. He was best known for his pisno skills hence why he was able to come up with so many masterfully skilled compositions that cannot really compare. He learned to play piano earlier on from his sister then continued to perfect the skills when he decided to pursue music professionally too. His sister also encouraged him to pursue the career and here we are. Celebrating the legendary icon years later.

9. Copland studied piano with Leopold Wolfsohn between 1913 and 1917

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Bewteen 1913 and 1917, Copland got the opportunity to study piano further with Leopold Wolfsohn. This is the person who taught him the conventional classical repertoire. By the time he was returning back to America in 1925, he returned to writing, teaching and lecture recitals.

10. He has appeared in movies also

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In addition to his musical success, Copland has also appeared in a few movies. After great successes in score composition for the movies, The Red Pony’ and ‘The Heiress’ and also ballet works such as ‘Rodeo,’ he began conducting also. Thanks to this, more movies embraced him. These include, ‘Fanfare for America: The Composer Aaron Copland’ (2001). Directed by Andreas Skipis; ‘Aaron Copland: A Self-Portrait’ (1985); ‘Copland Portrait’ (1975): Directed by Terry Sanders, United States Information Agency; ‘Appalachian Spring’ (1996): Directed by Graham Strong, for Scottish Television Enterprises among others.

11. ‘Fanfare for the Common Man is considered Aaron’s most famous song

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‘Fanfare for the Common Man’ is considered Aaron Copland’s most famous song. In 1942, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s music director asked 18 different composers to make music expressing their love for America. He ended up creating ‘Fanfare for the Common Man’ for the competition and he actually won. This song is now performed at numerous national events in the United States, including various presidential inaugurations. That’s how amazing and popular it is.

12. His piano variations in his many compositions are considered his best known

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The ‘Piano Variations’ (written for piano solo in 1930), ‘The Dance Symphony’ (1930), ‘El Salon Mexico’ (1935), and ‘A Lincoln Portrait’ (1942) are among the best-of Copland’s works. Later on in 1944, Copland created the music for Martha Graham’s ballet ‘Appalachian Spring’ too which also became a very popular piece celebrated to date.

13. His lifelong plan wasn’t really to become a composer

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Typically speaking, Copland’s life long dream wasn’t really to become a musical composer. Hi mind changed however after attending a recital where Paderewski was performing. He was only 15 at the time and thereafter, he decided to become a well known and celebrated composer. His ambition indeed did come true. In his days of training, his mother who was a singer nad pianist also helped him train in a number of musical genres including orchestral concerts, ballet, and opera

14. His role model in composition was Igor Stravinsky

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There are many musical geniuses that before Copland and one such genius that utterly impressed Copland was Igor Stravinsky. You can tell Igor was truly his role model because before Copland found his own unique style and rythm, he modeled a lot of elements that would typically be found in Igor’s music. He was very impressed by the way Igor would make his rythms a bit riffed and jagged and use dissonance in his compositions.

15. His first premier was actually a flop

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Copland spent a lot of time in France under the tutorship of Nadia Boulanger. After his studies in France, he returned back home and determined to place American classical music on the map of musicals too. His first attempt however, where he had his forst show in Boston was an utter flop. He went ahead to introduce a fusion of jazz and classical music and the audience had a lot to say about it. They claimed that he deliberately clashed with the conductor just so he could prove how bad American music really was. Good thing he did not give up after that first trial.

Aaron Copland became a game changer in the composition of phenomenal pieces. He is often quoted in the history of music because, during his time, he managed to come up with iconic musical pieces that are still remembered to date.