Aaron Copland Meets The Shakers
by Roger Lee Hall
In November of 1974, the distinguished composer Aaron Copland was in Cleveland, Ohio for a week-long celebration for his birthday and included concerts with the Cleveland Orchestra.
It was a joyous celebration and when Copland was given a key to the City of Cleveland by the mayor, he blurted out excitedly,
"I've never been given such an honor before, even from my hometown of Brooklyn!"
It so happened that at the same time there were three Shakers
from Sabbathday Lake, Maine in nearby Shaker Heights.
They were there in celebration of the Bicentennial of the Shakers arrival in America from England in 1774. At a workshop for teachers, the Shakers sang a few of their favorite songs and I sang a hymn I recently had discovered about their first arrival. The hymn is titled, "On the Landing of Mother Ann in America," and is by an unknown Shaker composer at North Union, Ohio and dated 1860. This hymn is included on
A Shaker Music Miscellany.
On November 9, through a lot of hurrying around and last minute scheduling, I was able to introduce Copland for the first time to the Shakers. The meeting took place at a university librarian's home where Copland was to speak to college students.
There were three Shakers who met Copland: Sister Mildred Barker, Sister Frances Carr and Brother Theodore Johnson, all shown in this picture speaking with the composer.
After his conversation with the Shakers, I gave Copland my copy of his arrangement of "Simple Gifts" which he autographed for them and I gave that signed copy to the Shakers for their library at Sabbathday Lake, Maine.
--All the above pictures of Copland meeting the Shakers in 1974
in Shaker Heights, Ohio
were taken by
© Gail M. Hall, 1974
© Pinetree Productions, 1974
Aaron Copland Meets
Sister Mildred Barker
On November 7, 2024, Roger Lee Hall presented a 90 minute Zoom program titled:
"Tis the gift to be simple - Aaron Copland Meets The Shakers in Shaker Heights"
This program was to commemorate the 50th anniversary of when Copland met the Shakers for the first and only time in November of 1974.
This program was co-sponsored by the
Shaker Historical Society and
Shaker Heights Public Library in Ohio
Read about this new multimedia collection
with over 500 files
which includes
a lengthy interview with Aaron Copland
(also available
separately on an AMRC CD - see below)
and from the 1974 teachers workshop
with the Shakers from Maine
-- go here
Read about the popular Shaker dance song which
Aaron Copland arranged twice:
first in
"Appalchian Spring" and second in "Old American Songs"
Joseph Brackett's "Simple Gifts"
Listen to an extended interview with Aaron Copland at his home in 1980
about his arrangements
of the Shaker song, "Simple Gifts," and his friends like
fellow composer and conductor, Leonard Bernstein on this CD...
A Conversation with Aaron Copland (AMRC 0005)
Support the Copland House
The restored, longtime residence of Aaron Copland in upstate New York, is the only composer's home in the U.S. devoted to nurturing America's rich musical heritage through a broad range of activities.
An Official Project of the White House "Save America's Treasures" program, Copland House's activities include a thriving composers' residency program, a touring resident chamber ensemble, educational programs based on American music, related public presentations, and various recording, broadcast, and Internet projects.
This is well worth supporting.
For further information -- click here
Recordings of Copland's Arrangements
There are many worthwhile versions of Copland's Appalachian Spring, which includes the variations on "Simple Gifts." Also, Copland's arrangement of the Shaker song in his set of Old American Songs.
Here is a recommended CD of the original ballet score
conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas:
This CD has only the Suite from Appalachian Spring but it is one of the most popular recordings,
conducted by Copland's longtime friend, Leonard Bernstein:
