Title
Old American Songs, Set II
For
medium voice and orchestra
Scoring
1(=picc).1.2.1-2.1.1.0-harp-strings
ARCO Number(s)
68.1
Categories
Orchestral Vocal
Duration
12'
Songs
  • 1. The Little Horses
  • 2. Zion's Walls
  • 3. The Golden Willow Tree
  • 4. At the River
  • 5. Ching-a-Ring Chaw
Premiere
  • World: Ojai, CA, May 25th, 1958 (Grace Bumbry, Ojai Festival Orchestra, cond. Copland)
Publisher
Boosey & Hawkes
Publishing Status
Published
Year Orchestrated
1957

  • Copland's orchestrations of his two sets of American folk song arrangements were both premiered by William Warfield, who said, "If I had to make a choice, it would probably be toward the orchestra versions, especially for I Bought Me a Cat, where you have all these wonderful barnyard sounds in the orchestration." Copland took such pleasure in the popularity of the folksongs that he also approved various arrangements for chorus and orchestra.

    Author
    Vivian Perlis
    Year
    1998
  • Numbers 1, 4, and 5 may be performed by chorus and orchestra using the same orchestral parts with the respective choral octavos.

  • A new edition of this work, edited by Philip Rothman, is now available from Boosey and Hawkes.