The fluegelhorn is an 'unusual instrument' featured in Christopher Rouse's Symphony No. 6, chosen for its dark timbre to suit the elegiac quality of the opening.
Recording & Production
This recording of Christopher Rouse's Symphony No. 6 was made live on September 30 and October 2, 2022, at Cincinnati's Music Hall.
Composition History
Christopher Rouse completed his Symphony No. 6 just weeks before his death, and it was premiered a month later by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, which had commissioned the work.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Christopher Rouse stated that in his Symphony No. 6, his final work, his subject was death, specifically his own.
Compositional Technique
The final note of Christopher Rouse's Symphony No. 6 is a single stroke on the gong, marked funesto ('fatal'), and the score concludes with 'Finis' instead of his usual 'Deo gratias'.
Performer Biography
Louis Langrée, the conductor of this recording, has been Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra since 2013 and Music Director of the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center since 2003.
Compositional Technique
Christopher Rouse structured his Symphony No. 6 with two slow movements bookending a moderate-tempo second movement and a fast third movement, mirroring the architecture of Mahler's Ninth Symphony.
