American composer Christopher Rouse (b. 1949).
One of America's most prominent composers, with a body of work remarkable for its emotional intensity. It has won him a Pulitzer Prize (for the Trombone Concerto) and a Grammy Award (for Concert de Gaudí) as well as the election to the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2002. Graduated from Oberlin Conservatory and Cornell University, numbering among his principal teachers George Crumb and Karel Husa. Rouse maintained a steady interest in popular music: at the Eastman School of Music, where he was Professor of Composition until 2002, he taught a course in the history of rock for many years. Rouse is currently a member of the composition faculty at The Juilliard School. While the Rouse catalog includes a number of acclaimed chamber and ensemble works, he is best known for his mastery of orchestral writing.