Copland: The Tender Land
Soloists
Plymouth Music Series
Philip Brunelle
It is hard to imagine a greater contrast between the first two works in this American section of the project. Barber’s Vanessa looked to European models and seemed to eschew any American connections. The Tender Land by contrast could never have been written by a non-American.
This is quite a light uncomplicated piece which is ideally suited for youth or community groups - it started off as an opera for TV but plans changed before it was finished. It has all of the elements that one expects from the Copland of Appalachian Spring or Rodeo. Melodies which seem simple and folk-lie but with unexpected rhythmic ‘kicks’ which keeps them fresh. I found the whole thing delightful. It seemed to belong to the same world as Britten’s Paul Bunyan with some tinges of Bernstein. How well it would play to a non-American audience I am not quite sure - perhaps some of the folksy elements would come across as a bit corny - but in the right context it could work well.
It will be interesting to see how the other American operas in this series fit within the two very different approaches taken by Barber and Copland.
