Fri 8.5 Odna Zhizn (A Life)

CHRISTOPHER ROUSE (b. 1949)

Winner of the 1993 Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Trombone Concerto, Rouse has created a body of work perhaps unequalled in its emotional intensity. To quote The Baltimore Sun, "When the music history of the late 20th century is written…the explosive and passionate music of Rouse will loom large." While the Rouse catalog includes a number of acclaimed chamber and ensemble works, the composer is best known for his mastery of orchestral writing. His Symphony No.1 (1986), commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, was rated by the Boston Globe as "probably the most completely successful symphonic composition yet written by an American composer of his rising generation." Symphony No.2 (1994), commissioned by Christoph Eschenbach and the Houston Symphony, has found equal success, earning praise in both its premiere and in European tour performances. Eschenbach and the Houston Symphony have recorded Symphony No.2 for Telarc, on an all-Rouse disc that also features the Celtic-inspired Flute Concerto (with Carol Wincenc as soloist) and Phaethon, one of several Rouse scores inspired by mythology. RCA has also issued a CD devoted to Rouse's music, featuring Marin Alsop leading the Colorado Symphony Orchestra in Gorgon, Iscariot, and Trombone Concerto, with New York Philharmonic principal trombonist Joseph Alessi as soloist. Since the early 1990's, Rouse has gained particular notice for his concertos. Among these are Violin Concerto (1991), commissioned by the Aspen Music Festival for Cho-Liang Lin, and Violoncello Concerto, given its premiere in Spring 1994 by Yo-Yo Ma, with David Zinman leading the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Ma has recorded the Violoncello Concerto for Sony Classics, accompanied by David Zinman and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Concert de Gaudí, a guitar concerto for soloist Sharon Isbin, earned Rouse a Grammy for Best Contemporary Composition in 2002. Christopher Rouse was first introduced to Festival audiences in 1993, when Marin Alsop conducted the Festival Orchestra in his Iscariot. Since then, he has returned frequently to the Festival where nineteen of his works have been performed under Marin Alsop’s baton. Most recently, the Festival commissioned his Orchestra Concerto, which Rouse dedicated to Marin Alsop, who conducted its world premiere at the 2008 Cabrillo Festival. Rouse has recently completed Odna Zhizn for the New York Philharmonic, which will have its west coast premiere on opening night August 5 at the 2011 Cabrillo Festival.

www.christopherrouse.com

Photo by: Jeffrey Herman