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Emma Jane Tracy
What to Listen for in Aaron Copland’s “What to Listen for in Music”
Aaron Copland was a 20th century composer hailing from Brooklyn, New York, and
credited by Howard Pollack in the Grove Music Encyclopedia with creating a “distinctively
American style”. He is best known for his ballets, particularly “Appalachian Spring”, which was
composed for renowned choreographer Martha Graham. Copland also composed many chamber
works and two operas. Copland also authored many articles and books, including a co-authored
autobiography with Vivian Perlis (Pollack).
In the winters of 1936 and 1937 a series of fifteen lectures was given at the New School
in New York City by the composer entitled “What to Listen for in Music”, which were later
transcribed and edited into a book form. These lectures were geared towards students of music or
the musically unexposed; pointedly not for professional musicians, as the author’s own
“Acknowledgements” in the beginning of the book states. It seems quite obvious, when one
thinks about it, that the solution to the problem of understanding and interpreting music is to
simply listen. To many music professionals and historians this simple fact can get entangled with
centuries of background information and borderline-calcular analysis. That is not to say music
history and theory is not pivotal into a deeper understanding of music. The issue Copland states
from the very beginning is for the individuals who do not have an innate predisposition to these
studies, or even for green music students that maybe play, and play well, but do not listen well.
Here, Aaron Copland lays out in concise terms tools and methods for the general public (within
which are many people who believe that are incapable of understanding music and therefore do
not try) to use to get deeper enjoyment, connection, and experience out of music they hear. That
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is what the purpose of Copland’s lectures and this book is. It is in fact to open people’s ears to do
more than hear; to listen intimately and respond with equal intimacy.
Copland clearly states from the very beginning what the first tool people have to
understanding music is: listening. Right in the very first chapter, he states that “opportunities for
hearing music are much greater than they ever were before” (Copland 4). Copland is referring to
“radio and phonograph”, but in this modern age that statement is overwhelmingly relevant and
holds true. People in this day and age have access to almost any music that has ever been
composed with a simple internet search. From a million recordings of a Bach concerto to an
obscure Ligeti symphonic work, the possibilities are endless. The next basic tool, he says, is to
be able to “recognize a given melody” and to “relate” it to “what has just happened before and
what is about to come afterward” (Copland 6). Copland then goes on to emphasize how all music
is melody-driven, which is extremely true. Most often when the human voice is used as an
instrument, in the majority of homophonic modern music, it is the holder of the melody.
Additionally, every person naturally has this instrument, whether they use it effectively or not.
The melody is the key and what drives most music (aside from harmonically ambiguous
impressionistic works, which Copland certainly isn’t discussing here). The point is that a basic
ability to identify a singular melody is all one needs.
Another interesting idea presented by Copland is that people listen to music on three
planes: “the sensuous plane”, “the expressive plane”, and “the sheerly musical plane”. What does
establishing these strata of listening accomplish? Firstly, there is the “sensuous plane”. It could
be concluded that this would be the surface level plane. This is listening simply for the pleasure
of the sounds music makes. The best example of this is the usage of background music or
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ambient music, perhaps a car radio or music played in a restaurant. The second plane, perhaps a
terrace deeper into the surface: “the expressive plane”. This is what music makes one feel, the
expression conveyed, whether objectively or subjectively, consciously or unconsciously. The
third is the “purely musical plane”, which is listening to music for the notes, rhythms, and
harmonies themselves. It is stated by Copland that we do not listen on these planes one at a time,
but “all three ways at the same time” (Copland, 18). It is surmised that the concept of these
planes is not foreign to some, as people naturally listen to any sound and have a response to it,
and that could be considered at least two planes of listening in and of itself.
One other foundational tool Copland describes is understanding a little bit of the creative
process that results in music. The idea is to dissolve some of the mystique about composers and
how they compose to gain more of an understanding of a piece of music. “[...] composing to a
composer is like fulfilling a natural function”, Copland points out, “ [...] like eating or sleeping”
(Copland 21). Perhaps Copland was thinking of himself Copland also categorizes three different
types of composers. “Spontaneously Inspired”: like the lieder of Franz Schubert, who composed
in a frenzy with ripping, dramatic emotion in short bursts. “Constructive”: Copland gives the
example of Beethoven, who painstakingly develops a theme over time, which is a process that
can be plainly heard in any Beethoven symphony, especially in the 5th and 9th. Both of these
symphonies from the very first notes have themes that are repeated and manipulated. The third
type are “traditional[ists]”. These composers work within a well known and accepted style. It is
worth noting that according to Copland, there may be a fourth type: “the pioneer”. These
composers will have an experimental approach. If one considers these methods and ideas,
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perhaps even tries out the creative process themselves, they may improve their understanding of
music, by understanding where it comes from.
It is also important to understand the basic actual components that make up music and
musical texture, “the four elements” as Copland describes- rhythm, melody, harmony, and tone
color. To be able to recognize these elements will help the listener immensely in understanding a
piece of music. Rhythm is driving the bus, essentially; Melody is in the front seat, harmony fills
out the rest of the seats, and tone color or timbre is the air in the bus. What sounds reverberate to
the ceiling? Dissipate faster or slower? What is the overall effect when those sounds are heard as
a whole? The last basic element Copland describes is texture, which may actually be more
important to know before the other elements as it is easier to grasp. Monophony, one sound in
latin, is one melody by itself. Homophony (same sound) is a melody with accompaniment
underneath. Polyphony (many sounds) means there are 2 or more equally important, independent
melodies. Once these elements are unlocked, they can be added to one’s music appreciation
toolbox.
The next step is understanding the structure of music; the frame within which it is built.
The “form” of the music is what one would call that frame. There are many pre-existing forms
Copland describes during the following sections: sectional form, variation form, fugal form,
sonata form, and free forms. Above all, it is important to understand the components of any
form, and what is meant by form. Copland divides form into two parts: “form in relation to a
piece as a whole” and form in relation to the separate, shorter parts of a piece” (118). Sections
are often labelled with letters A, B, C, etc. The basis for forms that follow is the first in this
publication, “sectional form”. Copland highlights 3 sectional forms, but in order to understand
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any of them, understanding binary, or two-part, form is essential. Copland represents it with
“A-B” for the A section and B section of a piece, hence two-part. Many musical compositions
are written in this way. Most often, as Copland points out, the B section is simply a reprise of the
A. With this simple idea of sectional building blocks of a piece, one can become capable of
visualizing even the most complex of musical forms.
The tools Copland lays out in this book are the foundations to being able to “understand”
music, as it were. Knowing the composer and their role in the process, having a basic
understanding of the key components of music, and being able to listen from different angles
create a closer connection between the message or melody and the listener.