Considered to be the first composer with a definitively “American sound,” it is interesting to note that Aaron Copland’s harmonic education began in France. Copland studied in Paris under composer and educator Nadia Boulanger, a master pedagogue who influenced the lives and works of musicians across the globe. Described as an “intellectual Amazon” by Copland, Boulanger taught harmony at the French Music School for Americans with a depth of passion that had an outstanding effect on the American. In his later years, Copland stated that being accepted as Nadia Boulanger’s pupil was the most important musical moment of his life. 

Aaron Copland’s trademark harmonic architecture is fully displayed in the opening of Appalachian Spring; the iconic introduction is built from an A-major triad which emits from a single clarinet, supported by placid strings. The core of Copland’s music comes from his harmonic simplicity; the artfully layered entrances create a melodic arc born of the harmonic foundation. This is in great contrast to a foreground melody being supported by background harmony, as is generally the case in Western European orchestral music. His slow rhythmic organization creates a broader sense of harmonic architecture, and this interplay of melody and harmony is uniquely Copland. Mature orchestrations play into the straightforward harmonic foundation; Copland’s carefully selected timbres blend into one another seamlessly. This orchestral architecture pairs with Copland’s harmonic building blocks to create a transformative sound that is purely American. 

Copland marks the opening clarinet solo “semplice, white tone,” in its first entrance, guiding the performer to create a glassy, transparent quality of sound. Single woodwinds pass the ascending motif gently, soon lending it to trumpet and horn while strings quietly ebb underneath. The long-tone introduction creates a sonic picture of the Great Plains at sunrise; one feels they are looking out to the expansive American West as Copland’s Appalachian Spring delicately unfolds. Leonard Bernstein, a Copland contemporary, described this introduction as “perfectly serene.” 

Aaron Copland aimed to write music that was accessible to the masses, allowing orchestral music a place in every American’s life. To Copland, accessibility was born of simplicity. While he certainly has a sophisticated compositional output brimming with complex rhythms—his multimetric tendencies earned him the title “the Brooklyn Stravinsky”—harmonic landscaping is paramount to Copland’s writing. The simple harmonic cell, just a major chord, spurts forth and transfigures itself into expansive figures that stretch across the full orchestra with graceful, playful ease. 

Appalachian Spring is tuneful, at times singsong-y. The Allegro theme bursts forth vigorously, still a simple riff on the opening major chord. Rather than continue his expansive long tones, though, Copland now truncates and flips his legato opening; now an inverted eighth-note figure creates a punchy theme that erupts from upper strings and piano. The theme bounces across the orchestra and resounds joyfully while a brass fanfare blooms in the distance. As Copland’s major triad evolves, a folksong sprouts in the strings. The Shaker song, Simple Gifts, emerges. The orchestral texture returns to the peaceful opening soundscape with winds and strings layered deftly. Again the principal clarinet leads the charge, now joyfully presenting the Simple Gifts theme to the orchestra twice as fast. Winds develop the theme that is eventually overtaken by full-bowed legato celli, who sing through the American Shaker hymn with prayerful lyricism as flutes and percussion twinkle brightly in the background. Copland employs the Shaker tune throughout every section of the orchestra; a brief canon in the strings leads to a jubilant brass fanfare. As the Shaker variations continue, a truly grandiose presentation of the theme flows from the full orchestra, now one unified body. Appalachian Spring closes in reverent fashion, again led by Copland’s graceful harmonic landscaping and rhythmic structure. A single clarinet echoes the opening triad while strings hum quietly below. A final twinkle from glockenspiel and harp draws the suite to an earnest close.