American Classics

[Suffolkcoastal]

Found a fascinating recording on youtube last night of Copland conducting his score for the 1961 film 'Something Wild'. Much of the score went into 'Music for a Great City' of 1964, but there is a considerable amount of music that is new, plus the odd idea reused from the 1960 Nonet. I had no idea that Copland had conducted let alone recorded the full film score. Will have to try and find out when it was made and if the original score survives. The film score is powerful, disturbing and for the most part, dark. As Music for a Great City is one of my favourite Copland scores, it would be wonderful to see if the original film score could be recovered and performed.

[Pulcinella]

Found a fascinating recording on youtube last night of Copland conducting his score for the 1961 film 'Something Wild'. Much of the score went into 'Music for a Great City' of 1964, but there is a considerable amount of music that is new, plus the odd idea reused from the 1960 Nonet. I had no idea that Copland had conducted let alone recorded the full film score. Will have to try and find out when it was made and if the original score survives. The film score is powerful, disturbing and for the most part, dark. As Music for a Great City is one of my favourite Copland scores, it would be wonderful to see if the original film score could be recovered and performed.

There's a fair bit about the score in Howard Pollack's book on Copland, but it doesn't seem to mention who actually conducted it for the film. Interesting that the suite derived from it, Music for a great city, was originally going to be called Music for New York, but the title was changed in deference to the LSO, whose sixtieth season the piece commemorated.

And there's even more, including a picture of Copland conducting the film score in 1961, in Copland since 1943, by Copland and Perlis.

Thanks for this, SC; I shall read and listen later today!

[Suffolkcoastal]

I'll try & message the guy who uploaded the score to find out where it comes from. The uploaded score is in 11 sections lasting about 35 minutes.

[makropulos]

I'll try & message the guy who uploaded the score to find out where it comes from. The uploaded score is in 11 sections lasting about 35 minutes.

Here's the Varese Sarabande CD:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Something-Wild-OST-Aaron-Copland/dp/B000094T6K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422189448&sr=8-1&keywords=something+wild+varese

Anyone interested in Copland should try to hear this. Thanks for drawing attention to it!

[Suffolkcoastal]

Thanks for the link makropulos, much appreciated, immediately purchased, to invaluable for Copland admirer not to take advantage of.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Copland wasn't the composer originally intended for Something Wild - that was Morton Feldman, who produced a piece by Morton Feldman: gentle, fragile and tough in equal measure, and going against the disturbing visuals of the film in a way that Scorsese later used the "Intermezzo" from Cavalleria Rusticana to "accompany" the most violent, slow-motion film of the fights in Raging Bull. The director (Jack Garfein), lacking the imagination of either Scorsese or Feldman rejected the original score and asked Copland to write a replacement.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B36lVaUvGTA

[Pulcinella]

Thanks from me too; also purchased!



Pollack says: He [Garfein] considered both Shostakovich and Morton Feldman for the music, but then gravitated toward Copland; he knew and loved The Tender Land, a work that, like Something Wild, concerned a young girl's self-discovery.

[Pulcinella]

This is becoming an expensive thread!
Have also just discovered and ordered this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Celluloid-Copland-World-Premiere-Music/dp/B0000584Y7/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1422196030&sr=1-2&keywords=Copland+soundtrack

(I hope the link works; found by putting Copland soundtrack in river people search.)

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Something Wild, concerned a young girl's self-discovery.

Erm ... not entirely how it's usually described! (Garfein rejected Feldman's score with the outburst "you're watching my wife getting raped and you write for Celesta!?")

[Pulcinella]

Pollack's euphemistic wording, not mine!
Does she discover herself after she's been raped?
I don't know the film/book/story!

[Suffolkcoastal]

This is becoming an expensive thread!
Have also just discovered and ordered this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Celluloid-Copland-World-Premiere-Music/dp/B0000584Y7/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1422196030&sr=1-2&keywords=Copland+soundtrack

(I hope the link works; found by putting Copland soundtrack in river people search.)

I do have that CD, it followed a broadcast programme on the composer. Some fascinating pieces on the disc too. Do you have the Naxos disc of the film scores to Of Mice & Men & Our Town? I don't have the CD but have it as a download.

[Pulcinella]

If you mean this, then no!

http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=9.80865

Seems to be available only as a download.
Thanks for the pointer!

[Suffolkcoastal]

No I mean this

http://naxosmusiclibrary.com/preview/catalogueinfo.asp?catID=9.70124&path=1

I don't think it was released here except as a download.

[Pulcinella]

Thanks again.
Not yet into downloads....

:-(

[Beef Oven!]

Aaron Copland - Quiet City* - Letter From Home - John Henry

St Louis Symphony Orchestra - Leonard Slatkin
*New York Chamber Symphony - Gerard Schwarz

'American Miniatures' - Angel/EMI