For listeners who know Elliott Carter primarily for the uncompromisingly spiky modernism of the style that crystallized around the midpoint of the century, the music he wrote before then may come as a surprise. Between 1936 and 1947, he wrote a number of substantial choral works, most of which are recorded here, that contradict the stereotype of Carter as a cerebral academician. These works are clearly the work of a master technician, constructed with exquisite care and precision, but they are also largely accessible. They are not easy listening, but their expressive content is potent, and revealed with clarity. Carter's music of this period is sometimes compared with
Copland's, and there are similarities, but Carter's voice is distinctive: rigorously disciplined, deeply rooted in Renaissance counterpoint, and diligent in its avoidance of cliché or predictability. Carter deploys his choral forces in a variety of formulations: accompanied and a cappella, for mixed voices, and for men's or women's voices. Among the most appealing pieces are the unaccompanied mixed choruses, "Heart Not So Heavy As Mine," with a text by Emily Dickinson, and a setting of Robert Herrick's "To Music," which are especially emotionally direct. But all the pieces, even the more austere, like the cycle Emblems, are so evidently the work of such a quick intelligence and lively, witty inventiveness that they are a source of constant delight.
Marcus Creed leads SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart in committed performances that bring out both the warmth and steel in this music. The ensemble sings with pure, focused tone and a lovely blend. Hänssler Classics' life-like sound is clean, balanced, and ideally resonant.