Aaron Copland: An American Composer

Through his compositions, teachings, philanthropy, and desire to create original and inspirational music that was uniquely American, Aaron Copland became one of the most decorated and respected composers of the twentieth century.
Born November 14th 1900 to Jewish immigrants from Lithuania, Copland played piano at a very young age. He took lessons in harmony and counterpoint with Goldmark, an old-fashioned teacher who was dedicated to Beethoven and Fux, and against whom Copland rebelled, becoming enamored with Scriabin, Debussy and Ives. By the age of sixteen he was studying composition and often attended musical symphonies where he was quickly drawn to the historical icons of classical music and left the United States to attend the Summer
Copland believed that coupled with the influences and ideas of jazz he could create and develop a symphonic sound that was distinctly American. In the late 1920s Copland’s attention turned to popular music of other countries. By the late 1930’s Copland had become one of the most popular composers in the country, as well as a leader of the community of American classical musicians. He had moved away from his interest in jazz and began to concern himself with expanding the audience for American classical music. He worked toward this goal by being an active member of many organizations, including both the American Composers’ Alliance and the League of Composers. He also began the Copland-Sessions concerts, dedicated to presenting the works of young composers. He also introduced the Yaddo Festival of American Music. Furthermore, “El Salón México” was the piece that helped Copland begin his most productive and popular years. The piece presented a new sound that had its roots in Mexican folk music. In an attempt to reach even greater audiences, Copland began composing for the movies and ballet. Among his most popular compositions for film are those for “Of Mice and Men”, “Our Town”, and “The Heiress”, for which he won an Academy Award for best score. He composed scores for a number of
The Fund was officially announced to the public in 1992. The Fund’s purpose is to encourage and improve public knowledge and appreciation of contemporary American music. The fund operates three grant programs and also grants permission for the use of Copland’s music. The first, a recording fund, maintains three separate grant programs in support of contemporary American music, each with its own objectives and annual application deadline. Second, the Performing Ensemble program’s objectives are to document and provide wider exposure for the music of contemporary American composers, to develop audiences for contemporary American music through record distribution and other retail markets, and to support the release and dissemination of recordings of previously unreleased contemporary American music and the reissuance of recordings that are no longer available. Finally, the supplemental program’s objective is to support non-profit organizations that have a history of substantial commitment to contemporary American music but whose needs are not addressed by the Fund’s programs of support for performing organizations and recording projects. Organizations eligible for the supplemental program include service organizations and presenters. Organizations whose principal function is to support a specific performing ensemble should