"A Gift to Be Simple": Japanese American Influence in "Appalachian Spring"

Authors

Marta Robertson, Gettysburg CollegeFollow

Document Type

Presentation

Publication Date

5-19-2021

Department 1

Conservatory of Music

Abstract

Professor Marta Robertson looks at the iconic ballet Appalachian Spring (1944) through the lens of Japanese-American influences on the initial production, especially via the dancing of Yuriko [Kikuchi] and set design of Isamu Noguchi. Having been detained in incarceration camps, Yuriko and Noguchi offer political and cultural perspectives on the frontier and Americana that contrast with those of choreographer Martha Graham and composer Aaron Copland.

Comments

American Musicological Society lecture presented as a part of the Concerts from the Library of Congress 2020-2021 series. Virtual even held Wednesday, May 19, 2021.

Video recording also available via YouTube.

Recommended Citation

Robertson, Marta. "'A Gift to be Simple:' Japanese American Influence in Appalachian Spring." Virtual lecture, American Musicological Society Lectures, Library of Congress, May 19, 2021.