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Copland: Composers
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These four motets were composed in the fall of 1921 while Copland was studying with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. The four motets have remained unpublished until now. Writing to Copland about them in 1924, Boulanger tells the composer that "those motets sound in the voices in a stunning manner."
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Copland died in 1990. In his lifetime, he received a Pulitzer Prize, an Academy Award, and a Congressional Medal for patriotism. Following his death, one writer described Copland in a way that would have made the public-spirited composer proud: “Only in America could the son of the president of a synagogue go to Europe to learn to write a ballet about Billy the Kid.”
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Copland enjoyed the challenge of composing for young performers. Life Magazine commissioned a piano piece and featured it in a 1962 issue of the magazine with photographs and a homespun article that explained, "Copland's Down a Country Lane fills a musical gap: It is among the few modern pieces specially written for young piano students by a major composer." Copland was quoted: "Even third-year students will have to practice before trying it in public."
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Copland and Sessions began to plan a concert series to be organized and managed by the composers themselves. It seemed natural that Copland and Sessions, the leading young American talents, would be the directors.
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Cuba had been on Copland's mind for some time. A commission to write a piece for the League of Composers' 20th anniversary gave him the incentive to compose Danzón Cubano for two pianos. It is based on Cuban dance rhythms, particularly the danzón, a stately dance, somewhat like the waltz. In two contrasting sections, Copland makes use of four Cuban dances with syncopated beats and polyrhythms. Copland explained, "I did not attempt to reproduce an authentic Cuban sound, but felt free to add my own touches of displaced accents and unexpected silent beats." As commentator for the program at which it was first presented, the composer told the audience, "Danzón Cubano is a genuine tourist souvenir."
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Few figures in American music loom as large as Aaron Copland. As one of the first wave of literary and musical expatriates in Paris during the 1920s, Copland returned to the United States with the means to assume, for the next half century, a central role in American music as composer, promoter, and educator. Copland's sheer popularity and iconic status are such that his music has transcended the concert hall and entered the popular consciousness; it both accompanies solemn and joyous celebrations the world over (Fanfare for the Common Man) and punctuates the familiar words "Beef: It's What's for Dinner!" (Rodeo) for millions of television viewers.
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