Double Concerto

work by Carter

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June 25, 2026

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The Double Concerto is a musical composition by American composer Elliott Carter completed in 1961. It features a unique instrumentation of a harpsichord, piano, and two chamber orchestras. This work is noted for its unusual combination of instruments and its canonic texture, which involves melodic imitation. The concerto creates conflict between the two orchestral groups and presents significant challenges for the performers. Carter was a highly innovative composer, twice awarded the Pulitzer Prize for music, known for his complex rhythmic techniques like metric modulation.12

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Elliott Carter
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…
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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…
Read More