The best place to start is his Sonata for Cello and Piano, the Double Concerto for Harpischord and Piano, and the Sonata for Flute, Oboe, Cello, and Harpischord, all collected here. The string quartets and the sonata for violin and piano are also important, plus the short late works for solo instruments or small ensembles or voice; choose by which instruments you like best.
Here is Q&A with Elliott Carter, interesting throughout. It ends with this:
What are the things that people say to you that are meaningful?
People say they like my music very much, but I’m 100 years old.
Um, that is in fact a link to a book about life under Augusto Pinochet… probably will want to fix that link.
I just saw his “Horn Concerto” in Boston, it was interesting. Reminded me of the soundtrack to a Charlie Kaufman movie for some reason.
This part of the interview is cool:
You’ve said that you try to incorporate the pace of modern life into your music.
Carter: It’s partially true at least. The older music that we know, Beethoven, Brahms, they were all living in a period when you walked or rode on horseback or soldiers marched, and that established a different pace and detail of movement and it’s reflected in the music.
Now we fly on airplanes and such, and even though people do dance, the idea of motion is utterly different these days. I find that my students who have become conservative bother me because they don’t see it that way.
He was also on Charlie Rose.
http://www.charlierose.com/guest/view/6531
Variations for Orchestra also good.
I love his music. He is such a admirable person. Hopefully he’ll live another 100 years, in order to enrich our lives with his fascinating compositions.
It’s funny how, if someone describes a piece of music I haven’t heard as “beautiful” or “gorgeous” I’m often inclined to check it out. But “important”? Not so much.
Hi there,
I found great ideas on your Web site.
Well done !
Thanks for that and keep on doing
Greetings from germany
Thomas
I love this kind of music. As I am an actor, too I`m often searching for special music for my show.
Really great, keep on doing !!
Thank you for this beautiful sharing.
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