The Music of Elliott Carter Vol. 7; Boston Concerto, Cello Concerto, ASKO Concerto, Dialogues
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Composer: Elliott CarterConductor: Oliver Knussen
Orchestra: London Sinfonietta
Orchestra: BBC Symphony Orchestra
Orchestra: Asko Ensemble
Performer: Nicolas Hodges (piano)
Performer: Fred Sherry (cello)
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2005-11-15
Music Label: Bridge Records; Inc.
Soundtracks:
- Dialogues
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Boston Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- ASKO Concerto
Music reviews of The Music of Elliott Carter Vol. 7; Boston Concerto, Cello Concerto, ASKO Concerto, Dialogues
Music Review: Some of the Carter's best works flow from his pen at ninety-plus
Rating: 5 Stars
It's amazing enough that Elliott Carter is still composing at nearly a hundred--the works here were all written after his ninetieth birthday--and to his usual standards to boot, but what is even more remarkable is that these recent works a great deal of artistic evolution. Carter has been consistently "mellowing" since his brash music of the 1960s, but these four pieces show a new interest in smaller proportions, where the instrumentalists generally chat instead of shout, though Carter's language with its sharp atonalities and interest in polymetric slitherings remains the same. Oliver Knussen leads various ensembles, and the soloists are the composer's choice musicians.
The first piece on this disc, "Dialogues" for piano and chamber orchestra (2003) is a good example of this new style. Carter's Piano Concerto of 1965 was a monster of a piece where, in a nod to the dire situation in East Germany the composer heard about while writing the concerto in Berlin, the piano (the individual) is beaten down by the orchestra (the mob, or the state). In "Dialogues", on the other hand, the mood is conversational instead of confrontational. The piano part here is just as virtuosic as in the old concerto, and the dedicatee Nicholas Hodges gives a fine performance.
Two works here are for ensemble without soloists. In the "Boston Concerto" for full orchestra (2002), each portion of the orchestra performs in turn, rarely talking over each other. I find Carter's Concerto for Orchestra from the 1960s to be something of a failure, since it doesn't truly show off the sonorities of the ensemble in a virtuosic fashion, but the composer more than makes up for it here. A lush passage of woodwinds and pitched percussion is especially memorable, one of the most simply beautiful things he's ever written, but in no way compromising on his traditional line of writing.
The "ASKO Concerto" (2000), written for the small ensemble of that name, is also something of a concerto for orchestra, It's got a light and airy feel too, with downright humourous moments, but for most of its length a strong dramatic feel prevails. Portions of the orchestra clash, and it gets pretty close to the old aggressive Carter. This is the second recording, but the first where the ASKO Ensemble actually performs, as the world premiere recording on ECM has different players led by Peter Eotvos. I find both performances satisfactory, but as the ECM disc couples this concerto with Carter's controversial opera "What's Next?", this disc might be a more satisfactory purchase.
The Cello Concerto is also reminiscent of the Carter of yore, as the orchestra rains blows upon the solo line at times. However, for much of the piece the cello sounds alone, and it turns out to be some of the most straightforward music Carter has ever written, certainly the answer to critics who claim he's all about noise and brouhaha. The concerto was written for Yo-Yo Ma, but Fred Sherry performs here. Sherry played the drafts for Carter while the composer was writing the piece (see them at work on the Labyrinth of Time documentary DVD), and I find him an all-around more interesting performer of contemporary music than Yo-Yo Ma, so I welcome his presence here.
This disc would make a fine introduction to Carter's music, though those looking for a budget presentation could instead choose the Ars Nova disc with the Piano Concerto and Concerto for Orchestra (bad-boy 1960s Carter) or the Warner Apex disc with works starting from the late 1970s (the first mellower period). Still, fans of the composer should certainly pick this disc up sooner or later, along with the other discs in Bridge's Carter series. Bridge is doing fans a great series with this edition, and it's a pity that it doesn't get as much attention as the complete Ligeti edition or DG's Boulez discs.
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Description of The Music of Elliott Carter Vol. 7; Boston Concerto, Cello Concerto, ASKO Concerto, Dialogues
This highly anticipated recording, a Bridge co-production with the BBC, presents first recordings of four major Elliott Carter compositions, all composed within the past six years. Conducted by the distinguished British conductor, Oliver Knussen, these recordings tell the amazing tale of an American composer, well into his nineties, composing at the peak of his powers. Malcolm McDonald writes that ?Carter is not far short of his own centenary, and continuing to produce highly complex, sophisticated scores with an energy that would hardly be conceivable even in a much younger man.? The composer traveled to London and Amsterdam to oversee the performance and recording of these four works. Dialogues for piano and chamber orchestra was a BBC Radio 3 commission for the brilliant young British pianist Nicolas Hodges and is scored for piano solo and a chamber orchestra comprising 18 instruments. Carter writes that ?Dialogues is a conversation between the soloist and the orchestra: responding to each other, sometimes interrupting one another or arguing.? Hodges, Knussen and the London Sinfonietta give a reading of electrifying intensity. Boston Concerto was commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and is based on a William Carlos Williams poem, ?Rain?, a verse chosen to convey the composer?s enduring love for his wife Helen, the dedicatee of Boston Concerto. Describing the diaphanous textures of this work, Bayan Northcott writes of Boston Concerto that ?despite occasional deep sonorities, the whole work has a kind of distanced lightness, seeming to hover in mid air.? Carter?s Cello Concerto is a twenty minute span introduced by the soloist alone, playing a cantilena that presents ideas later to be expanded into a series of linked movements. The concerto is played by long-time colleague and valued Carter interpreter Fred Sherry who, during the composition of the work, consulted with Carter about the finer details of the cello writing. Scored for a large orchestra that frequently plays with intimately drawn orchestral textures, the Cello Concerto was commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and was first performed by the CSO with Yo Yo Ma, cello soloist and Daniel Barenboim, conductor. Carter completed the concise 12 minute Asko Concerto in January 2000 to a commission from the Asko Ensemble of Amsterdam and the recording on this disc is of its first performance in the Concertgebouw on April 26 of that year. The composer writes: ?Although the music is in light-hearted mood, each soloistic section approaches ensemble playing in a different spirit.? Bridge has also just issued Volume Six of this series which features Rolf Schulte?s performance of Carter?s Violin Concerto (BRIDGE 9177).Classical CDs
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