CARTER, ELLIOTT (COOK, JR.)

born Dec. 11, 1908, New York City American composer whose erudite style and novel principles of polyrhythm, called metrical modulation, won worldwide attention. He was twice awarded the Pulitzer Prize for music, in 1960 and 1973. Born of a wealthy family, Carter was educated at Harvard University, where he first majored in English and later studied music under Walter Piston and Gustav Holst. His interest in music dated from his teens and was fostered by the composer Charles Ives, who was Carter's neighbour in 192425. Carter began composing seriously in 1933 while studying in Paris with Nadia Boulanger. His early works displayed an original diatonic style that was strongly influenced by the rhythmic and melodic patterns of Greek music and prose, reflecting Carter's interest in classical literature. Among his early works were choral and instrumental pieces and a ballet. His First Symphony dates from 1942, as does an especially representative work of this period, The Defense of Corinth, for narrator, men's chorus, and two pianos. His Piano Sonata (194546) marked a turning point in Carter's stylistic development; in it he used a complex texture of irregularly cross-accented counterpoint within a large-scale framework. The Cello Sonata (1948) found the principles of metrical modulation well-established. The technique culminated in his String Quartet No. 1 (1951), characterized by the densely woven counterpoint that became a hallmark of his style. Both that quartet and the String Quartet No. 2 (1959; Pulitzer Prize) became part of the standard repertory. The Variations for Orchestra (195455) marked another phase of Carter's development, leading to a serial approach to intervals and dynamics. The Double Concerto for harpsichord, piano, and two chamber orchestras (1961), which won rare praise from Igor Stravinsky, displayed Carter's interest in unusual instrumentation and canonic texture (based on melodic imitation). The conflict generated between the two orchestral groups and the great difficulty of the concerto were mirrored in the Piano Concerto (196465). Concerto for Orchestra was first performed in 1970 and the String Quartet No. 3 (Pulitzer Prize) in 1973. His Brass Quintet premiered in 1974, Duo for Violin and Piano in 1975, A Mirror on Which to Dwell, song cycle based on poems of Elizabeth Bishop, in 1975, and A Symphony of Three Orchestras, inspired by Hart Crane's The Bridge, in 1977.