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Elliott Carter Biography

Elliott Cook Carter Jr. (December 11, 1908 – November 5, 2012) was an American composer who was twice awarded the Pulitzer Prize. He studied with Nadia Boulanger in Paris in the 1930s, then returned to the United States. After an early neoclassical phase, he developed a personal harmonic and rhythmic language. His compositions are known and performed throughout the world; they include orchestral, chamber music, solo instrumental, and vocal works.

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Elliott Carter Quotes

Right at the end of the war I wrote a piano sonata, which was written at a time when Sam Barber used to come down here and we used to have lunch together in a very nice old hotel that's now not there.

Come, Lunch, Nice, Sam, War

My entire life has really revolved around music that was written about the time that I was born, 1908, to just before the First World War and shortly after it. This music I've always known, and it is that music that's most important to me.

Important, Life, Shortly, War, World

Silences between movements are employed only in order to bring the opposing duo to the fore.

Duo, Movement, Movements, Order, Silence

The Quartets have been a major part of my work.

Has Beens, Majors, Part, Quartets, Work

The first thing that struck me about contemporary music in general had been thatthere was not much interest in rhythm.

Firsts, Interest, Music, Rhythm, Thing

Talking about a materialistic thing, I get about 13 times more royalties from Europe than I do from America.

America, Europe, Talking

Almost every one of my various zero numbered birthdays has had a big concert in London and often in Paris.

Concert, London, Paris, Various, Zero

Yes, I get a report from BMI about the frequency of performances, and it is very surprising. They played one of my most advanced pieces, and one of my most unusual ones on the radio.

Ones, Performances, Pieces, Radio, Unusual

When people listen to my music, I hope that they will notice that if you take a piece by a composer like Schubert, the major and the minor triad is an extermely important thing not merely as harmony, but in creating melodic lines. Schubert is always walking up and down with arpeggios on C, E, G and so forth. I am not doing anything different really, except using a different system of harmony.

Creating, Forth, Important, People, Triad, Using

The Third Quartet I made the instruments in pairs - Two different pairs - Violin and viola, and violin and cello. They played very different things from each other all through the whole piece.

Different, Pairs, Pieces, Played, Two

That was one of the big problems when I was at Harvard studying music. We had to write choral pieces in the style of Brahms or Mendelssohn, which was distressing because in the end you realized how good Brahms is, and how bad you are.

Bad, Mendelssohn, Pieces, Problems, Style, Writing

Well when I was young, when I was very young, when I was a little boy I don't remember the music I heard, but there was an article in the Brooklyn Daily written by my Aunt about how I could choose phonograph records.

Article, Aunt, Boys, Records

When I was in Paris, all of the German refugees began to flow in and it was a very sad time.

Flow, Paris, Refugees, Sad, Very Sad

My musical life started with hearing and being fascinated by contemporary music.

Contemporary, Fascinated, Hearing, Music, Musical Life

Aaron Copland was a man that had a very specific point of view about what music should be which was that, he felt that new music should have the composer should show a personality in his music.

Copland, Felt, Men, Personality, Should Have, Views

Why write for the orchestra? For one thing it's a very challenging problem.

Challenges, Orchestra, Problem, Thing, Writing

Since I'm allergic to various things, the army wouldn't accept me during the war, and I got into the Office of War Information, which sent music to Europe.

Army, Europe, Office, Sent, War