Elliott Carter, 1908-2012

[bhodges]

This concert on Tuesday:

Juilliard String Quartet
Charles Neidich, clarinet

Carter: Clarinet Quintet (2007, world premiere)
Carter: Riconoscenza per Goffredo Petrassi for solo violin (1984)
Carter: Figment for solo cello (1994)
Carter: Gra for solo clarinet (1993)
Carter: Rhapsodic Musings for solo violin (2001)
Carter: Figment IV for solo viola (2007)
Carter: Clarinet Quintet (2007) - repeat performance

--Bruce

Wow, was this a great evening!  Joe will probably weigh in, too, but this was no doubt one of the best Carter tributes of the year.  The new Clarinet Quintet is delightful, and at roughly 14 minutes long, it was easy to repeat it.  Just before the second performance, Carter discussed the three movements of the piece, with demos from the musicians.  Frankly, I hope I am half this lucid at age 99. 

--Bruce

[not edward]

Wow, was this a great evening!  Joe will probably weigh in, too, but this was no doubt one of the best Carter tributes of the year.  The new Clarinet Quintet is delightful, and at roughly 14 minutes long, it was easy to repeat it.  Just before the second performance, Carter discussed the three movements of the piece, with demos from the musicians.  Frankly, I hope I am half this lucid at age 99. 

--Bruce

I'm envious.

Having the clarinet quintet in three movements is an interesting break from his recent chamber work: are the three movements played without a break or are they fully separate?

[bhodges]

I'm envious.

Having the clarinet quintet in three movements is an interesting break from his recent chamber work: are the three movements played without a break or are they fully separate?

The three movements are basically played without a break, but with very slight pauses in between the sections.  I especially liked the last one, a scherzo, which is very fast and fun. 

--Bruce

[greg]

Click here to watch and listen to a performance of Mr. Carter's Shard played on electric guitar.

It is also the second time I can recall seeing a short work of Mr. Carter's perfromed from memory.

I saw that a couple days ago.
Obviously very impressive..... i could just imagine how long that'd take to memorize.

Oh, and he has a REALLY nice guitar, of course! 

[Joe Barron]

Well, three movements were listed in the program, but Carter spoke as if there were four, and the piece certainly had a four-movement feel. The initial scherzando is followed by an adagio, which Carter spoke of as a "string quartet movement," but which was not listed. It begins, or, rather, the previous section ends, with all strings playing very high, anchored by the clarinet's lowest tone. It contains recits for all the string instruments. The cello recit was especially striking, but then, I've always loved the way Carter writes for cello. It's hard for me to assess Carter premieres anymore. It's like to pick a favorite among Haydn's late quartets. In each case, the quality is so consistent, the technique so masterful, the creativity so evident, that it makes no sense to offer a detailed critique or analysis. Carter is Carter. That's all there is to say.

That said, however, I should add that I liked the second performance of the Quintet more than the first. Maybe the musicians were more relaxed, maybe the discussion helped me follow it more easily, or maybe, like all Carter, it simply benefited from repeated listening. In any case, the second reading seemed sharper and clearer to me. may we hear the piece again soon, and may there be a recording, soon.

We should also mention the strings' slap pizzicatos, the so-called "Bartok pizzicatos," that litter the piece. Carter said they are they only notes in the work that don't relate to anything else. The just happen. Mr Carter said he put them in to add surprise to the mixture. He compared them to paint spots on an abstract painting.

The composer was indeed in good form during the intermission. There was no real "discussion," as promised in the program. Mr. Carter himself gave a movement-by-movement account of the work, and the musicians, who never had a chance to speak, played examples. The voice is a little slurred these days, but the mind is as sharp as ever. Mr. Carter was very much in control --- it surprised me how firmly he gave directions --- though he was also relaxed and funny. In the demonstration of the adagio, he told the musicians to keep playing "until Charlie runs out of breath." (I don't expect to be that lucid at his age. I expect to be fish food.)

Ronald Copes' beautiful tone in the Rhapsodic Musings and Samuel Rhodes' performance of the Figment IV for viola, which I had not heard before, also stand out in my mind. Mr. Carter also singled out Copes during the intermission, even though, as he admitted, he could not remember the violinist's name. Copes is the latest addition to the quartet, and I guess it takes Mr. Carter longer these days to absorb new information.

The Figment was a lovely exploration of the viola's warmth. The instrument is neither  as flashy as the violin nor as rich-toned as the cello, and Carter and Rhodes managed to bring out its strengths of its character.

In all, as Bruce said, a great evening. A joyous evening.

[Mark G. Simon]

Well, three movements were listed in the program, but Carter spoke as if there were four, and the piece certainly had a four-movement feel.

Also true of the first string quartet. I hope the clarinet quintet is just as compelling.

[Joe Barron]

Also true of the first string quartet. I hope the clarinet quintet is just as compelling.

Yes, but lighter, more playful.

[bwv 1080]

Yes, but lighter, more playful.

does that mean more or less gibberish?

Would also recommend the Naxos podcast with an interview with Sibbi Bernhardsson from thePacifica quartet where he discusses playing the quartets

http://www.naxos.com/podcasts/podcastslist.asp#0

He states the importance of hating beauty and not caring about the audience when performing this music.  Also how the quartet likes to get together after they have performed all five quartets,  have a few beers and mock the foolish critics and intellectuals who think they can understood the gibberish they just played.  Sibbi admits they have not actually bothered to learn the quartets, rather they just listened to the Arditti recording a few times and then just made the music up as they went along.  He mentions an amusing anecdote about how one day the cellist Brandon Vamos was too drunk to take out on stage so they grabbed a janitor and gave him a cello and the janitor faked his way through the third quartet without anyone being the wiser.

[Joe Barron]

I try to avoid ad hominem arguments, but God, you're a dick.

[bwv 1080]

I try to avoid ad hominem arguments, but God, you're a dick.

fuck you if you cannot take a joke

[greg]

Ha.
Ha.


i laughed......

......

......

......

wait, was it too late? 

[Joe Barron]

fuck you if you cannot take a joke

What joke? Come up with a joke, and I'll take it.

[Mark G. Simon]

BWV's post was so clearly a joke he felt he didn't have to underline the point.

[Catison]

BWV's post was so clearly a joke he felt he didn't have to underline the point.

And now he's gone?  Sad.

[MN Dave]

That's too bad. Another one gone.

[karlhenning]

How frail a medium is this.

[greg]

a recent sighting in my backyard:

[bwv 1080]

OK, my skin is not that thin.

Just shocking to be publicly insulted like that by someone I had heretofore respected


I thought the post was funny

[MN Dave]

OK, my skin is not that thin.

Just shocking to be publicly insulted like that by someone I had heretofore respected


I thought the post was funny

I for one am glad you changed your mind.

[karlhenning]

WB, Steve!  Just one of those odd misunderstandings, I am sure.