Aaron Copland - RODEO (Emiko Edwards)

Information

Composer: Aaron Copland

1. In Evening Air
2. Piano Sonata: I. Molto moderato
3. Piano Sonata: II. Vivace
4. Piano Sonata: III. Andante sostenuto
5. 4 Dance Episodes from Rodeo: III. Saturday-Night Waltz
6. Four Piano Blues: No. 1, Freely poetic (for Leo Smit)
7. Four Piano Blues: No. 2, Soft and languid (for Andor Foldes)
8. Four Piano Blues: No. 3, Muted and sensuous (for William Kapell)
9. Four Piano Blues: No. 4, With bounce (for John Kirkpatrick)
10. Piano Variations
11. Down a Country Lane

Emiko Edwards, piano

Date: 2026

Label: Lexicon Classics

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Curated to celebrate the America250 season, this all-Copland piano album highlights Aaron Copland’s diverse compositional range, showcasing rare piano works as a microcosm of his musical output. Recorded near Yaddo by three-time GRAMMY nominee Jennifer Nulsen, the album features evocative visual and artistic connections to American rodeo culture. The tracklist spans the serene In Evening Air, the tragic, wartime-inspired Piano Sonata, the uplifting Saturday-Night Waltz from Rodeo, and the jazz-tinged Four Piano Blues. It also contrasts the intensely avant-garde, dissonant Piano Variations with the gentle simplicity of Down a Country Lane, offering a rich, multifaceted portrait of the "Dean of American Music."

Award-winning pianist Emiko Edwards made her concerto debut at age ten and has since performed at major international venues, including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, and London’s Barbican Centre. A graduate of Juilliard, Guildhall, and Temple University, she won a 2024 American Prize for her Philadelphia premiere of Joan Tower's Piano Concerto. Edwards is a champion of modern music whose performances and interviews have aired on BBC Radio 3 and national television. In addition to touring extensively as a soloist with various orchestras, she is a published researcher on gendered trends in piano performance and an alumnus of world-class masterclasses.

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