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Aaron Copland conducting. (Erich Auerbach/Getty Images)

Composer Corner: Copland

July’s composer of the month is Aaron Copland.

 

Born: November 14, 1900

Died: December 2, 1990

 

Five facts:

• Copland's first piano teacher was his older sister, Laurine.

• When the composer was 11 years old, he wrote his first melody — seven bars of an opera called Zenatello.

• He was awarded the 1945 Pulitzer Prize for his ballet, Appalachian Spring.

• Copland was also a respected film composer, scoring titles such as The Red Pony, Of Mice and Men, and The Heiress (which earned him the 1950 Academy Award for Best Music).

• In 1921, Copland sailed to France and studied with renowned composition teacher, Nadia Boulanger. He was initially skeptical of studying with a woman, but over time he developed a tremendous amount of respect for her, calling her an "intellectual Amazon" and describing his introduction to Boulanger as "the most important musical event of his life."

 

Three important works:

• Rodeo (1942)

• Fanfare of the Common Man (1942)

• Appalachian Spring (1944)

 

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