As the Marie-Josée Kravis Composer-in-Residence with the New York Philharmonic from 2012 to 2015, Christopher Rouse composed four major orchestral works that receive their world premiere recordings on this 2016 release by Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic. Rouse is widely admired for his originality and masterful use of instruments, and he has thrilled audiences with the high energy and rhythmic vitality of his scores. Yet Rouse is also something of a philosopher and a mystic, and he often explores aspects of ...
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As the Marie-Josée Kravis Composer-in-Residence with the New York Philharmonic from 2012 to 2015, Christopher Rouse composed four major orchestral works that receive their world premiere recordings on this 2016 release by Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic. Rouse is widely admired for his originality and masterful use of instruments, and he has thrilled audiences with the high energy and rhythmic vitality of his scores. Yet Rouse is also something of a philosopher and a mystic, and he often explores aspects of creativity and life beyond the notes on the printed page. In his best music, there is usually a tension between abstract formal considerations and subjective or programmatic content that may not be apparent on first hearing. True to form, the works here are impressive showpieces that are appealing for Rouse's brilliant handling of the orchestra, and intriguing for their layers of subtext. While the Symphony No. 3 is a nod to Prokofiev and Beethoven, and the Symphony No. 4 is a study of...
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