Aaron Copland - Preamble for a Solemn Occasion (1949)

Aaron Copland (1900-1990)
Preamble for a Solemn Occasion (1949) for orchestra (with optional narrator)

New York Philharmonic Orchestra/Leonard Bernstein

NBC commissioned Copland's Preamble for a Solemn Occasion (1949) for orchestra and narrator for a 10 December 1949 concert commemorating the first anniversary of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which had been approved by the General Assembly the previous year. For his text, Copland adapted about half of the Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations (1945): "We the peoples of the United Nations, determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to i mankind, and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women of all nations large and small, and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom, have resolved to combine our efforts to accomplish these aims." Such sentiments recalled those "four freedoms" of President Roosevelt that had earlier inspired Copland and can be seen, like the creation of the United Nations itself, as an extension of the New Deal.
The six-minute Preamble comprises four small sections. The first./ section-declamatory, dissonant, sad-evokes the "scourge of war" and: "untold sorrow" later mentioned in the narration; this music, which rep:'~ resents as direct a response to the horrors of the Second World War al.~ Copland may ever have made, could accompany newsreel footage ' Auschwitz or Hiroshima. The trumpets, supported by brass, woodwind and timpani, introduce a contrasting section whose noble, hymnlike, m more diatonic music reflects "faith in fundamental human rights." The narration follows, quietly underlined by the opening music, after which the affirmative hymn brings the work to a close on a brilliant C-major triad. At the premiere, Sir Laurence Olivier delivered the narration, accompanied by Leonard Bernstein and the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Copland privately dismissed the Preamble as a "pot boiler," but in a review of the piece, Ingolf Dahl praised its tone as "one of great elevation, breadth, and power." For comparable sweep, one needs to look to the likes of Beethoven or Shostakovich, both, significantly, represented on the same commemorative concert at which the Preamble premiered. The form and rhetoric of the Preamble also recalls Lincoln Portrait, but as Copland himself pointed out, "the musical style is quite different." For one thing, as a tribute to the United Nations, it naturally avoids any overt Americanisms; in this respect, it strikes a note closer to the Fanfare. But the Preamble does not have the same morale-boosting qualities of either of the two earlier, wartime works; rather, it reflects more solemnly on the sorrows of the past and the challenges of the future.
The Preamble enjoyed a few performances over the years, including one with Duke Ellington as narrator. But for all its effectiveness, Americans never took to it as they did to Lincoln Portrait or Fanfare; on the contrary, it remains one of Copland's most obscure works. One imagines that skepticism about the United Nations-emanating from all sides of the political spectrum-deprived the work of the attention it deserved. Copland attempted to salvage it by omitting the narration and arranging it, in various guises (for orchestra, for band, for organ), as Preamble for a Special Occasion. He also approved substituted narrations-as in a performance during the 1976 bicentennial celebration with Jimmy Stewart reading from the Preamble to the United States Constitution. But considering how well the music embodies the spirit of its original text, Preamble for a Solemn Occasion warrants, at the least, a premiere recording and the occasional revival.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• aaron
• copland
• preamble
• solemn
• occasion
• orchestra
• united
• nation
• human
• rights
• controversal
• works

[SuperVideodave]

I like the orchestral version but I think the version for pipeorgan is better. It was arranged by one of Copland's students under his supervision.

[Glinkaism1]

I've never head this! Sounds like music to some 1950s gladiator movie. But a lot better. 

[jslasher1]

A little known Copland work. It was premiered with Lawrence Olivier as narrator. I heard it in the mid-1960s with Osawa conducting the CSO. The great contralto Marian Anderson narrated. Copland stands alone!

[chkjns]

Listen at 0:17, James Bond theme came from Copland!

I'm building an ever-expanding music history channel with over 500 playlists so far. I added this to my Copland list today & it goes on the 1949 list as well. My lists feature most genres & cover the globe. 111 lists let you hear the music of any year since 1900 like you've gone back in time.

Thanks for the beautiful music ! ! ! Come visit!

[kleztrump]

As an orchestral trumpet player, I love Copland. Thank you, I had never heard this work. Where did you find the recording?