At Burnt Ranch, there lived a tomboyish Cowgirl who wanted to find true love. Desiring the affections of the Head Wrangler, the beefy lad who was a hot commodity among the ladies at the ranch, she tried riding a bucking bronco at a rodeo hoping to win his heart. Instead, she got miserably thrown off the horse and had been made the laughingstock by others, including the Head Wrangler. His heart was set on the Rancher’s Daughter, the feminine belle desperately wanted by all the men. Feeling mortified, the Cowgirl became despondent about her impending doom to a life of loneliness.
The music picks up from here. Saturday Night Waltz sets the scene of a dance party for the cowboys and their girls; however, the Cowgirl is without partner and hope. As she’s ready to give up, the Champion Roper approaches her for a dance and she begins to have a great time. It is not long before the Head Wrangler and the Rancher’s Daughter arrive at the dance and the Cowgirl is peeved at the sight and leaves the room.
This next piece may sound familiar. Hoe-down was infamously set to a television commercial for meat and its memorable slogan- “Beef: It’s What’s For Dinner.” Hence, you might appreciate the humor of cows on this clip. The Cowgirl returns to the dance in a shiny red dress to flaunt her womanly figure, and her new look has finally piqued the interest of the Head Wrangler. Both the Wrangler and Roper battle for her attention; in the end, the Champion Roper wins the Cowgirl’s love and seals it with a kiss. After all, he was the one who honored her with respect all along.
Aaron Copland’s ballet, Rodeo, consists of four dance episodes: “Buckaroo Holiday,” “Corral Nocturne,” “Saturday Night Waltz,” and “Hoe-down.” Copland’s music commemorates the Wild West with solo woodwind instruments over a thin layer of strings, fiddle playing, and fanfares. Copland surely set the tone to speak to the American heart. Who said the ballet was not exhilarating?