Editing Appalachian Spring (section)

== Music and plot ==
=== Prologue ===
{{Block indent|<score sound="1">
\layout { indent = 1\cm }
\relative c''
<<
\new Staff \with { instrumentName = "B♭ Cl." } { \set Staff.midiInstrument = "clarinet" \clef treble \transposition bes \key b \major \time 4/4 \tempo "Very slowly" 4 = 66 { s1 | r2 b\p( | dis4 fis dis fis)~ | fis r } }
\new Staff \with { instrumentName = "Vla." } { \set Staff.midiInstrument = "violin" \clef alto \key a \major \time 4/4 \tempo "Very slowly" 4 = 66 { r2 a,,4\mp--\upbow( a--) | a1--~\> | a1~\! | a2 } }
>> </score>}}The ballet opens with a soft, quiet A major triad in the clarinet.{{Sfn|Copland|2000|p=1}}{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=62}} The cello sustains the A [[Tonic (music)|tonic]] while the flute, violin, and viola stack build the A major triad again, this time with the [[Dominant (music)|dominant]] chord (E major) stacked in top. This creates a luminous scenescape, but the dissonances foreshadow danger.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|pp=62–63}}{{Sfn|Crist|2005|pp=171–172}} Copland conjures images of a pastoral scene by ending the chords with a deep tonic in the piano and following it with a shepherd flute-like reiteration of the triad.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|pp=63–64}} This opening polychord, consisting of the tonic A major and dominant E major, is found throughout the score as a foundation for many of the melodies and tonalities.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=64}} The Revivalist enters first, in darkness, followed by the Pioneer Woman, who takes a seat in her rocking chair. Then the Husbandman and Bride enter; as the Husbandman pauses to observe the home, daylight illuminates the stage.{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=220}}{{Sfn|Thomas|1995|p=155}} The four Followers join the Revivalist, who has observed the land with the Pioneer Woman.{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=221}} The two-minute opening has set up the themes present throughout the ballet, and Copland employed the upwards building of chords to depict a "nonmilitant fanfare", as Graham described in the early scripts.{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=221}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=397}}

=== Eden Valley ===
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> \relative c''' { \set Staff.midiInstrument = "piano" \clef treble \key c \major \time 4/4 \tempo "Allegro" 4 = 160 a8_\markup { \dynamic f \italic \small { vigoroso } }-> a, a'4 a8 cis a4->~ | a1\fermata | e'8->[ a,] e[ cis] a[ e] a,4->~ | a1\fermata } </score>
}}

An ''allegro'' melody bursts forth as the Daughter bounds from inside the home.{{Sfn|Copland|2000|p=5}} The melodies of "Eden Valley", meant to express the Bride's joy, use elements of an "old-fashioned [[Swing music|swing]]" described in the early scripts.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=397}} The new melody is followed by a bouncy restatement of the polychord from the "Prologue". A [[chorale]]-like second theme is introduced alongside the first. This chorale features odd rhythms between the different voices; while the upper line emphasizes the second beat, the bass line accents the first and third beats.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=66}} The music calms down to a ''moderato''; as the Husbandman enters, jagged rhythms show his awkward movement, but it is twice interrupted by the gentle chorale.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|pp=66–67}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=397}}

As the two back out of the home, the couple dances a duet, this time accompanied by a new, more forceful theme in the strings. A descending melodic line is contrasted with the chorale theme; this connection of themes is seen throughout the episode and was used by Graham to easily shift the characters. The two receive the blessings of the Pioneer Woman and the Revivalist. This section is reminiscent of the Cowgirl's music from ''Rodeo'', or the soft parts of ''Lincoln Portrait'' for the love theme; near the end, the clarinet brings back the chorale, and the flute answers, a [[call and response]] between the Bride and the Husbandman.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=67}}{{Sfn|Crist|2005|p=172}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=397}} Throughout the episode, the Followers participate in various group solos; the group often features a "spiraling" motion, moving into a kneeling position. "Eden Valley" closes with the Followers returning to the bench, each taking a seat one by one. Illustrating the choreography's close connection to the music, the moment each Follower sits is cued by a short motif in the woodwinds.{{Sfn|Robertson|1999|p=10}}

=== Wedding Day ===
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> \relative c''' { \set Staff.midiInstrument = "clarinet" \clef treble \transposition bes \key des \major \time 4/4 \tempo "Fast" 4 = 132 r8 ges_\markup { \dynamic mp \italic \small { playfully } }-. f-.[ des-.] ees16( f ges8-.) aes4-- } </score>}}

A playful, childlike melody springs from the clarinet,{{Sfn|Copland|2000|p=23}} opening the first part of "Wedding Day" and signifying the start of festivities. Graham wanted the first part to have "a little sense of a [[County fair|County Fair]], a little of a revival meeting, a party, a picnic"; Copland achieves this by relating the music to [[square dancing]] and [[fiddling]].{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=68}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=397}} The music becomes heavier and the jagged rhythms return for the Husbandman's [[Davy Crockett]]-esque solo; the love theme returns in the calmer music as the Husbandman carries the Bride into the home.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|pp=397–398}} The second part of "Wedding Day" depicts the "old fashion charivari" mentioned in the scripts. The joyous and bouncy music uses [[Scale (music)|scales]] and rhythmic jolts to conjure the image of party and celebration.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=398}} The Bride dances a rhythmically complex solo, similar to the Husbandman's dance in the first part. Instrument sections are clearly divided by quick jumps through changing [[Metre (music)|metres]]. The uneven rhythms are replaced by consistent eighth notes, starting a light ''presto''; here, Stravinsky's influence on Copland is evident in the ''[[Petrushka (ballet)|Petrushka]]''-like ascending and descending scales.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=69}} As the music calms down with a restatement of the chorale, the Revivalist dances with his Followers before the full cast proceeds onstage. A reprise of the calm opening (marked ''as at first'') follows the characters as they exit for a walk; the light focuses on the Pioneer Woman's face, then fades into darkness as "Simple Gifts" begins.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=70}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=398}}

=== Interlude ===
{{Shaker music}}
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> \relative c' { \set Staff.midiInstrument = "clarinet" \clef treble \transposition bes \key aes \major \time 4/4 \tempo "Doppio movimento" 4 = 72 \partial 2*1 ees2( \bar "||" \time 2/4 aes8) aes16( bes c aes c des | ees8) ees16( des c8) } </score>}}Copland used the Shaker song "[[Simple Gifts]]" throughout much of ''Appalachian Spring'', first playing it in its entirety at the start of the "Interlude".<ref name=":2" />{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=398}}{{Sfn|Copland|2000|pp=56–57}} In the "Interlude", four variations on "Simple Gifts" are introduced, some fitting the atmosphere of the action on stage (like one variation reminiscent of the clip-clop of a horse's hooves). Most of the variations leave the melody essentially the same, changing other elements of the music, such as the harmony and instrumentation. This technique was meant to depict the lives of various townspeople doing their daily rounds, while the Husbandman and the Bride dance joyfully.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=398}}{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=222}} The two are strongly connected throughout the duet, signified by eye contact, ease of physical touch, and openness of the body.{{Sfn|Thomas|1995|p=157}} Partway through, the Revivalist and his Followers join in. The Revivalist solos in close alignment with the bassoon, accompanied by the Followers.{{Sfn|Robertson|1999|pp=11, 13}} During the half-speed fourth variation played as a [[Canon (music)|canon]] in the woodwinds, the Revivalist dominantly watches the couple's high-spirited duet, and follows them as they walk into the home.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=71}}{{Sfn|Crist|2005|p=172}}{{Sfn|Thomas|1995|p=157}}

=== Fear in the Night, Day of Wrath, Moment of Crisis ===
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> {
\new PianoStaff \with { instrumentName = "Pno." } <<
\new Staff \relative c,, { \clef bass \key aes \major \time 2/4 \tempo "Fast" 4 = 152 f16\p( c' aes c bes-. r8)\bar "|" }
>> } </score>}}
The music of "Fear of the Night" nervously jolts and twitches, like the "Gun Battle" in ''Billy the Kid''.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|pp=398–399}}{{Sfn|Copland|2000|p=70}} Fragmented "stingers", as Fauser called them, make the fast section the most "filmic" part of Copland's score.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=71}} The Revivalist takes off his hat and approaches the bowing Husbandman and Bride.{{Sfn|Crist|2005|p=172}} His Followers surround him as he warns the couple of their eventual separation due to the war.{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=222}} His agonized, frenzied dance was informed by the "dark" experiences of [[Peter Sparling]], a dancer in the company who danced the role in later productions; his emotional interpretation influenced future dancers of the role.{{Sfn|Robertson|1999|pp=13, 15}} The Revivalist's solo uses violent shaking to relate the dance to traditional Shaker festivities; the shaking travels throughout the body, like a spirit trying to escape the body.{{Sfn|Thomas|1995|pp=156–157}} The demonstration scares the Bride and sends her into turmoil, but she quickly rejoins the Husbandman and accepts the risks of her love.{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=222}}

In "Day of Wrath", Copland was "riffing rather aimeously of the arpeggiated polychord of the opening{{Nbsp}}... strengthened by an elusive displacement of the beat", Fauser wrote.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=73}} The Pioneer Woman enters with deep anger, and after prayer, she enters the home. The Husbandman leaves the home and performs a leaping solo, where the music uses a distorted version of the A major "Wedding Day" music stacked atop B minor harmonies to evoke anguish as he waves goodbye and exits.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=73}}{{Sfn|Crist|2005|p=174}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=399}}

The Bride opens "Moment of Crisis" by frantically running across the stage, and the other women join in an anxious frenzy. The music becomes rushed and agitated into perpetual motion; consistent sixteenth-note patterns jump around the orchestra, with no sense of musical direction.{{Sfn|Crist|2005|pp=174–175}}{{Sfn|Thomas|1995|p=160}} The tonality is unstable and different from the common tonal language used in the rest of the score.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=73}} The music begins to calm and the chorale returns as the Husbandman briefly comes back to dance with the Bride. Another variation of "Simple Gifts" underlines the Husbandman's slow drift away, and a grand, final restatement of the Shaker tune signals the end of the fear as the Pioneer Woman dances with the Followers.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=74}}{{Sfn|Crist|2005|pp=174–175}}{{Sfn|Thomas|1995|p=160}}

=== The Lord's Day ===
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> {
<<
\new Staff \relative c'' { \set Staff.midiInstrument = "string ensemble 1" \set Staff.midiMaximumVolume = #0.6 \clef treble \key c \major \time 3/4 \tempo "Moderato (like a prayer)" 4 = 66 r4 <g ees bes>4--(_\markup { \dynamic pp \italic \small { misterioso } } <f d a>)-- | \time 4/4 <e c g>( <g e! b!>2) <f d a>4~ | \time 3/4 <f d a>) }
\new Staff \relative c { \set Staff.midiInstrument = "string ensemble 1" \clef bass \key c \major \time 3/4 r4 ees--(\pp g,--) | c( e!2) d4~ | \time 3/4 d } >>
} </score>}}

A gentle hymnlike melody, marked "like a prayer", is heard in the strings as the community gathers for prayer.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=399}}{{Sfn|Crist|2005|p=175}}{{Sfn|Copland|2000|p=97}} The chorale is stated a final time, followed by the return of the opening theme.{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|pp=74–75}} Graham wrote that this episode "could have the feeling of a Shaker meeting where the movement is strange and ordered and possessed or it could have the feeling of a negro church with the lyric ecstasy of the spiritual about it".{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=396}} The Bride dances her final solo and finishes by putting her hand to her lips and then reaching out to the sky. The Husbandman returns and holds her briefly, but the Revivalist comes and touches his shoulder.{{Sfn|Crist|2005|p=175}} As the music from the "Prologue" returns, the Bride sits in the rocking chair that the Pioneer Woman sat in and she looks over the empty stage. The Husbandman rests his hand on her shoulder and the Bride reaches out at the clarinet's last note. The music slowly fades to silence on the opening polychord and the curtain falls.{{Sfn|Crist|2005|p=176}}{{Sfn|de Mille|1991|p=262}}{{Sfn|Fauser|2017|p=75}}