''The Corridor'' is a chamber opera composed by

Harrison Birtwistle Sir Harrison Birtwistle (15 July 1934 – 18 April 2022) was an English composer of contemporary classical music best known for his operas, often based on mythological subjects. Among his many compositions, his better known works include '' T ...

to an English language libretto by

David Harsent David Harsent (born in Devon) is an English poet who for some time earned his living as a TV scriptwriter and crime novelist. Background During his early career he was part of a circle of poets centred on Ian Hamilton and forming something of a ...

. It premiered at the

Aldeburgh Festival The Aldeburgh Festival of Music and the Arts is an English arts festival devoted mainly to classical music. It takes place each June in the Aldeburgh area of Suffolk, centred on Snape Maltings Concert Hall. History of the Aldeburgh Festival Th ...

on 12 June 2009. The title refers to the corridor through which

Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with J ...

and

Eurydice Eurydice (; Ancient Greek: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice') was a character in Greek mythology and the Auloniad wife of Orpheus, who tried to bring her back from the dead with his enchanting music. Etymology Several meanings for the name ...

passed as he was leading her from the

underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underwor ...

Background and performance history

Various aspects of the myth of Orpheus have been a recurring theme in Birtwistle's work, first explored in his three-act opera ''

The Mask of Orpheus ''The Mask of Orpheus'' is an opera with music by Harrison Birtwistle, electronic music realised by Barry Anderson and a libretto by Peter Zinovieff. It was premiered in London at the English National Opera on 21 May 1986 to great critical acclaim ...

'' (1986) and later incorporated into his two-act opera '' The Second Mrs Kong'' (1994). Between 2003 and 2004, he also composed ''The Orpheus Elegies'', a 26 part

song cycle A song cycle (german: Liederkreis or Liederzyklus) is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice ...

for countertenor, oboe and harp based on Rilke's ''

Sonnets to Orpheus The ''Sonnets to Orpheus'' (german: Die Sonette an Orpheus) are a cycle of 55 sonnets written in 1922 by the Bohemian- Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926). It was first published the following year. Rilke, who is "widely recognized ...

''. ''The Corridor'' focuses entirely on the moment in which Orpheus looks back at Eurydice, thus forcing her to return to the underworld forever. The opera's librettist, David Harsent, considers this one of the most brutal events in mythology:

It might not have the direct physical brutality of the death of Acteon or the flaying of Marsyas, but the combination of folly and irreversibility make for something deeper than poignancy and more visceral than regret.

''Corridor'' was Harsent's third libretto for Birtwistle. The first two, ''

Gawain Gawain (), also known in many other forms and spellings, is a character in Arthurian legend, in which he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table. The prototype of Gawain is mentioned under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest ...

'' (1991) and '' The Minotaur'' (2008), premiered at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Ope ...

in London. The world premiere of ''The Corridor'' on 12 June 2009 inaugurated the new Benjamin Britten Studio at Aldeburgh and was paired with the premiere of ''Semper Dowland, semper dolens'', Birtwistle's setting of

John Dowland John Dowland (c. 1563 – buried 20 February 1626) was an English Renaissance composer, lutenist, and singer. He is best known today for his melancholy songs such as "Come, heavy sleep", " Come again", "Flow my tears", " I saw my Lady weepe", ...

's '' Lachrimæ, or Seaven Teares''. Both works were commissioned by the Aldeburgh Festival and the Southbank Centre. The premiere production was directed by Peter Gill with

Ryan Wigglesworth Ryan Wigglesworth (born 31 August 1979, Yorkshire) is a British composer, conductor and pianist. Biography Wigglesworth read music at Oxford University, where he held the position of Organ Scholar at New College, and continued his music studies ...

conducting the

London Sinfonietta The London Sinfonietta is an English contemporary chamber orchestra founded in 1968 and based in London. The ensemble has headquarters at Kings Place and is Resident Orchestra at the Southbank Centre. Since its inaugural concert in 1968—givi ...

. Elizabeth Atherton sang the role of Woman (Eurydice);

Mark Padmore Mark Padmore (born 8 March 1961) is a British tenor appearing in concerts, recitals, and opera. He was born in London on 8 March 1961, and raised in Canterbury, Kent, England. Padmore studied clarinet and piano prior to his gaining a choral ...

was Man (Orpheus). Christiansen, Rupert (15 June 2009)
"Birtwistle Premiere at the Aldeburgh Festival - review"
'' Daily Telegraph''. Retrieved 5 February 2013. The following month, the production and original cast toured to the Queen Elizabeth Hall for the work's London premiere and to the

Bregenz Festival Bregenzer Festspiele (; Bregenz Festival) is a performing arts festival which is held every July and August in Bregenz in Vorarlberg (Austria). It features a large floating stage which is situated on Lake Constance. History The Festival becam ...

for its Austrian premiere. ''The Corridor'' was also performed in 2010 in a concert version at

Merkin Hall Merkin Hall is a 449-seat concert hall in Manhattan, New York City. The hall, named in honor of Hermann and Ursula Merkin, is part of the Kaufman Music Center, a complex that includes the Lucy Moses School, a community arts school, and the Speci ...

in New York City with Brad Lubman conducting the contemporary music ensemble, Signal. On that occasion, the opera was paired with the premiere of

Nico Muhly Nico Asher Muhly (; born August 26, 1981) is an American contemporary classical music composer and arranger who has worked and recorded with both classical and pop musicians. A prolific composer, he has composed for many notable symphony orchestras ...

's setting of the '' Stabat Mater''. Kozinn, Allan (28 May 2010)
"Eurydice and Mary, at the Height of Sorrow"
''

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 ...

''. Retrieved 5 February 2013

Synopsis

In a long corridor, Orpheus leads Eurydice out of the underworld. Hades had made a condition on Eurydice returning to life that Orpheus not look at her while leading her out. The opera opens just as Orpheus is about to reach the end of the corridor. He turns around to make sure Eurydice is still there, thus condemning her to remain in the underworld forever. In a series of arias, the couple sing to each other as Eurydice retreats down the corridor back to the underworld, leaving Orpheus to return to the world alone. The members of the orchestra are on stage with the singers and serve as the Shades (spirits of the dead). At times, they are directly addressed by the singers.Walker, Lynne (16 June 2009)
"''The Corridor'', Aldeburgh Festival, Aldeburgh"
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

''. Retrieved 5 February 2013.

Scoring

The 48 minute work is scored for two singers ( soprano and

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

) and an orchestral ensemble of flute, clarinet, harp, violin, viola, and cello. Boosey & Hawkes
Birtwistle, Harrison: ''The Corridor'' (2008)
Retrieved 5 February 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Corridor, The Operas English-language operas 2009 operas Operas about Orpheus Operas by Harrison Birtwistle Operas set in fictional, mythological and folkloric settings Chamber operas