Aaron Copland, whose family name was changed from Kapland by immigration officials in New York, was born on November 14, 1900 and died December 2, 1990. His parents were of Lithuanian Jewish descent. His parents emigrated from Russia to the United States. His father owned a department store and they did not live lavishly. As he explained, "I was born on November 14, 1900 on a street in Brooklyn that can only be

described as drab. It had none of the garish color of the ghetto, none of the charm of an old New England thoroughfare, or even a pioneer street...."i He began to take piano lessons at

the age of fourteen under the tutelage of his sister Laurine. Soon he wanted more professional lessons. Despite the fact that his four elder siblings had taken lessons with no success, he convinced his parents to pay for lessons. "I distinctly remember with what fear and trembling I knocked on the door of Mr. Leopold Wolfsohn's piano studio on Clinton Avenue in Brooklyn, and-once again all by myself-arranged for piano lessons."i The idea of composing music was not "connected...with my family or with my street."iii By the age of 18 he had graduated high school and decided to devote all his time and energy to music. Under the direction of Rubin Goldmark he studied the theory of harmony and the works of Chopin, Haydn, Beethoven, Wagner, Hugo Wolf, Debussy, and Scriabin. Finally his studies led him to France at the age of 21, where he studied under Paul Vidal for a short period of time and then under Mlle. Boulanger for three years. Before returning to America, in 1924, Mlle. Nadia Boulanger asked Mr. Copland to write her a piece to perform on an American tour. He accepted and wrote "Symphony for organ and orchestra, with Walter Camrosch as conductor and Nadia Boulanger as soloist...."iv

people have an extremely difficult time dealing with change and adapting to it. Copland's fluidity dealing with change was amazing. The fact that he kept up with the changing times and did it with great success is amazing; he didn't "miss a beat

i David Ewen, American Composers Today (New York: H.W. Wilson Company, 1949) 67.

vi Joseph Machlis and Kristine Forney, The Enjoyment of Music (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1999) 415.

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