Christopher Rouse (composer)

Christopher Rouse (born February 15, 1949 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American composer.

Biography

Rouse studied with Richard Hoffmann at Oberlin Conservatory of Music, graduating in 1971, and later completed graduate degrees under Karel Husa at Cornell University in 1977. In between, Rouse studied privately with George Crumb. Early recognition came from the BMI Foundation's BMI Student Composer Awards in 1972 and 1973. Rouse taught at the University of Michigan from 1978 to 1981 and at the Eastman School of Music from 1981 to 2002. He currently teaches at the Juilliard School (since 1997). In 2002, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Rouse's music has been recorded by several major classical music labels, including Telarc, Koch, Sony, RCA Victor, Teldec, BIS and Ondine.

His notable students include Michael Torke, Kamran Ince, Marc Mellits, Robert Paterson and Kevin Puts.

He has four children: Angela, Jillian, Alexandra, and Adrian from ex-wife Ann. They separated in 2004.

Music

Rouse is commonly referred to as a neo-romantic composer, as many of his works attempt to combine diatonicism with more contemporary musical idioms. He has been praised for his orchestration skills, particularly with percussion. He often quotes works of other composers (e.g., his Symphony No. 1, composed in 1986, incorporates quotations from the music of Bruckner and Shostakovich).

Commercial Use

Rouse's work "Flute Concerto" was used in a 2010 UK television advertisement for Canadian beer brand Carling.

Complete works

Orchestra

• Gorgon (1984)
  • commissioned by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, who premièred the work under David Zinman (to whom the work is dedicated) on 15 November 1984.
• Phantasmata (1981/85)
  • commissioned by the Saint Louis Symphony with the assistance of a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts; premièred by the Saint Louis Symphony under Leonard Slatkin at Powell Symphony Hall, St. Louis, Missouri, on 25 October 1986.
• Phaethon (1986)
  • commissioned by the Philadelphia Orchestra, who premièred the work under Riccardo Muti at the Philadelphia Academy of Music, Pennsylvania on 98th January 1987.
• Symphony No. 1 (1986, awarded the Kennedy Center Friedheim Award in 1988)
  • commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony (for whom Rouse served as composer-in-residence 1986-88), who gave the work's première under David Zinman at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, Baltimore, Maryland on 21 January 1988.
• Iscariot (chamber orchestra, 1989)
  • co-commissioned by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and the New Jersey Symphony. Premièred by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra under John Adams at the Ordway Theater, Saint Paul, Minnesota on 27 October 1989.
• Concerto per Corde (string orchestra, 1990)
  • commissioned by Absolut Vodka; premièred by the American Symphony Orchestra under Catherine Comet at Avery Fisher Hall, New York on 28 November 1990.
• Symphony No. 2 (1994)
  • commissioned by the Houston Symphony, who premièred the work under Christoph Eschenbach (to whom the work is dedicated) at Jones Hall, Houston, Texas on 4 March 1995.
• Envoi (1995)
  • dedicated to the memory of Rouse's mother. Commissioned by the Atlanta Symphony, who premièred the work under Yoel Levi at Atlanta Symphony Hall on 9 May 1996.
• Rapture (2000)
  • commissioned by the Pittsburgh Symphony, who premièred the work under Mariss Jansons (to whom the work is dedicated) at Heinz Hall, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on 5 May 2000.
• The Nevill Feast (2003)
  • commissioned by the Boston Pops Orchestra, who premièred the work under Keith Lockhart on 7 May 2003.
• Friandises (ballet, 2005)
  • jointly commissioned by New York City Ballet at the Juilliard School. Premièred by the New York City Ballet at the New York State Theater in Lincoln Center, NY on 10 February 2006.
• Concerto for Orchestra (2007–08)
  • commissioned by the Cabrillo Music Festival; premièred by the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra under Marin Alsop (to whom the work is dedicated) at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium in Santa Cruz, California on 1 August 2008.
• Odna Zhizn (2008–09)
  • commissioned by the New York Philharmonic, who premièred the work under Alan Gilbert at Avery Fisher Hall, New York on 10 February 2010.
• Symphony No. 3 (2010-11)
  • commissioned by the Saint Louis Symphony, who will give the work's world première under David Robertson at Powell Symphony Hall, St. Louis, Missouri, on 5 May 2011.

Orchestra with soloist

• Violin Concerto (1991)
  • commissioned by the Aspen Music Festival for violinist Cho-Liang Lin (to whom the work is dedicated), who premièred the work with the Aspen Festival Orchestra under Leonard Slatkin in Aspen, Colorado on 12 July 1992.
• Trombone Concerto (1991, awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1993)
  • commissioned by the New York Philharmonic for its then principal trombonist Joseph Alessi; the work was premièred by those forces under Leonard Slatkin at Avery Fisher Hall, New York on 30 December 1992.
• Violoncello Concerto (1992–93)
  • commissioned by Betty Freeman; premièred by Yo-Yo Ma with the Los Angeles Philharmonic under David Zinman at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA on 26 January 1994.
• Flute Concerto (1993)
  • premièred by Carol Wincenc and the Detroit Symphony under Hans Vonk at Detroit Orchestra Hall, Michigan on 27 October 1994.
• Der gerettete Alberich (Percussion Concerto, 1997)
  • co-commissioned by the London Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Baltimore Symphony; premièred by Evelyn Glennie (to whom the work is dedicated) with the Cleveland Orchestra under Christoph von Dohnanyi
• Seeing (Piano Concerto, 1998)
  • commissioned by Lillian Barbash for Emanuel Ax and the New York Philharmonic, who gave the work's première under Leonard Slatkin at Avery Fisher Hall, New York on 6 May 1999.
• Concert de Gaudí (Guitar Concerto, 1999)
  • co-commissioned by the Norddeutscher Rundfunk Orchester and the Dallas Symphony; written for guitarist Sharon Isbin, who gave the work's première with the Norddeutscher Rundfunk Orchester under Christoph Eschenbach in Hamburg on 2 January 2000.
• Clarinet Concerto (2001)
  • commissioned by the Chicago Symphony with funding provided by the American Institute for Music; premièred by Larry Combs with the Chicago Symphony under Christoph Eschenbach at Symphony Center, Chicago, Illinois on 17 May 2001. The work is dedicated to fellow composer Augusta Read Thomas.
• Oboe Concerto (2004)
  • commissioned by the Minnesota Orchestra in 2004; premièred by Basil Reeve with the Minnesota Orchestra under Osmo Vänskä at Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis, Minnesota on 5 February 2009.
• Heimdall's Trumpet (Trumpet Concerto, 2012)
  • commissioned by the Chicago Symphony; world première given by Christopher Martin and the Chicago Symphony under Jaap van Zweden at Symphony Center, Chicago on 20 December 2012.

Voice and orchestra

• Karolju (1990), for S.A.T.B. chorus & orchestra
  • commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony with support from the Barlow Endowment and the Guggenheim Foundation; premièred by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra & Chorus conducted by David Zinman on 7th November 1991. The work is dedicated to the composer's daughter, Alexandra.
• Kabir Padavali ("Kabir Songbook", 1997–98), for soprano solo & orchestra
  • 28-minute work, written for soprano Dawn Upshaw and commissioned by the Minnesota Orchestra, who premièred the work with Upshaw under David Zinman in Minneapolis on 6th January 1999. The piece is dedicated to the composer's son, Adrian.
• Requiem (2001–02), for baritone solo, children's choir, S.A.T.B. chorus & large orchestra
  • 90-minute work, commissioned by Soli Deo Gloria; premièred by the Los Angeles Master Charole & Orchestra with the Los Angeles Children's Chorus and baritone soloist Sanford Sylvan under Grant Gershon at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, California on 25th March 2007.

Wind Ensemble

• Wolf Rounds (2007)
  • commissioned by the Frost Wind Ensemble of the University of Miami, who gave the work's première conducted by Gary Green (to whom the work is dedicated) at Carnegie Hall, New York on 29th March 2007.

Chamber music

• Ogoun Badagris (percussion ensemble, 1976)
• Quattro Madrigali (eight-voice choir, 1976)
• Ku-Ka-Ilimoku (percussion ensemble, 1978)
• Rotae Passionis (mixed ensemble, 1982)
• String Quartet No. 1 (1982)
• Lares Hercii (violin and harpsichord, 1983)
• Artemis (brass quintet, 1988)
• Bonham (percussion ensemble, 1988)
• String Quartet No. 2 (1988)
• Compline (flute, clarinet, harp and string quartet, 1996)
• Rapturedux (cello ensemble, 2001)
• String Quartet No. 3 (2009)

Solo works

• Little Gorgon (piano, 1986)
• Ricordanza (cello, 1995)
• Valentine (flute, 1996)

External links

• Christopher Rouse - Composer (official site)
• Art of the States: Christopher Rouse three works by the composer
• Interview with Christopher Rouse by Bruce Duffie April 29, 1994

Bibliography

• Shulman, Laurie. 1997. "Christopher Rouse: An Overview" Tempo, new series, no. 199:2–8
• Shulman, Laurie. 2001. "Rouse, Christopher (Chapman)". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan.