Aaron Copland - Billy the Kid - Concert Suite (1/3)
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| Erich Kunzel (left) receives the 2006 National Medal of Arts from President George W. Bush (right) at a 2007 ceremony. (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Copland's "Billy the Kid" was commissioned by Lincoln Kirstein for his ballet company, Ballet Caravan, in 1938. The hope was to create an "American" ballet, to counteract the Russian tradition so popular in ballet for centuries.
The sections of Copland's Suite are:
I Introduction: The Open Prairie
II Street in a Frontier Town
III Prairie Night
IV Gun Battle
V Celebration (after Billy's Capture)
VI Billy's Death
VII The Open Prairie Again
Performing is the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra led by Erich Kunzel.
