Orpheus

Georg Philipp Telemann, Korneel Bernolet, Guy Joosten

‘Mythology goes on singing, like the decapitated head of Orpheus’ (Károly Kerényi). There is no other story that has inspired so many composers as the tragic story of Orpheus and Eurydice. Monteverdi, Gluck, Stravinsky, and others became enthralled by their unhappy predecessor and the challenge of writing music for him that would move even the gods. Another was the German baroque composer Georg Philipp Telemann, whose Orpheus was rediscovered in 1978. In this work, the well-known myth is supplemented by an original plot involving the jealous Queen Orasia, who is in love with Orpheus. Now, 250 years after Telemann’s death, the opera receives its Belgian premiere as a graduation project by the International Opera Academy. Guy Joosten, a familiar face at La Monnaie, directs a cast full of rising talent. Korneel Bernolet (2014 Musician of the Year) conducts his Apotheosis ensemble in a score that reveals the beguiling influence of Handel and Lully.