This retrospective disc presents music composed by the late Elliott Carter over a period of more than 70 years. Unquestionably, the major work presented here...

This retrospective disc presents music composed by the late Elliott Carter over a period of more than 70 years. Unquestionably, the major work presented here is the late Charles Rosen’s performance of Carter’s Piano Concerto. Rosen, a great advocate of Carter’s music, had recorded most of Carter’s solo piano music over the course of his long career, though he never made a studio recording of Carter’s brilliant concerto. The release of this radio recording, featuring the superb Basel Sinfonietta, conducted by Joel Smirnoff, was one of Rosen’s last wishes. Volume 9 of Bridge’s ongoing Carter series opens with vocal works of Carter’s from the 30s and 40s, and proceeds to Steven Beck’s electrifying accounts of late solo piano music, and the Slowind Quintet’s performance of Carter’s quintet, Nine by Five, completed during the composer’s 101st year.