Aucoin – Eurydice (Morley, Hopkins, NY Met, Nézet-Séguin) 320kpbs .mp3)

Music by Matthew Aucoin, libretto by Sarah Ruhl, based on her play Eurydice.

Presented by Debra Lew Harder, in conversation with Ira Siff.

The ancient Greek myth of Orpheus, who attempts to harness the power of music to rescue his beloved Eurydice from the Underworld, has inspired composers since opera’s earliest days. Contemporary American composer Matthew Aucoin now carries that tradition into the 21st century with a new take on the story. With a libretto by Sarah Ruhl, adapted from her acclaimed 2003 play, the opera reimagines the familiar tale from Eurydice’s point of view.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts this New York Metropolitan Opera premiere production to launch the 2021-22 season of broadcasts from the Met. Soprano Erin Morley sings the title role, opposite baritone Joshua Hopkins as Orpheus and countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński as his otherworldly alter-ego. Bass-baritone Nathan Berg is Eurydice’s father and fellow resident of the underworld, with tenor Barry Banks as Hades himself.

Eurydice: Erin Morley, soprano
Orpheus: Joshua Hopkins, baritone
Orpheus’ otherworldly alter-ego: Jakub Józef Orliński, counter-tenor
Eurydice’s father: Nathan Berg, bass-baritone
Hades: Barry Banks, tenor
Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera House
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor

Highlights of the 2021-22 season of broadcasts from the New York Metropolitan Opera include Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up in My Bones - the first opera by an African American composer to be performed at the Met (8 January 2022), three Puccini favourites - Tosca (11 December 2021), La Boheme (29 January 2022) and Turandot (7 May 2022), Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov (19 February 2022), the French-language version of Verdi’s Don Carlos (26 March 2022) and Gershwin's Porgy and Bess (30 April 2022).

Image: © Marty Sohl / Met Opera

Broadcast: 4 December 2021 (BBC Radio 3)