Canon for 4 – Homage To William for flute, bass clarinet, violin, and cello

Year
1984
Duration
5'
Category
Chamber

Dedication: For the occasion of Sir William Glock’s retirement from the Bath Festival which rose to such eminence under his leadership
Buy Score: Hendon Music (Boosey & Hawkes)
Manuscripts: Paul Sacher Stiftung

Premiere: Jun 3, 1984/ London Sinfonietta/ Bath Festival, Bath, England

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Canon for 4 clip

Canon for 4 - Homage to William was written for the occasion of Sir William Glock’s retirement from the Bath Festival which rose to such eminence under his leadership.

Following the pattern of many older pieces written by composers to celebrate their musical colleagues by making a demonstration of compositional skill, this four-part canon is quite strictly carried out from beginning to end. The flute imitates the cello in inversion, the bass clarinet imitates it in retrograde, and the violin in retrograde inversion. In using this very restricting technique, I have tried to write music that would be interesting and communicative to a listener not preoccupied with its formal devices.

The London Sinfonietta gave the first performance at a celebration for Sir William on June 3, 1984 during the annual Bath festival in England.

– Elliott Carter

Recordings (4)

Elliott Carter: Oeuvres avec violoncelle
Assai 222602 (2004)
Alexis Descharmes, cello | Sébastien Vichard, piano & harpsichord | Jean-Luc Menet, flute | Mario Caroli, flute | Hélène Devilleneuve, oboe | Nicolas Baldeyrou, clarinet | Nicolas Miribel, Violin
Nieuw Ensemble: Homages & Dedications
Auvidis Montaigne MO 782089 (2003)
Nieuw Ensemble, Ed Spanjaard, conductor | Hans Wesseling, mandolin | Helenus de Rijke, guitar | Ernestine Stoop, harp | Herman Halewijn, vibraphone | Ad Welleman, trumpet (+19)
Da Capo Chamber Players: Perle/Carter
GM Recordings GM2020CD (1990)
Da Capo Chamber Players: Patricia Spencer, flute; Laura Flax, clarinet; Joel Lester, violin; Andre Emelianoff, cello; Sarah Rothenberg, piano
The California EAR Unit: Modern Chamber Ensemble Compositions
New Albion NA019 CD (1989)
Dorothy Stone, flute | Erika Duke, cello | Dorothy Stone, flute | Theresa Tunnicliff, clarinet | Dorothy Stone, flute | James Rohrig, bass clarinet | Robin Lorentz, violin (+1)