Themes from "An Outdoor Overture"

Aaron Copland

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General Info

Year: 2014
Duration: c. 4:00
Difficulty: IV (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Orchestra
Publisher: Boosey & Hawkes
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $75.00; (digital) - $75.00 | Score Only (print) - $7.50

Instrumentation

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

(percussion detail desired)

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

A marvelous adaption of the landmark original work for concert band. Featuring the primary themes in a concise, yet bold and appealing format, it's a great example of Copland in his prime with its buoyant themes and sense of optimism and joy.

- Program Note from publisher

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.

- Program Note 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.

- Program Note from Program Notes for Band

Media

Audio: Reference recording. Ensemble and conductor unknown

State Ratings

None discovered thus far.

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

Marple Newtown Community Band (Media, Penn.) (Kevin Sparks, conductor) - 20 May 2023
Atlantic Wind Ensemble (Ocean Grove, N.J.) (Dennis T. Eschbach, conductor) – 25 May 2019

Works for Winds by This Composer

Appalachian Spring (arr. Morita) (1944)
Appalachian Spring (arr. Patterson) (1944)
Buckaroo Holiday from "Rodeo" (tr. Megan) (1941/2000)
Buckaroo Holiday from "Rodeo" (tr. Sudduth) (1941)
Canticle of Freedom (arr. Duffy) (2000)
Celebration (arr. Lang) (1938/1945)
Ceremonial Fanfare
A Copland Portrait (arr. Grundman) (1986)
A Copland Tribute (arr. Grundman) (1986)
Danzón Cubano (tr. Rogers) (1949/2000)
The Dodger (arr. Knox) (c. 1880/1950/)
The Dodger. See also: Old American Songs I
Down a Country Lane (tr. Patterson) (1962/1991)
El Salón México (tr. Hindsley) (1939/1972)
Emblems (1964)
Excerpts from "Appalachian Spring" (arr. Longfield) (1944)
Fanfare for the Common Man (1942/1944)
Fanfare for the Common Man (arr. Longfield) (1942/1944/2007)
Finale from "Symphony No. 3" (trans. Patterson) (1946/)
Four Dance Episodes from "Rodeo" (arr. Patterson) (1942/)
Grover's Corners (arr. Longfield) (1940/2023)
Hoe Down from "Rodeo" (arr. Moss)
Hoe Down from "Rodeo" (tr. Rogers)
Inaugural Fanfare
Laurie's Song (tr. Martin) (1954/ )
Laurie's Song (arr. Silbert and Buchanan) (1954/ )
Letter from Home (arr. Belski) (1944)
Lincoln Portrait (tr. Beeler) (1942/1951)
Old American Songs (arr. Moss) (1950/2006)
Old American Songs I (arr. Silvester) (1950/2001)
Old American Songs II (arr. Duffy) (1952/2001)
Our Town (arr. Singleton)
An Outdoor Overture (1938/1948)
Preamble for a Solemn Occasion (1949/1974)
The Promise of Living (arr. Curnow) (1954/2012)
The Promise of Living (tr. Duffy) (1954/2000)
The Promise of Living (tr. Hile) (1954)
The Promise of Living (tr. Singleton) (1954/2002)
Quiet City (arr. Hunsberger) (1941/1992)
The Red Pony (1969)
Scenes from "Billy the Kid" (arr. Hilliard) (1941/2000)
Stomp Your Foot (tr. Duffy) (1954/1956/2000)
Symphony No. 3. See: Finale from "Symphony No. 3"
Themes from "An Outdoor Overture" (arr. Curnow) (1938/2014)
Three Excerpts from "Our Town" and "Simple Gifts" (arr. Cohen)
Three Latin American Sketches (arr. Mikkelson) (1972/2021)
Variations on a Shaker Melody (1960)
Waltz and Celebration (arr. Lang) (1944/1972)

Resources

Nicholson, Chad. (2009). Great Music for Wind Band: A Guide to the Top 100 Works in Grades IV, V, VI. Galesville, MD: Meredith Music Publications. pp 30-31.
Smith, Norman E. (2002). Program Notes for Band. Chicago: GIA Publications, pp. 137