The “Dean of American Composers” was a formidable interpreter of his music. Gramophone called Aaron Copland “a splendid advocate of his own scores,” and shortly after his death in 1990 the New York Times wrote: “Composers’ performances are not always definitive, but Copland was a fine, communicative conductor and pianist, and Columbia recorded him with first-rate orchestras and soloists. … In every way, these recordings must be regarded as the heart of the composer’s discography.”

As a gifted pianist, Copland took part in the earliest recordings of his music back in the 1930s, as well as in many others that followed over nearly three decades. Although it wasn’t until 1950 that he first conducted in a studio, he later took up the baton with increasing frequency. He once said to the choreographer Agnes de Mille: “I don’t think I’m ever going to compose anything else. I’m having such a good time conducting.” Aaron Copland not only created some of the most original, influential and appealing compositions in the history of American music. He also left posterity a body of recordings that illustrate exactly how he wanted these pieces to go – a priceless legacy of authentic performances, the “heart of the composer’s discography.”