Aaron Copland was born on November 14th, 1900 in Brooklyn, New York, United States (3). His parents, Harris Morris Copland and Sarah Mittenthal Copland, were Jewish immigrants from Russia (6). Copland had four older siblings who grew up together. When he was eleven years old, one of his sisters, Laurine, taught him how to play a piano (3). Laurine also influenced to his musical world by introducing him to ragtime and opera (6). From 1913 to 1917, he took his first formal piano lessons from Leopold
standards, after being recommended by Greek conductor Dimitri Mitropoulos (Peyser 65). However, Bernstein soon learned that his idol, Russian conductor Serge Koussevitzky, would begin teaching conducting courses at his summer music festival at Tanglewood Music Center; he applied and was accepted, allowing him to develop a close friendship with Koussevitzky (Peyser 76). Here, Bernstein was able to effectively apply his learning and develop his skill through conducting its student orchestra (Peyser 83)
Leonard Bernstein was born on August 25, 1918. Bernstein's birth name was Louis, but his family always called him Leonard. At the age of 16 he legal changed his name to Leonard. Leonard grew up understanding that being a musician or artist was off limits. Leonard began playing piano at the age of 10. He had to save up his own money to pay for lessons, because his father refused to. Leonard, being a natural at the piano, impressed hi father enough that when his bar mitzvah came his father bought
When one considers the history of classical music, often images of Vienna, Prague, and other European cities come to mind. Centuries of European musical achievement and development have implanted in society the idea that classical music is an inherently European creation. Considering the accomplishments of countless composers such as J.S. Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Antonin Dvorak, this preconception is certainly not unfounded. However, Leonard Bernstein's rise to international fame proved that
The Five, The Mighty Handful, and The New Russian School all depict the five Russian composers who came together in 1856-57 in St Petersburg. Their ultimate goal was to portray and produce a Russian style of music , and this is exactly what they would accomplish. Though one of "The Five" goes farther than this with his works, this being Modest Mussorgsky. Mussorgsky was a composer born march 21st 1839, with one of the most controversial names and spellings of a name. He was born to wealthy land owners
On Sunday, April 19 2015 at 2:00 pm in Carnegie hall, the American Symphony Orchestra performed five pieces by various composers. The pieces performed at the American Symphony Orchestra include Alleluia, Dream-king and his love, Symphony NO.2, Music for Cello and Orchestra, and Cantares. Various well-known composers such as Randall Thompson, Horatio Parker, George Rochberg, Leon Kirchner, and Roberto Sierra composed the pieces included. All of which have an amazing skill and talent in composing music
Copland Copland wrote a ballet about one of the most famous "western gangsters" in history: Billy the Kid. The work was written in 1938 and remained popular for over a decade. Unfortunately, his works are no longer heard or performed often enough today. In my opinion, Copland is one of the greatest American performers in music history, but he is not given the recognition he deserves by today's society. By looking at Copland's works and analyzing his "Billy the Kid," the necessary proof of
to introduce the best American composers to the French traditions of teaching music, composing and performing. In 1927, Copland’s first major performance as a pianist took place with his “Piano Concerto” featuring Russian conductor/composer Serge Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Over the next twenty years, Copland would achieve many feats including teaching at Harvard, writing a film score for the documentary The City, and winning a Pulitzer Prize in Music for Appalachian Spring a
tours around the world, from Amsterdam, London, Milan, Madrid, and Vienna, which allowed him to become better known. Circa 1922, Ravel completed his well-known orchestrated version of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, commissioned by Serge Koussevitzky, which allowed widespread popularity and brought Ravel great fame and substantial income. Ravel is well known for his melodies and textures within his pieces. He composed what is now to be considered standard concert repertoire. Ravel greatly
He composed this song in 1943 the symphony was originally titled Symphony Dedicated to the Air Forces and was premiered in early 1944 by Serge Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 1947 Barber revised this symphony and G. Schirmer published and recorded it in 1945 with the New Symphony Orchestra in London. But in 1965 Barber destroyed this piece of music.The year 1947 wasn't a very
since been ambiguous and undefined; a fine line between hetero- and homosexuality (23). Furthermore, mentioned Bernstein dealt with persons typical attitude towards homosexuality; the behavior was considered shameful, reprehensible (159-164). Serge Koussevitzky; developer of musical programs at Tanglewood, emphasized in his lectures to the conducting students like Bernstein the importance of feeling clean before the conductor mounts the podium. Feeling clean meant, at the very least, feeling heterosexual