Outdoor Overture, An

From Wind Repertory Project
Aaron Copland

Aaron Copland (transcribed by the composer)


General Info

Year: 1938 / 1948
Duration: c. 9:25
Original Medium: Orchestra
Difficulty: VI (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Boosey & Hawkes
Cost: Score and Parts - $120.00   |   Score Only - $19.95


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet Solo-I-II-III
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Bass Saxophone
B-flat Trumpet
B-flat Cornet Solo-I-II
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion, including:

  • Bass Drum
  • Crash Cymbals
  • Glockenspiel
  • Snare Drum
  • Suspended Cymbal
  • Triangle
  • Xylophone


Errata

In Parts:

  • Trombone I-II, m.150: Remove mute
  • Euphonium, m.188-191: Ties over eighth notes are phrase markings, not slurs. Eighth notes should be separated.

In Score and Parts:

  • Rehearsal numbers include the first partial bar which containing only one quarter note. Rehearsal 5 is the fourth complete bar.


Program Notes

While An Outdoor Overture may be considered more audience-friendly than Copland's Emblems, the former exhibits several of the same characteristics of the latter: open harmonic structures, a contrast of broad statements with intricate rhythmic motives, and disjunct melodic lines. A strong cornet soloist is recommended, as the introductory solo calls for flexibility and nuance.

- Notes from Great Music for Wind Band


Aaron Copland composed An Outdoor Overture for an entirely indoor occasion: a concert by the orchestra of the High School of Music and Art in New York City on December 16, 1938. The school's conductor, Alexander Richter, was in the process of launching a campaign to foster the writing of "American music for American youth," and the composer found the invitation to write such a work "irresistible" (all the more, perhaps, because his music was undergoing a stylistic change). An Outdoor Overture was a milestone in confirming this change, since it was written for young people to play, and the vague criterion of accessibility therefore mattered more to Copland than it had before. This change proved crucial, of course, as the works of this period, including Appalachian Spring and Rodeo, and culminating in the Third Symphony of 1946, have remained his best-loved, most-performed scores.

This band arrangement was made by Copland himself -- at his publisher's suggestion -- several years after its composition. The "outdoor" in the title stems from the style of spacious chordal writing, implying that very high and very low sonorities are present throughout.

- Program Note from Program Notes for Band


Outdoor Overture starts in a large and grandiose manner with a theme that is immediately developed as a long solo for the trumpet with a pizzicato accompaniment. A short bridge passage in the woodwinds leads imperceptibly to the first theme of the allegro section, characterized by repeated notes. Shortly afterwards, these repeated notes, played broadly, give us a second march-like theme, developed in a canon form. There is an abrupt pause, a sudden decrescendo, and the third, lyric theme appears, first in the flute and then the clarinet. Repeated notes on the bassoon seem to lead the piece in the direction of the opening allegro. Instead, a fourth and final theme evolves another march theme, but this time less articulate, and with more serious implications. There is a build-up to the opening grandiose introduction again, continuing with the trumpet solo melody. A short bridge section based on steady rhythm brings a condensed recapitulation of the allegro section. At the climax of the piece, all the themes are combined. A brief coda ends the work similarly to the beginning

- Program Note from University of Missouri Wind Ensemble concert program, 3 December 2015


High school conductor Alexander Richter commissioned Copland to create “American music for American youth.” An Outdoor Overture for orchestra was premiered by Richter in December 1938. Although written for an indoor concert, musical scenes of awe, curiosity, exploration, and play invite the audience to an outside adventure. This, however, is not strictly “light music.” Solemn fanfares and weighty marches are thoughtful moments where one might consider an adventurer’s place in the larger context of the outdoor world.

At the time of the premiere, the piece represented the beginning of changes to Copland’s overall style. Today, it is in the catalog of his most popular and oft-performed compositions (along with Billy the Kid and Appalachian Spring). Unlike many of his works, tonight’s transcription for band was made by Copland himself, ten years after the premiere.

- Program Note from University of Georgia Hodgson Wind Ensemble concert program, 17 November 2019


Media


State Ratings

  • Alabama: Class AA
  • Arkansas: V
  • Florida: VI
  • Georgia: VI
  • Kansas: V
  • Louisiana: V
  • Maryland: VI
  • Massachusetts: V
  • Minnesota: I
  • Mississippi: VI-A
  • New York: VI
  • North Carolina: VI
  • Oklahoma: V-A
  • South Carolina: VI
  • Tennessee: VI
  • Texas: V. Complete
  • Virginia: VI
  • Wisconsin: Event 3000 Concert Band Class A Standard Repertoire


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • James Madison University (Harrisonburg, Va.) Wind Symphony (Stephen P. Bolstad, conductor) - 26 September 2023
  • University of Illinois (Champaign) Illinois Wind Symphony (Kimberly Fleming, conductor) - 6 April 2023
  • Queen's University (Kingston, Ont., Can.) Wind Ensemble (Dan Tremblay, conductor) - 5 April 2023
  • University of New Mexico (Albuquerque, NM) Symphonic Band (Brett Penshorn, conductor) - 27 February 2023
  • Indiana University (Bloomington) Wind Ensemble (Rodney Dorsey, conductor) – 21 February 2023
  • National Concert Band of America (Alexandria, Va.) (Adrian Holton, conductor) - 23 October 2022
  • Texas State University (San Marcos) Wind Symphony (Caroline Beatty, conductor) - 7 October 2022
  • Southeastern Louisiana University (Hammond) Wind Symphony (Robert Schwartz, conductor) - 29 September 2022
  • San Luis Obispo (Calif.) Wind Orchestra (Jennifer Martin, conductor) – 8 May 2022
  • University of Minnesota (Minneapolis) Wind Ensemble (Emily Threinen, conductor) -- 6 April 2022
  • University of Delaware (Newark) Wind Ensemble (Lauren Reynolds, conductor) - 7 May 2021
  • University of Florida (Gainesville) Wind Symphony (David A. Waybright, conductor) - 11 April 2021
  • Ithaca (N.Y.) College Wind Ensemble (Grant Cooper, conductor) - 5 March 2021
  • Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Wind Symphony (Rubén D. Gómez, conductor) - November 2020
  • University of Central Florida (Orlando) Wind Ensemble (Scott Lubaroff, conductor) – 17 September 2020
  • Brigham Young University (Provo, Utah) Symphonic Band (Kirk Saville, conductor) – 26 February 2020
  • State University of New York, Potsdam, Crane Wind Ensemble (Brian K. Doyle, conductor) – 19 February 2020
  • The Crane Wind Ensemble (Potsdam, N.Y.) (Brian Doyle, conductor) – 22 February 2020 (CBDNA 2020 Eastern Division Conference, Philadelphia, Penn.)
  • Goldman Band (New York City) (Leonard Bernstein, conductor) - 20 June 1943


Works for Winds by This Composer


Resources

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