25 Interesting Aaron Copland Facts That You Probably Didn't Know

Aaron Copland was a versatile composer, composition teacher, and conductor of American music.

Copland's musical friends and critics considered him to be 'the Dean of American Composers'. Many people regard the broad, gently shifting harmonies in most of his songs as the sound of American music, expressing the vast American pioneer spirit and landscape.

Aaron Copland was born in the neighborhood of Brooklyn, in the state of New York City. Aaron Copland was the youngest of his siblings and was born into a Lithuanian Conservative Jewish household.

Copland began to write music when he was eight and a half years old.

His first piece of notated music, approximately seven bars long, was written when he was 11 years old for a play opera scenario, he devised called Zenatello. At the age of 15, Copland decided to become a music composer after watching a concert by Ignacy Jan Paderewski, a Polish composer-pianist.

In the 1920s, Copland spent three years studying classical music in Paris with Nadia Boulanger, a well-known educator who was one of his biggest influences.

Copland met with many prominent musicians during the Wednesday afternoon teas of Nadia Boulanger, including Igor Stravinsky. Copland sought out contemporaries such as Walter Piston, Roger Sessions, Virgil Thomson, and Roy Harris and swiftly positioned himself as a spokesman for composers of his time, inspired by the Les Six band in France.

Copland's connection with these men dubbed the 'commando unit', was one of support and rivalry, and he was instrumental in keeping them together in the music industry until the end of World War II.

Copland wrote and composed music in various genres, including new music, vocal pieces, opera, and film scores, in addition to ballets and orchestral music. Copland chose to compose music, and as a full-time composer, he gave lecture-recitals and did commission works.

However, he discovered that creating symphonic and new music in the modern music style, which he had learned while studying abroad, was a financially unsound strategy, especially given the Great Depression.

He used Arnold Schoenberg's twelve-tone system in his later compositions, which included the Piano Fantasy, albeit he didn't completely embrace it. He was also influenced by Pierre Boulez, a French composer who showed him how to employ this method in a variety of ways.

Later in life, he was attracted to jazz and popular music, genres he had previously studied while in Europe. Several of his compositions, notably 'Four Piano Blues,' had some jazz influence. In 1990, Aaron Copland died of Alzheimer's disease.

If you like reading about Copland Aaron, or want to know more about Copland's music, the Copland School of Music, read on to learn more about Aaron Copland songs or the Aaron Copland genre. You could also check out our other articles on Barack Obama facts and Albert Einstein facts.

What Is Aaron Copland Known For?

Aaron Copland was one of the best American classical composers throughout the 20th century. He is best known for pieces written in the 1930s and 1940s in an intentionally accessible form that has been called 'populist' and termed 'vernacular' by the composer.

Rodeo, Billy the Kid, and Appalachian Spring, are ballets in this genre, as are his Fanfare for the Third Symphony and the Common Man.

He composed music in a variety of genres, including vocal pieces, cinema scores, chamber music, and opera, in addition to ballets and orchestral works.

Copland composed a very popular form of music that featured a peculiar combination of jazz, folk, traditional, and classical music, earning him the title of one of the century's best composers. 'Fanfare for the Common Man', 'El Salon Mexico', and 'Appalachian Spring', for which he earned the Pulitzer Prize, were among Copland's most well-known works.

His compositions for The North Star (1941), Our Town (1940), and Of Mice and Men (1939) also received Academy Award nominations.

Copland won the Best Original Score for The Heiress in 1949 at the Academy Awards. Copland describes how he never saw himself as a professional writer.

Aaron described his writing as 'a result of his profession' as 'a type of modern music salesperson'.

As a result, he wrote a lot about music, including essays on music criticism, musical trends, and his own creations. Copland was a frequent speaker and lecturer-performer, and his lecture notes were eventually compiled into three books, namely 'Music and Imagination' (1952), 'Our New Music' (1941), and 'What to Listen for in Music' (1939).

What Instruments Did Aaron Copland Play?

Aaron Copland was well-known for his piano skills. Aaron's sister, Laurine, had a close relationship with him. She gave him his initial piano lessons, pushed his musical education, and encouraged him to pursue a career in music.

Copland's father was uninterested in music. Sarah Mittenthal Copland, his mother, sang, played the piano, and set up music lessons for her children.

Copland began making songs when he was eight and a half years old. He studied piano with Leopold Wolfsohn from 1913-1917, who taught him the conventional classical repertoire. After attempting to pursue his music education through a correspondence course, Copland got official instruction in composition, theory, and harmony from Rubin Goldmark, a prominent instructor, and composer of American music.

In 1925, after finishing his schooling, Copland returned to the United States. He returned to writing, teaching, and lecture recitals after his return.

Aaron Copland Movies

Aaron Copland has appeared in quite a few movies. His movies include the following:

'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.

Also, Copland began conducting at the conclusion of his career, after achieving enormous success with film scores such as 'The Red Pony' and 'The Heiress' and ballet works such as 'Rodeo'.

Aaron Copland Most Famous Song

'Fanfare for the Common Man' is considered Aaron Copland's most famous song. In 1942, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra's music director commissioned 18 composers to make music expressing love for America. Copland created 'Fanfare for the Common Man' for the competition. This song is performed at numerous national events in the United States, including various presidential inaugurations.

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-known Copland's works (1942). Later, in 1944, Copland created the music for Martha Graham's ballet 'Appalachian Spring' too.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Aaron Copland facts then why not take a look at Christopher Columbus facts or facts about Rosa Parks.