Juilliard Receives Generous Scholarship Gift from the Estate of Elliott Carter

In celebration of its 45th anniversary in 1991, the Juilliard String Quartet released recordings of Elliott Carter's string quartets. From left: Robert Mann, Joel Smirnoff, Elliott Carter, Joel Krosnick, and Samuel Rhodes.

The music world lost a giant with the passing of groundbreaking composer Elliott Carter last November at the age of 103. He not only was one of the most important figures in contemporary music, but also was a beloved teacher, friend and mentor to many. A two-time recipient of the Pulitzer Prize in composition, Carter was a member of the Juilliard faculty from 1966 to 1984. Born in Manhattan in 1908, Elliott Carter studied at Harvard and went on to become one of the most influential composers of the 20th Century. He was an important presence at The Juilliard School, not only during his many years on the faculty, but for the rest of his life. Juilliard's Focus! Festival celebrated Mr. Carter's 100th birthday in 2008 and many of his works had their first performances at the School. Elliott Carter also had a close relationship with the Juilliard String Quartet who performed many of his works. Juilliard faculty members, administrators, students and alumni were touched by the humanity and generosity that he showed to all. The Juilliard School is extraordinarily grateful that his name will live on through an extremely generous gift from his estate to permanently endow the Elliott Carter Memorial Scholarship in Composition.