(Aaron Copland at a 1948 symphony rehearsal)
Time to dive into some Americana today. The first recorded performance from 1950 of Aaron Copland's Four Piano Blues, which received its premier earlier that year with Copland's friend Leo Smit doing the honors. This recording, issued first in the UK and a few months later in the US by London Records features Aaron Copland at the piano in an album titled "Music Of The 20th Century", which also featured works of Ernest Bloch and Samuel Barber, contemporaries of Copland. The Four pieces are broken into sections, with each one dedicated to a pianist friend of Copland's. 1 - Freely Poetic (for Leo Smit) 2 - Soft and Languid (for Andor Foldes) 3 - Muted and Drugged (for William Kapell) and 4 - With Bounce (for John Kirkpatrick).
I'm not sure if this has been reissued on CD, it would be wonderful if it is and a shame if it isn't. For the collector - this particular transfer comes from London 10" LPS 298.