Aaron Copland was an American composer, composition teacher, writer, and later a conductor of his own and other American music. Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as "the Dean of American Composers". The open, slowly changing harmonies in much of his music are typical of what many people consider to be the sound of American music, evoking the vast American landscape and pioneer spirit. He is best known for the works he wrote in the 1930s and 1940s in a deliberately accessible style often referred to as "populist" and which the composer labeled his "vernacular" style. Works in this vein include the ballets Appalachian Spring, Billy the Kid and Rodeo, his Fanfare for the Common Man and Third Symphony. In addition to his ballets and orchestral works, he produced music in many other genres, including chamber music, vocal works, opera and film scores.
After some initial studies with composer Rubin Goldmark, Copland traveled to Paris, where he first studied with Isidor Philipp and Paul Vidal, then with noted pedagogue Nadia Boulanger. He studied three years with Boulanger, whose eclectic approach to music inspired his own broad taste. Determined upon his return to the U.S. to make his way as a full-time composer, Copland gave lecture-recitals, wrote works on commission and did some teaching and writing. However, he found that composing orchestral music in the modernist style, which he had adopted while studying abroad, was a financially contradictory approach, particularly in light of the Great Depression. He shifted in the mid-1930s to a more accessible musical style which mirrored the German idea of Gebrauchsmusik ("music for use"), music that could serve utilitarian and artistic purposes. During the Depression years, he traveled extensively to Europe, Africa, and Mexico, formed an important friendship with Mexican composer Carlos Chávez and began composing his signature works.
During the late 1940s, Copland became aware that Stravinsky and other fellow composers had begun to study Arnold Schoenberg's use of twelve-tone (serial) techniques. After he had been exposed to the works of French composer Pierre Boulez, he incorporated serial techniques into his Piano Quartet (1950), Piano Fantasy (1957), Connotations for orchestra (1961) and Inscape for orchestra (1967). Unlike Schoenberg, Copland used his tone rows in much the same fashion as his tonal material—as sources for melodies and harmonies, rather than as complete statements in their own right, except for crucial events from a structural point of view. From the 1960s onward, Copland's activities turned more from composing to conducting. He became a frequent guest conductor of orchestras in the U.S. and the UK and made a series of recordings of his music, primarily for Columbia Records.
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Some of their strengths
Aaron Copland has many admirable traits.
Based on spiritual traditions from around the world, they are someone who can be described as Independent, Optimistic, Intelligent, Passionate, Intuitive, Confident, and Extroverted.
Intense and Passionate
According to Mysticism’s Astrology tradition, Aaron Copland is someone who is an intense, passionate, and intuitive person who is fiercely independent, authentic and direct when engaging with others. A person who is known for being a good communicator.
Warm and Caring
Based on Daoism’s Ba-Zi or ‘Chinese Zodiac’ tradition, people who know Aaron Copland well know them as someone who can be warm, caring, and compassionate, like a lamp or torch.
Independent and Organized
According to Hinduism’s Jyotisha or ‘Vedic Astrology’ tradition, many would also describe Aaron Copland as someone who is independent, organized, inventive, and generous.
A person who is curious and a loves learning, who seems to always know what to say, who has an optimism that can overcome any difficult situation, and who seems to be able to master almost any skill.
Perceptive and Visionary
Based on the Mayan Tzolk’in or ‘Mayan Astrology’ tradition, Aaron Copland is someone who has a natural awareness about what is going on in the surrounding environment and the world at large, and a refined vision of how to navigate it.
They are also someone who is patient, assertive, and who is a natural leader that likes to help others in need.
Mysterious and Methodical
According to Judaism’s Kabbalah tradition, Aaron Copland tends to be someone who can come across as mysterious and intense, who can be a complex thinker who is methodical and intuitive, and who can overcome challenges that most others would not be able to.
Some of Aaron Copland's challenges
While Aaron Copland has many strengths, nobody is perfect. They also have some challenging traits they need to manage.
For example, Aaron Copland can be Unrealistic, Complicated, Brusque, Arrogant, Status-seeking, Difficult, and Perfectionist.
Complicated and Brusque
One of Aaron Copland's key challenges is that they are someone who can be complicated and gruff with others.
Aaron Copland must also exercise caution as they can have a hard time reconciling wants and needs, and can be short-tempered and aggressive.
Domineering and Impatient
Aaron Copland is someone who can be demanding, egotistical, and controlling, can have a lack of judgment regarding personal finances, be argumentative and stubborn, and who can have a tendency to be withdrawn and spend time in self-imposed isolation.
Sensitive and Aggressive
Finally, Aaron Copland also can be too "touchy-feely", have a hard time expressing feelings, be too aggressive and headstrong, and be too unforgiving of others' mistakes.
