Aaron Copland

(Nov. 14, 1900 – Dec. 2, 1990)

Aaron Copland was known as the “Dean of American Composers.” This nickname came from his willingness to help younger composers and also his development of a truly “American” musical style that evoked thoughts about pioneers and the American land. Aaron Copland grew up in a family where his mother made sure her children had music lessons. Copland decided he wanted to be a composer when he was 15. He studied in Paris, France and came back to the United States excited to write music! He composed music for movies and ballets along with orchestral pieces. His most well-known songs are “Appalachian Springs,” “Rodeo,” “Billy the Kid” (a ballet), “Fanfare for the Common Man”, and “A Lincoln Portrait.” Later in his life he focused more on conducting, claiming that he had run out of ideas for composing. He was known for always encouraging and mentoring up-and-coming composers.

Aaron Copland was born in Brooklyn, NY. He studied in Paris, France and came back to the

United States excited to compose music! Later in his life he also traveled to Italy,

Austria, Germany, Africa, and Mexico, either for studying music or for vacation.

1900-1990 Aaron Copland lived from 1900 to 1990. Here are some things that happened during his lifetime: *William McKinley was president when Aaron Copland was born. !*George H.W. Bush was president when Aaron Copland died. *WWI, WWII, the Vietnam War, and the Korean War all happened during Copland’s lifetime. *The army tank was invented in 1911. *The first color and sound cartoon was made in 1930. *Amelia Erhart became the first woman to fly alone over the Atlantic Ocean in 1932. *Jackie Robinson became the first African-American to play in Major League Baseball in 1947. *Video games were just beginning to be invented in 1947. *Microwaves were invented in 1946.

Cool! *Because Copland had a habit of composing at night with the help of his noisy piano, he had to move several times. *His music was featured at the Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. *Copland was a great piano player! *Copland was good friends with another famous American composer named Leonard Bernstein. In fact, he was one of Bernstein’s teachers. *He was very shy, but would rather be in a crowd than alone. *Copland usually conducted the orchestras that performed his works for recordings. *Nicknamed the “dean of American composers.” !*He was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.