Carter, Elliott: Steep Steps (2001) 3'
for bass clarinet

World Premiere
10/17/2001
Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall, New York, New York
Virgil Blackwell, bass clarinet /


Composer's Notes  


Steep Steps was written for the greatly admired clarinetist and friend, Virgil Blackwell, during the summer of 2001. Its title comes from the fact that, unlike the other woodwind instruments, the clarinet overblows at the twelfth, a large interval that forms the basis of much of this composition.

Elliott Carter

Reproduction Rights
This programme note can be reproduced free of charge in concert programmes with a credit to the composer