Ives, Harris, Gershwin, and Copland are associated with which nationalistic group?

• A. English nationalists
• B. Russian nationalists
• C. American nationalistic composers
• D. Czech nationalists

Answer: (C)

Nationalistic American music aims to create a distinct American sound by drawing on folk songs, rhythms, and American subjects. Ives, Harris, Gershwin, and Copland are classic examples, each shaping the American idiom in different ways. Ives quotes American folk tunes and hymns, often layering them in innovative textures that reflect everyday American life. Roy Harris wrote works grounded in American themes and folk-inspired melodies, emphasizing a homegrown sound. Gershwin blends jazz, blues, and classical forms to capture the energy of American life in urban settings. Copland develops open, spacious textures with modal harmonies and folk-like rhythms that evoke the American landscape and rural life, as heard in Appalachian Spring and other works. Together, they embody a movement to forge a distinctly American voice in concert music, not tied to English, Russian, or Czech nationalist traditions.