Scrivo in vento, for flute alone, dedicated to the wonderful flautist and friend, Robert Aitken, takes its title from a poem of Petrarch who lived in and around Avignon from 1326 to 1353. It uses the flute to present contrasting musical ideas and registers to suggest the paradoxical nature of the poem.
It was first performed on 20 July 1991 (coincidentally on Petrarch’s 678th birthday) at the Ville Rencontres de la Chartreuse of the Centre Acanthes devoted to my music at the Festival of Avignon, France, by Robert Aitken.
Elliott Carter
Reproduction Rights
This programme note can be reproduced free of charge in concert programmes with a credit to the composer