Carter Symphonia & Clarinet Concerto
The first complete recording of Elliott Carter's orchestral masterpiece, Symphonia, will be difficult to better
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Elliott (Cook) Carter
Genre:
Orchestral
Label: 20/21
Magazine Review Date: 1/2000
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 64
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: 459 660-2GH
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra |
Elliott (Cook) Carter, Composer
Elliott (Cook) Carter, Composer London Sinfonietta Michael Collins, Clarinet Oliver Knussen, Conductor |
| Symphonia |
Elliott (Cook) Carter, Composer
BBC Symphony Orchestra Elliott (Cook) Carter, Composer Oliver Knussen, Conductor |
Author: Arnold Whittall
Elliott Carter's three-movement Symphonia (1993-96) seems certain to provide the crowning glory to his orchestral output, just as the recent chamber opera What Next? should prove the summit of his vocal works. Nevertheless, Symphonia's 45 minutes are not a mere distillation of the techniques and moods developed over the previous half-century or so, and while it is not radically innovative it has plenty of challenges to offer: and not only to orchestral players!
The 'I' of Symphonia's subtitle - 'I am the child of flowing hope' - is a 'charming, wanton, inconstant, beautiful, gleaming and noble' bubble, the subject of Richard Crashaw's extraordinary Latin poem Bulla. Carter transforms this image into a musical celebration of modernist instability and unpredictability: but in so doing he makes a permanent statement in a masterwork which deserves to endure, and to be heard and reheard. There is much to admire in Daniel Barenboim's account of Symphonia's first movement, recorded around the time of its premiere, yet, not least because live performances of so demanding a score are likely to be rare, Oliver Knussen's supremely authoritative interpretation of the complete work has especial value. The sound quality has been meticulously managed in order to help the listener trace those gradually emerging and steadily unfolding arcs of eloquent melody whose appropriate placement and contextualization in all three movements is, I believe, the primary objective of Carter's compositional process.
It takes time to appreciate how Symphonia's extraordinary variety of pace contributes to the music's melodic and harmonic coherence. In this respect, the Clarinet Concerto, written soon after Symphonia's completion, is more immediately approachable, an exuberant tribute to Boulez's seminal Domaines in the way it moves the soloist around in dialogue with various well-contrasted instrumental groups. This performance will leave you breathless with admiration, not only for Carter's inventiveness but also for the brilliance with which the score is realized by these dedicated artists.'
The 'I' of Symphonia's subtitle - 'I am the child of flowing hope' - is a 'charming, wanton, inconstant, beautiful, gleaming and noble' bubble, the subject of Richard Crashaw's extraordinary Latin poem Bulla. Carter transforms this image into a musical celebration of modernist instability and unpredictability: but in so doing he makes a permanent statement in a masterwork which deserves to endure, and to be heard and reheard. There is much to admire in Daniel Barenboim's account of Symphonia's first movement, recorded around the time of its premiere, yet, not least because live performances of so demanding a score are likely to be rare, Oliver Knussen's supremely authoritative interpretation of the complete work has especial value. The sound quality has been meticulously managed in order to help the listener trace those gradually emerging and steadily unfolding arcs of eloquent melody whose appropriate placement and contextualization in all three movements is, I believe, the primary objective of Carter's compositional process.
It takes time to appreciate how Symphonia's extraordinary variety of pace contributes to the music's melodic and harmonic coherence. In this respect, the Clarinet Concerto, written soon after Symphonia's completion, is more immediately approachable, an exuberant tribute to Boulez's seminal Domaines in the way it moves the soloist around in dialogue with various well-contrasted instrumental groups. This performance will leave you breathless with admiration, not only for Carter's inventiveness but also for the brilliance with which the score is realized by these dedicated artists.'
Carter Symphonia & Clarinet Concerto
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