Symphony No. 6

The Symphony No. 6 is a symphony for orchestra by the American composer Christopher Rouse. The work was commissioned by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and was completed in the composer's Baltimore home on June 6, 2019. It was first performed in Cincinnati Music Hall by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra conducted by Louis Langrée on October 18, 2019. Written as a personal epitaph, the symphony was Rouse's last completed work before his death in September 2019. Composition Background Rouse, who knew he was dying after an eight-year bout of renal cancer, composed the work as a personal epitaph. Referring to a set of compositions known as his "Death Cycle," he wrote from hospice in a pre-performance statement, "One final time my subject is death, though in this event it is my own of which I write." The symphony has a duration of roughly 26 minutes and, unlike Rouse's previous symphonies, is cast in the standard four-movement form. The structure mirrors that of Gustav Mahler's Ninth Symphony, with two slow movements book-ending two faster movements in the middle. Despite occasional rhythmic references, however, Rouse did not quote any of Mahler's music, as he wanted to end his symphony "in a mood markedly different from [Mahler's]." The composer continued: Under the final bar of the symphony, where the composer would usually sign his scores "Deo gratias", he instead signed "Finis."