The Violoncello Concerto is a concerto for

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

and

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

by the American composer Christopher Rouse. It was commissioned to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...

by philanthropist

Betty Freeman Betty Freeman (2 June 1921 – 3 January 2009) was an American philanthropist and photographer. Biography Freeman was born in Chicago, Illinois. At age 3, she moved with her parents and two brothers to Brooklyn, later moving to New Rochelle, ...

—to whom the work is dedicated—and completed October 27, 1992. The piece was premiered in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, January 26, 1994, with conductor

David Zinman David Zinman (born July 9, 1936, in Brooklyn, NY) is an American conductor and violinist. Education After violin studies at Oberlin Conservatory, Zinman studied theory and composition at the University of Minnesota, earning his M.A. in 1963. He ...

leading cellist

Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma ('' Chinese'': 馬友友 ''Ma Yo Yo''; born October 7, 1955) is an American cellist. Born in Paris to Chinese parents and educated in New York City, he was a child prodigy, performing from the age of four and a half. He graduated from ...

and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Rouse, Christopher (1993)
Violoncello Concerto: Program Note by the Composer
Retrieved May 24, 2015.

Composition

Similar to Rouse's previous

Violin Concerto A violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin (occasionally, two or more violins) and instrumental ensemble (customarily orchestra). Such works have been written since the Baroque music, Baroque period, when the solo concerto form was first dev ...

, the Violoncello Concerto is composed in two

movements Movement may refer to: Common uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Motion, commonly referred to as movement Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...

: #Combattimento #Adagiati The movements are titled from the works of innovative

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass id ...

/ Baroque composer

Claudio Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi (baptized 15 May 1567 – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, choirmaster and string player. A composer of both secular and sacred music, and a pioneer in the development of opera, he is conside ...

. Additionally, the piece contains quotes from Monteverdi's opera ''

L'incoronazione di Poppea ''L'incoronazione di Poppea'' (Stattkus-Verzeichnis, SV 308, ''The Coronation of Poppaea'') is an Italian List of operas by Claudio Monteverdi, opera by Claudio Monteverdi. It was Monteverdi's last opera, with a libretto by Giovanni Francesco Buse ...

'' and

William Schuman William Howard Schuman (August 4, 1910February 15, 1992) was an American composer and arts administrator. Life Schuman was born into a Jewish family in Manhattan, New York City, son of Samuel and Rachel Schuman. He was named after the 27th U.S. ...

's song ''Orpheus with his Lute''.

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

's poem "

The Conqueror Worm "The Conqueror Worm" is a poem by Edgar Allan Poe about human mortality and the inevitability of death. It was first published separately in ''Graham's Magazine'' in 1843, but quickly became associated with Poe's short story "Ligeia" after Poe ad ...

" was also placed in the score as a motto for the piece.

Inspiration

Rouse described the Violoncello Concerto as a "meditation upon death" in response to the passing of several colleagues and fellow composers. In the program note to the score, Rouse wrote:

Reception

Reviewing the world premiere,

Edward Rothstein Edward Benjamin Rothstein (born October 16, 1952) is an American critic. Rothstein wrote music criticism early in his career, but is best known for his critical analysis of museums and museum exhibitions. Rothstein holds a B.A. from Yale Univers ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' praised "marvelous effects" of Rouse's composition, despite noting its somber tone. Rothstein further remarked, "The danger in his style is partly that the anger and despair can seem motivated by events outside the music more than by events within it. But when it works -- as it does in his Violin Concerto and in the Cello Concerto -- one is drawn into Mr. Rouse's emotional universe and is moved by its craft as well." Conversely, Ivan Hewett of ''

BBC Music Magazine ''BBC Music Magazine'' is a British monthly magazine that focuses primarily on classical music. History The first issue appeared in September 1992. BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC was the original owner and publisher toge ...

'' was much more critical and referred to the concerto as "mediocre music."

References

{{Authority control Concertos by Christopher Rouse 1992 compositions

Rouse Rouse may refer to: Places * Rouse, California, United States, a census-designated place * Rouse, Wisconsin, United States, an unincorporated community * Rouses Point, New York, United States, a village * Rouse Islands, Antarctica * Cape Rouse, An ...

20th-century classical music Music commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic