Summer reading

Few things in life are less rewarding than reading a typical Ph.D. thesis in the Humanities.  This one, however, is an exception not only because of its topic, but also because the writing keeps clear of the wooden, repetitive, jargon-laden style favored by academics who, in their heart of hearts, know they have nothing worthy to say but still take hundreds of pages to deliver a few trivial observations on some inconsequential subject matter.

Composing Freedom: Elliott Carter's 'Self-Reinvention' 
and the Early Cold War
DANIEL GUBERMAN
U. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2012
(Available as free PDF download from the U. of North Carolina Digital Archive.)

ABSTRACT:  In this dissertation I examine Elliott Carter's development from the end of the Second World War through the 1960s arguing that he carefully constructed his postwar compositional identity for Cold War audiences on both sides of the Atlantic. The majority of studies of Carter's music have focused on technical aspects of his methods, or roots of his thoughts in earlier philosophies. Making use of published writings, correspondence, recordings of lectures, compositional sketches, and a drafts of writings, this is one of the first studies to examine Carter's music from the perspective of the contemporary cultural and political environment. In this Cold War environment Carter emerged as one of the most prominent composers in the United States and Europe. I argue that Carter's success lay in part due to his extraordinary acumen for developing a public persona. And his presentation of his works resonated with the times, appealing simultaneously to concert audiences, government and private foundation agents, and music professionals including impresarios, performers and other composers. This detailed study of a single composer sheds new light on how artists were able to negotiate the complex economies of the Cold War artistic environment.