Con Leggerezza Pensosa for clarinet, violin, and cello

Year
1990
Duration
5'
Category
Chamber

Dedication: Omaggio a Italo Calvino
Buy Score: Hendon Music (Boosey & Hawkes)
Manuscripts: Paul Sacher Stiftung

Premiere: Sep 29, 1990/ Ciro Scarponi (cl), Jorge Risi (vn), Luigi Lanzillotta (vc)/ Italian Institute for Musicological Research, Latina

News

Elliott Carter Memorial Concert Streaming on WQXR

January 5, 2017

Play / pause

0:00

volume

Con Leggerezza Pensosa clip

Con Leggerezza Pensosa was commissioned by Dr. Raffaele Pozzi, the director of the Istituto di Studi Musicali in Latina, Italy, as an homage to the Italian author, Italo Calvino, to be performed in connection with the institute’s first annual awards for the best musicological papers of the year. Italo Calvino, who died after writing but before giving his Norton Lectures at Harvard University, Six Memos for the Next Millennium (Lezioni americane), was singled out for this homage because he presents in these lectures a new view of humanism which has become an inspiration for the Istituto di Studi Musicali.

The title was suggested by the remark Calvino makes in his lecture on Lightness: “spero innanzitutto d’aver dimostrato che esiste una leggerezza della pensosità, così come tutti sappiamo che esiste una leggerezza della frivolezza; anzi, la leggerezza pensosa può far apparire la frivolezza come pesante e opaca.” (Above all I hope to have shown that there is such a thing as a lightness of thoughtfulness, just as we know there is a lightness of frivolity. In fact, thoughtful lightness can make frivolity seem dull and heavy.)

My short piece for clarinet, violin and cello was written in June 1990.

– Elliott Carter

Recordings (6)

Chamber Music by Elliott Carter: Figments and Fragments
2L 2L-054-SACD (2008)
Johannes Martens, cello | Anders Nilsson, violin | Yi Yang, violin | Anders Rensvik, viola | Andjei Majewsk, clarinet | Tom Ottar Andreassen, flute | Joachim Kwetzinsky, piano
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)
Nouvel Ensemble Moderne plays Elliott Carter
ATMA Classique (2002)
Caroline Lizotte, clarinet | Nouvel Ensemble Moderne | Lorraine Vaillancourt, conductor
Elliott Carter: Musique de chambre
Arion ARN 68495 (2000)
Patrick Gallois, flute | Maurice Bourgue, oboe | Michel Lethiec, clarinet | Amaury Wallez, bassoon | André Cazalet, horn | Claire Désert, piano | Gérard Poulet, violin (+1)
The Group for Contemporary Music: Elliott Carter: Eight Compositions (1948-1993)
Bridge Records BCD 9044 (1994)
Charles Neidich, clarinet | Harvey Sollberger, flute | Fred Sherry, cello | Rolf Schulte, violin | Martin Goldray, piano | David Starobin, guitar | Charles Wuorinen, piano