Elliott Carter (1908-2012)

Three Explorations (2010 -2011)

for solo baritone, woodwind and brass instruments

  • General information
    • Composition date : 2010 - 2011
    • Duration : 10 mn
    • Publisher : Boosey & Hawkes
Detailed formation
  • soloist : solo baritone
  • 2 flutes (also 1 piccolo, 2 alto flutes, 1 bass flute), oboe, 2 bass clarinets (also 1 clarinet, 1 contrabass clarinet), 3 trumpets, trombone, tenor/bass trombone, bass trombone

Premiere information

  • Date : 12 December 2011
    Location :

    États-Unis, New York, NY, Alice Tully Hall


    Performers :

    Evan Hughes : baryton, AXIOM Ensemble, direction : Jeffrey Milarsky.

Program note

Throughout my life I have been a great admirer of T.S. Eliot’s poetry and criticism. So when I decided to set some of his work I chose his late poems and parts of his Four Quartets.The texts being meditative I decided to use winds and brass to accompany the bass baritone. I remembered a work of similar character and instrumentation by the 16th century composer Heinrich Schütz which impressed me greatly. The work was composed in the fall of 2010.

Elliott Carter.