Aaron Copland's Dance Symphony (1930) is based on material from the ballet Grogh (1922 - 25), written during the composer's studies with Nadia Boulanger. Since the ballet was unperformed (and remained thus during Copland's lifetime), Copland adapted some of the music from it for a work to enter into an RCA Victor-sponsored contest for new orchestral music. (The Dance Symphony won the prize, providing Copland the first major accolade of this sort in his career.)

It is with an understanding of the ballet's plot that a deeper understanding of the music can be achieved. Inspired by Murnau's 1922 film Nosferatu, Copland and Harold Clurman crafted a gothic, grotesque scenario rife with vampires, dancing corpses, and onstage coffins. Accordingly, much of the music is characterized by a dark, lugubrious quality.

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