Aaron Copland Aaron Copland (, ; November 14, 1900December 2, 1990) 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 Com ...

's Clarinet Concerto (also referred to as the ''Concerto for

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

and

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

'') was written between 1947 and 1949, although a first version was available in 1948. The concerto was later choreographed by

Jerome Robbins Jerome Robbins (born Jerome Wilson Rabinowitz; October 11, 1918 – July 29, 1998) was an American dancer, choreographer, film director, theatre director and producer who worked in classical ballet, on stage, film, and television. Among his nu ...

for the ballet ''Pied Piper'' (1951).

History

Composition

Soon after Copland composed his Symphony No. 3, in 1947

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

clarinetist

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...

commissioned him to write a concerto for clarinet. Goodman told Copland biographer

Vivian Perlis Vivian Perlis (April 26, 1928 – July 4, 2019) was an American musicologist and the founder and former director of Yale University's Oral History of American Music. Personal life Vivian Perlis was born in Brooklyn, New York. After growing u ...

I made no demands on what Copland should write. He had completely free rein, except that I should have a two-year exclusivity on playing the work. I paid two thousand dollars and that's real money. At the time there were not too many American composers to pick from... We never had much trouble except for a little fracas about the spot before the cadenza where he had written a repetition of some phrase. I was a little sticky about leaving it out—it was where the viola was the echo to give the clarinet a cue. But I think Aaron finally did leave it out... Aaron and I played the concerto quite a few times with him conducting, and we made two recordings"

Copland was in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

in 1947 as a lecturer and conductor. While there he made many drafts of the concerto. On August 26, 1948, Copland wrote that the concerto was still "dribbling along". A month later, he wrote in a letter that the piece was almost done. On December 6, 1948, he wrote to composer

Carlos Chávez Carlos Antonio de Padua Chávez y Ramírez (13 June 1899 – 2 August 1978) was a Mexican composer, conductor, music theorist, educator, journalist, and founder and director of the Mexican Symphonic Orchestra. He was influenced by nativ ...

that he had completed the composition and was pleased with the result. Copland accepted a commission from conductor

Serge Koussevitzky Sergei Alexandrovich KoussevitzkyKoussevitzky's original Russian forename is usually transliterated into English as either "Sergei" or "Sergey"; however, he himself adopted the French spelling "Serge", using it in his signature. (SeThe Koussevit ...

to arrange the concerto's first movement as an '' Elegy for Strings'', to be performed by the

Boston Symphony The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

. However, in a letter to Koussevitzky dated August 29, 1950, Copland backed away from the commission. The composer explained that, after further thought, he believed that performing an arrangement of the first movement by itself "takes away from the integrity of the Concerto as I originally conceived it, and I am basically unwilling to do that". Copland was also concerned, he wrote, that a performance of the concerto's first movement by itself when the concerto still had not been performed—Goodman repeatedly postponed his premier of the piece—might be misperceived by the public as expressing doubt about the quality of the concerto's second movement. He proposed a different way to satisfy his commitment for an

elegy An elegy is a poem of serious reflection, and in English literature usually a lament for the dead. However, according to ''The Oxford Handbook of the Elegy'', "for all of its pervasiveness ... the 'elegy' remains remarkably ill defined: sometime ...

Performances

Benny Goodman premiered the concerto on an

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

radio broadcast with the

NBC Symphony Orchestra The NBC Symphony Orchestra was a radio orchestra conceived by David Sarnoff, the president of the Radio Corporation of America, especially for the conductor Arturo Toscanini. The NBC Symphony performed weekly radio concert broadcasts with Tosca ...

conducted by

Fritz Reiner Frederick Martin "Fritz" Reiner (December 19, 1888 – November 15, 1963) was a prominent conductor of opera and symphonic music in the twentieth century. Hungarian born and trained, he emigrated to the United States in 1922, where he rose t ...

, on November 6, 1950.Naxos liner notes
/ref> Some claim this performance, however, was not the world premiere, and attribute the world premiere to

Ralph McLane Ralph McLane (December 19, 1907 – February 18, 1951) was an American clarinetist. He was born in Lynn, Massachusetts. McLane is best known for his tenure as principal clarinetist of the Philadelphia Orchestra from 1943 until his death in 1951. ...

and the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription ...

under

Eugene Ormandy Eugene Ormandy (born Jenő Blau; November 18, 1899 – March 12, 1985) was a Hungarian-born American conductor and violinist, best known for his association with the Philadelphia Orchestra, as its music director. His 44-year association wit ...

because this performance on November 28, 1950 was the first "public performance". In any case it was the first public performance of the Concerto in New York. This November 28, 1950 performance —probably just beyond the end of the two-year exclusivity— had been scheduled by Copland to increase pressure on Goodman, since he kept on putting off the first performance. A recording of the first radio performance by Goodman, with the NBC Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Fritz Reiner is available on CD on the Legend music label (see below). The concerto quickly established itself as a standard piece in the clarinet repertoire. Since the performance by Benny Goodman, other notable performances include those by: *

Stanley Drucker Stanley Drucker (February 4, 1929 – December 19, 2022) was an American clarinetist. For nearly five decades, he was principal clarinetist of the New York Philharmonic. According to Guinness World Records, he achieved the longest career as a c ...

and the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

with

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

Milenko Stefanović Milenko Stefanović (19 February 1930 – 25 July 2022) was a Serbian classical and jazz clarinetist. He was a prizewinner in the international competitions in Moscow, Munich, Geneva and Prague, and achieved an international career as a soloist. ...

and the

Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra The Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra ( sr, Београдска филхармонија, Beogradska filharmonija) is an orchestra located in Belgrade, Serbia. It is regularly considered one of the finest in the country. History Unlike most Eur ...

with

(

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

, June 2, 1961) *

Richard Stoltzman Richard Leslie Stoltzman (born July 12, 1942) is an American clarinetist. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, he spent his early years in San Francisco, California, and Cincinnati, Ohio, graduating from Woodward High School in 1960. Today, Stoltzman is part ...

and the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

with

Michael Tilson Thomas Michael Tilson Thomas (born December 21, 1944) is an American conductor, pianist and composer. He is Artistic Director Laureate of the New World Symphony, an American orchestral academy based in Miami Beach, Florida, Music Director Laureate of ...

* Paul Meyer and the

English Chamber Orchestra The English Chamber Orchestra (ECO) is a British chamber orchestra based in London. The full orchestra regularly plays concerts at Cadogan Hall, and their ensemble performs at Wigmore Hall. The orchestra regularly tours in the UK and internationall ...

Sabine Meyer Sabine Meyer (born 30 March 1959) is a German classical clarinetist. Biography Born in Crailsheim, Baden-Württemberg, Meyer began playing the clarinet at an early age. Her first teacher was her father, also a clarinetist. She studied with Otto ...

and the

Bamberger Symphoniker The Bamberg Symphony (German: Bamberger Symphoniker – Bayerische Staatsphilharmonie) is a German orchestra based in Bamberg. It is one of the most prestigious orchestras in Germany. The orchestra was formed in 1946 mainly from German musicians e ...

However, one particular recording of note is the one with Goodman and conducted by Copland himself, which Aaron Copland considered to be his best recording ever.

Style and structure

Copland incorporated many jazz elements into his concerto. Mellers —Copland being representative of the American "Other"— links Copland’s affinity for jazz elements with the fact that “both Negro and Jew are dispossessed people who have become, in a cosmopolitan urban society, representative of man’s uprootedness.” Copland himself acknowledged that his signature "bittersweet lyricism" like in the first movement of the Clarinet Concerto may have been influenced by his feelings of loneliness and social alienation over his homosexuality. On the piece, Copland writes:

"The instrumentation being clarinet with strings, harp, and piano, I did not have a large battery of percussion to achieve jazzy effects, so I used slapping basses and whacking harp sounds to simulate them. The Clarinet Concerto ends with a fairly elaborate coda in C major that finishes off with a clarinet glissando – or "smear" in jazz lingo."

The piece is written in a very unusual form. The two

movements Movement may refer to: Common uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Motion, commonly referred to as movement Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...

are played back-to-back, linked by a clarinet

cadenza In music, a cadenza (from it, cadenza, link=no , meaning cadence; plural, ''cadenze'' ) is, generically, an improvisation, improvised or written-out ornament (music), ornamental passage (music), passage played or sung by a solo (music), sol ...

. The first movement is written in A-B-A

form Form is the shape, visual appearance, or configuration of an object. In a wider sense, the form is the way something happens. Form also refers to: *Form (document), a document (printed or electronic) with spaces in which to write or enter data ...

and is slow and expressive, full of bittersweet lyricism. The cadenza not only gives the soloist an opportunity to display his virtuosity, but also introduces many of the melodic Latin American jazz themes that dominate the second movement. The overall form of the final movement is a free

rondo The rondo is an instrumental musical form introduced in the Classical period. Etymology The English word ''rondo'' comes from the Italian form of the French ''rondeau'', which means "a little round". Despite the common etymological root, rondo ...

with several developing side issues that resolve in the end with an elaborate

coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

in C major. Copland noted that his playful finale is born of

"an unconscious fusion of elements obviously related to North and South American popular music (for example, a phrase from a currently popular
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
ian tune, heard by me in
Rio Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...
, became embedded in the secondary material)."

This section was written specially for Benny Goodman's jazz talents; however, many of the technical challenges were above Goodman's confidence level, and the original score shows several alterations by Goodman to bring down higher notes, making it easier to play. The manuscript page of the original coda has suggested changes by Goodman in pencil, and the memo on top reads:

"1st version —later revised— of Coda of Clarinet Concerto (too difficult for Benny Goodman)"

Recently, performances of the restored original version have been given by

Charles Neidich Charles Neidich (born 1953 in New York City) is an American classical clarinetist, composer, and conductor. Early career A native New Yorker of Russian and Greek descent, Charles Neidich began his clarinet studies with his father, Irving Neidich ...

and Andrew Simon, amongst others. In the liner notes of the Chandos CD ''Composers in New York'', Charles Neidich writes:

"...of that
948 Year 948 ( CMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Arab–Byzantine War: Hamdanid forces under Sayf al-Dawla raid into Asia Minor ...
coda, complete with a tremendously brilliant clarinet part: cascading arpeggios which oplanddecided were too difficult for the clarinet and which in the revised version he gave to the piano."

Only a few recordings of this version have been made (see the discography section below). The concerto contains other notable references such as material from “The Cummington Story”, an "Office of War Information Documentary" (written in 1945) which sets the stage for the film's church-centered small town. It is the refugees’ theme from the unpublished film score that is used in the concerto.Use of material from "Down a country lane" and "The Cummington Story", p.11
/ref>

Discography

Recordings on LP

Gervase de Peyer Gervase Alan de Peyer (11 April 1926 – 4 February 2017) was an English clarinettist and conductor. Professional career Gervase Alan de Peyer was born in London, the eldest of three children of Everard Esmé Vivian de Peyer, and his wife, Edith ...

. ''Copland, Clarinet Concerto''. Unicorn Records RHS314 ?, (p) ~1972 * Paul Drushler. Version with piano. Mark 3344 *

. ''Aaron Copland conducts his clarinet concerto''. Columbia Masterworks MS 6497, (p) 1963 *

. ''Meeting at the Summit''. Columbia MS6805 ?, (p) ?

Recordings available on CD

* Laura Ardan. ''American Classics''. Naxos 8.559069, 2001, (p) 2001 *

Dimitri Ashkenazy Dimitri Thor Ashkenazy (born October 8, 1969 in New York City) is an Icelandic clarinetist living in Switzerland. He is the son of pianist and conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy and has toured Europe with him, as well as performing under him with the ...

. ''Concertos For Clarinet''. PAN Classics 510 107, 1998, (p) 1998 * Reto Bieri. ''Portrait''. PAN Classics 510 144, 2001, (p) 2001 *

William Blount William Blount (March 26, 1749March 21, 1800) was an American Founding Father, statesman, farmer and land speculator who signed the United States Constitution. He was a member of the North Carolina delegation at the Constitutional Convention of ...

, ''Music for the Theatre''. Music Masters MM601621 1988 *

Eduard Brunner Eduard Brunner (14 July 1939 – 27 April 2017) was a classical music, classical clarinetist. He began his musical education in Basel (Switzerland) where he was born, continuing his studies at the Paris Conservatoire with Louis Cahuzac. For thi ...

. ''Hommage à Benny Goodman''. Koch Schwann 3-1035-2, 1992, (p) 1992 *

Philippe Cuper Philippe Cuper is a French clarinetist, born in Lille on 25 April, 1957. He is considered to be one of the best representatives of the current French clarinet school. Biography Studies Cuper received his early training in Marcq en Baroeul ...

. ''Concertos For Clarinet & Orchestra''. ADDA 581315, 1992, (p) 1993 * Karin Dornbusch. ''Barber, Copland, Ginastera''. Caprice CAP 21591, 1998, (p) 1998 *

. ''Copland: El Salon Mexico/Concerto for Clarinet and String Orchestra/Music for the Theatre/Connotations for Orchestra''. Deutsche Grammophon 431 672–2 1991, (p) 1991 * Kim Ellis. ''The Music of Copland and McKinley''. Navona NV5812, 2008 *

Martin Fröst Martin Fröst (born 14 December 1970) is a Swedish clarinetist and conductor. He is principal conductor of the Swedish Chamber Orchestra. He is also a developer of multimedia projects with music, choreography and light design, in which he appea ...

. ''Martin Fröst Plays Concertos Dedicated To Benny Goodman''. BIS CD-893, 1997, (p) 1998 *

. ''Benny Goodman Collector's Edition''. CBS MK42227, 1986, (p) 1986 *

. ''Reiner & Goodman''. Legend LGD122, 1951, (p) 1994 *Gary Gray. ''Clarinet Concertos''. Centaur CRC 2212, 1994, (p) 1994 * Janet Hilton. ''Clarinet Concertos''. CHAN 8618, 1988, (p) 1988 *

Sharon Kam Sharon Kam ( he, שרון קם; born August 11, 1971) is an Israeli–German clarinetist. She won the ARD International Music Competition in 1992. Biography After completing her music studies at the Juilliard School of Music in New York, wher ...

. ''American Classics''. Teldec Classics 8573-88482-2 2002, (p) 2002 *

. ''I got Rhythm, American Classics''. Teldec Classics WPCS-11205 (8573-88482-2) 2002, (p) 2002 *

George MacDonald George MacDonald (10 December 1824 – 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister. He was a pioneering figure in the field of modern fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow writer Lewis Carroll. I ...

. ''Clarinet Concertos...''. ASV CD DCA568, 1986, (p) 1986 *

Jon Manasse Jon Manasse is an American clarinetist. Manasse studied clarinet at the Juilliard School under David Weber. He won a prize in the International Competition for Clarinet in Munich and was the youngest winner of the International Clarinet Society Co ...

. ''3 Clarinet Concertos''. XLNT Music CD-18011, 2004, (p) 2004 *

. ''Sounds of America''. Recursive Classics RC3139941, (p) 2021 * Paul Meyer. ''Clarinet Concertos''. DENON CO-75289, 1993, (p) 1993 *

. ''Homage To Benny Goodman''. EMI Classics 7243 5 56652 2 5, 1998, (p) 1998 *

Arne Møller Arne Møller (born 6 April 1960) is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Career Møller played for Helgerød IL, Brann and Aris Thessaloniki Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club ...

. ''Et Clarinet portræt''. Classico CLASSCD514, 1964, (p) 2004 *

. ''Composers in New-York''. Chandos digital CHAN 9848, 2000, (p) 2000 * Daniel Pacitti. ''Works For Clarinet''. Agora Musica AG026, 1995 * Ludmila Peterková. ''Scaramouche And Other Concertos For Clarinet''. Supraphon SU 3348-2031, 1997, (p) 1997 * Robert Plane. ''American Landmarks''. BBC MM205 DDD 2001, (p) 2001 *

David Shifrin David Shifrin (born January 2, 1950) is an American classical clarinetist and artistic director. Biography David Shifrin received early musical training at the Interlochen Center for the Arts in 1963. He attended the Music Academy of the West sum ...

. ''Clarinet Concerto...''. EMI CDC 7 49095 2, 1989, (p) 1989 * Robert Spring. ''American Jazz Concertos''. Summit Records DCD-1019, 2003, (p) 2003 *

. ''Copland-Corigliano, Clarinet Concertos''. RCA Victor Red Seal RD 87762, 1988, (p) 1988 *

. ''Copland Clarinet Concerto''. RCA Victor Red Seal 09026 61790 2, 1993, (p) 1993 *

. ''The Essential Clarinet''. RCA 61360, 1988, (p) 1992 * Sarah Williamson. ''Copland Clarinet Concerto''. Somm New Horizons. B003L1N4PI, 2010 *Andrzej Wojciechowski. A Tribute to Benny Goodman. DUX 1266, 2016

Recordings of the original 1948 version

* Reto Bieri. ''Portrait''. PAN Classics 510 144, 2001, (p) 2001 *

. ''Composers in New-York''. Chandos digital CHAN 9848, 2000, (p) 2000 *

. ''Dances to a Black Pipe.'' BIS-SACD-1863, 2011, (p) 2011

Recording of performance directed by the composer

. ''Benny Goodman Collector's Edition''. CBS MK42227, 1986, (p) 1986

Recording of the first radio performance

. ''Reiner & Goodman''. Legend LGD122, 1951, (p) 1994

Recordings available on DVD

. ''Concerto''. RCA Victor BVBC-34002, 1993, (p) 1993

References

External links

Good Music Guide
The Clarinet BBoard on Copland Clarinet Concerto
Video - Aaron Copland - Clarinet Concerto (21:23).
{{Authority control Compositions by Aaron Copland Copland 1949 compositions