Customer Reviews

Copland: Appalachian Spring; The Tender Land Suite; Morton Gould: Fall River Legend

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Here are definitive performances of music by American composers Aaron Copland and Morton Gould, conducted by the composers themselves. These were originally issued on separate RCA Victor "Living Stereo" recordings in 1960 and 1961; typical of RCA recordings of that era, they had exceptional sound.

Aaron Copland conducted the Boston Symphony Orchestra in his concert suites from the ballet "Appalachian Spring" and the opera "The Tender Land." He succeeded in getting top-notch performances from the Bostonians and left us a wonderful musical treasure.

"Appalachian Spring" is among Copland's greatest works and won the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Choreographed by dancer/choreographer Martha Graham, the complete ballet is seldom heard but is available on an RCA Victor CD with Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra in the fully orchestrated version. The ballet was originally performed with only 13 musicians and Copland himself made a recording of that original scoring for Columbia (later reissued on Sony). This writer had an opportunity to attend a performance of the ballet by the Martha Graham group in 1975, with the composer conducting the San Jose Symphony; what a special treat it was to see Copland and Graham together. She made a memorable entrance in the San Jose Performing Arts Center as she wore a long, flowing, red, chiffon dress.

This is one of Copland's very few recordings for RCA; he was long associated with Columbia and recorded many of his works for them, usually in London with British orchestras.

Some have said that Copland was not a great conductor; that may be so, but these recorded performances are among his best and compare well with other recordings by other conductors. I always especially liked Copland's setting of the Shaker tune "Simple Gifts;" it is quite moving and magnificent. CBS used this setting as the theme for some of its special news broadcasts in the 1950's and 1960's.

A special treat is the suite from "The Tender Land." This writer sang the lively tune "Stomp Your Foot" with the San Jose State Men's Glee Club in 1968; it's wonderful to hear a fully-orchestrated version of the song. There is also some very emotional and quite tender music in the suite. The Boston musicians play with great sensitivity.

Morton Gould recorded a suite from his 1948 ballet "Fall River Legend." The full ballet score can be heard on an Albany Records CD. Gould compiled the best moments from the score, depicting the tragic events in Fall River, Massachusetts, in the early 1890's, in which Lizzie Borden was accused of murdering her parents. The music was quite nostalgic and exuberant.

This CD also includes the two middle movements from Gould's popular "Latin American Symphonette." The second movement is quite haunting and seductive, while the third movement is jubilant and highly syncopated. The performances of Gould's music here are all very good. Gould also was generally associated with Columbia Records and wrote music for a number of CBS radio broadcasts. The original RCA Victor LP also included his piano concerto, "Interplay," which is another memorable and quite original work.

I always have thought that Copland's The Tender Land is probably one of the hidden treasures in American classical music. It's a beautiful piece of music, especially Acts 1&3. You will not be disappointed in this from one of America's most beloved composers.

This is the best way to get Copland's "Tender Land" suite. This same recording has appeared on other RCA CDs, but this Living Stereo mix is the top.