Elliott Carter, often called the most eminent living American composer, is still actively composing at the age of 95. Famous for highly demanding scores using extraordinarily sophisticated rhythms, Carter is a prime architect of modernist music in the United States. The three orchestral works presented here include two works from Carter’s little-known earlier ‘populist’ style of the 1940s, the Holiday Overture and Symphony No. 1, with his spiky Piano Concerto from 1965. This is an unprecedented combination of repertoire, revealing that Carter composed highly individual, complex works, as well as more approachable pieces.
