Variations on a Shaker Melody, “Simple Gifts”

Composer: COPLAND, Aaron
  • Copland’s Variations on a Shaker Melody, “Simple Gifts,” is taken from his ballet, Appalachian Spring.
  • This set of five variations occurs in the seventh movement, which depicts scenes of daily activity for the Bride and her farmer-husband.
  • As indicated by the work’s title, “The Gift to be Simple” is a Shaker melody written in the 19th century emphasizing the religious group’s life philosophy.1

Sources

  1. Dave Kopplin, “Variations on a Shaker Melody,” Hollywood Bowl, accessed Oct. 9, 2024, https://www.hollywoodbowl.com/musicdb/pieces/4465/variations-on-a-shaker-melody.

Cut IDs

16765 40503 46438 41838 44764 14605 14605