Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes

• Copland wrote his ballet Rodeo in 1942 for American dancer Agnes de Mille and the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo.¹
• The ballet premiered in New York City on October 16, 1942.
• Synopsis of Rodeo from The Kennedy Center.²
• Copland extracted an orchestral suite from the ballet which he entitled Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes. A partial performance of the suite took place in Boston on May 28, 1943, conducted by Arthur Fiedler. The complete suite premiered in New York on June 22, 1943, conducted by Alexander Smallens.³

Movements in Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes

1. Buckaroo Holiday
2. Corral Nocturne
3. Saturday Night Waltz
4. Hoe-Down⁴

1. Howard Pollack, “Copland, Aaron,” Grove Music Online (2013), accessed February 23, 2021, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-1002249091.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. “Four Dance Episodes from Rodeo: Version for Orchestra,” AaronCopland.com, accessed February 23, 2021, https://www.aaroncopland.com/works/four-dance-episodes-from-rodeo/.