Thursday 17 May 2012

“Empress of Pleasure” New Production a Success

Actress, singer, dancer, courtesan, entrepreneur, opera impresario and mother of Casanova's daughter.

A new stage production from Holland is celebrating the life and times of the glittering, scandalous, high flying, 18th century London society lady Mrs Cornelys, a.k.a. “The Empress of Pleasure”. Featuring 18th century music and dance, the show was created by Dutch-based Australian conductor Simon Murphy together with American specialist Baroque ballerina Caroline Copeland.

Baroque dancer Caroline Copeland
as the "Empress of Pleasure"
(Photo: Fernando van Teijlingen)

Born Anna Maria Teresa Imer in Venice in 1723, Mrs Cornelys worked as an actress/dancer/singer at various courts in mainland Europe including Vienna and Bayreuth, lived for a time in the Netherlands, where she re-met Casanova and introduced him to his daughter (according to Casanova's diaries), before finally settling in London in the late 1750's.

In 1760's and 1770's London, Mrs Cornelys ran a sort of 18th century “Moulin Rouge” - Carlisle House, Soho Square – where she held her infamous, drink and drug fuelled “Masques”, also known as “Mrs Cornelys' Entertainments”. These night long events featured music, dancing, theatre, gambling and sexual intrigues, with each room of the house offering a different activity.

“Mrs Cornelys is a truly fascinating figure and an amazing 18th century woman” says conductor Simon Murphy. “Her London circle included such luminaries as composer/performers J.C. Bach, C.F. Abel and J.C. Fischer, the painter Gainsborough and the actor Garrick. She herself was a phenomenon - a whirlwind of vision and energy with a can-do attitude. Together with her colleagues, Mrs Cornelys laid the foundations for concept of the “classical music concert series” with her legendary Bach Abel concerts in London in the 1760's and 1770's. Her breathtaking “Masques” or Rave Parties would still shock today.”

Murphy and Copeland met at the Potsdam Musik-Festspiele in 2005, where Copeland was dancing in one of the festival's Baroque stage productions. Since then, the two have been putting the ideas together for this new production.

Murphy and Copeland's new show "Empress of Pleasure" takes its inspiration from the heady and highly sexually charged atmosphere of Mrs Cornelys' London “Masques”. In their production, the pair have decided to explore the kind of virtuosic theatre or stage dancing of during the period of Mrs Cornelys. “Mrs Cornelys was herself a highly theatrical figure. In order to portray her and her highly colourful character, it seemed right to utilise the more spectacular dance of the stage and theatre rather than of the ballroom” says Simon Murphy. For the production, Caroline Copeland created new choreographies based on the historical dance language of the mid to late 18th century. The music was selected by Simon Murphy after extensive research and workshopping with Caroline Copeland and the production's other musical soloists, oboist Amy Power and soprano Stefanie True. The show's costuming was designed by Caroline Copeland together with American costumer Joy Havens.

Baroque dancer Caroline Copeland
as Diana in the "Empress of Pleasure"
(Photo: Fernando van Teijlingen)

“Working with Caroline on this project was wonderfully exciting and inspiring” says Murphy. “Caroline has created such a nice feel of the persona of Mrs Cornelys - as the Empress of Pleasure herself - morphing her during the course of the show into other strong female characters such as Venus and Diana. You really feel like you are at one of Mrs Cornelys' Masques watching a star 18th century ballerina perform a very virtuosic, intimate and sensual solo – mysterious, very here-and-now, and yet also timeless. Caroline's choreographies use the 18th century dance language so beautifully, creatively and expressively, and the way she dances them is breathtaking – such virtuosity, poise, elegance and eloquence.”

The production features music by Mrs Cornelys' close musical colleagues, J.C. Bach, C.F. Abel and J.C. Fischer with other music by W. Boyce and K. Ditters von Dittersdorf.

The production was premièred by conductor Simon Murphy, Baroque ballerina Caroline Copeland and The Hague's Baroque Orchestra, The New Dutch Academy, in The Hague's Philipszaal in February 2012.

Watch videos from the production


About Simon Murphy and The New Dutch Academy

Simon Murphy (Sydney, 1973) is chief-conductor of The Hague's Baroque Orchestra, The New Dutch Academy (NDA). He has won much recognition for his work as a “repertoire refresher”, presenting fresh perspectives on established masterworks and by introducing newly rediscovered musical gems to modern audiences:

“Murphy is a musician with “guts”: a conductor with the passion and conviction of a born missionary. He serves his music up to his audience con spirito and presto energico.”
De Volkskrant, The Netherlands

“The repertoire-refresher, conductor Simon Murphy radiates joie de vivre. His interpretation distinguishes itself by its enthusiasm. 5 stars!” Diapason, France

“Breathtaking. Compelling, technically brilliant and unusually effervescent!
Murphy has it all - verve and pulsating temperament - presented with the finest finesse.”
Concerto, Germany

Read more about Simon Murphy and his projects on www.simonmurphyconductor.com

“The Dutch Haydn” Murphy's world première Schmitt Symphonies recording chosen as part of PentaTone's 10 year anniversary 10 CD box set

Dutch-based Australian conductor Simon Murphy's world première SA-CD recording of the early symphonies of “The Dutch Haydn”, Joseph Schmitt, has been chosen to be featured as part of the 10 year anniversary 10 CD box set of Dutch label PentaTone Classics.

Conductor Simon Murphy has been with PentaTone since the beginnings of the label, with fellow PentaTone recording artists including Julia Fischer, Arabella Steinbacher, Edo de Waart, Lawrence Foster, Hans Vonk and Sir Colin Davis. During the past 10 years, Murphy has made substantial contributions to the label's catalogue, presenting a series of major new musical discoveries including world première recordings of symphonies by 18th century composers Schmitt, Graaf, Stamitz, Schwindl and Zappa.

“The Dutch Haydn”, Joseph Schmitt (1734 – 1791), first came to Murphy's attention in 1995 during a visit to the Amsterdam Historic Museum. Murphy saw composer/conductor Schmitt pictured in a canvas of the 1788 opening concert of the Amsterdam concert hall, the “Felix Meritis” (below), and was inspired to go on a search of his music.



Listen to Schmitt's Symphony in E flat "The Hurdy Gurdy" 

Originally a musical priest from Kloster Eberbach, Schmitt was a student of Carl Friedrich Abel (star Bach student and Mozart mentor) and came into early contact with the Mannheim masters. Schmitt moved to Amsterdam in the early 1770's where he became the singularly most important musical figure in the Netherlands in the second half of the 18th century, working there as a composer, conductor, music director, teacher, theorist and publisher. His music exhibits a wonderful vibrancy and cosmopolitanism. He displays, with an highly original voice, an immense knowledge of the diversity of the musical styles and languages of his day.

In 2006, some 10 years after first laying eyes on Schmitt, Murphy presented the composer's symphonic music to the world for the first time on disc (PentaTone SA-CD, PTC 5186 039). The recording of Schmitt's early symphonies was the result of 7 years of extensive international research by Murphy into the composer and his music. Murphy located the composer's works in archives and historic music collections in the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden.

The resulting CD production has been most enthusiastically received by the world's music press:

Le "Haydn hollandais": un compositeur tout en verve, que sert avec un entrain irrésistible la New Dutch Academy de Simon Murphy. (Le Soir - “Nos coups de coeur”)

Holländischer Haydn – Gleich einer frischen sommerlichen Brise aus Holland kommt diese Neuproduktion mit Werken der Joseph Schmitt daher ... Die unverbraucht spritzig klingende New Dutch Academy legt ein geradezu flammende Pläydoyer für diesen bislang unterschätzen Meister vor. ... Viele Effekt – etwa anrührende Pianissimi, auf die unmittelbar Fortissimo-Passagen, lassen den durchaus eigensinnigen Komponisten erkennen. Diese Bandbreite der musikalischen Ausdrucksmöglichkeiten fulminant darzustellen, ist der New Dutch Academy offensichtlich eine Freude. ... Packend, spieltechnisch brillant – und nicht zuletzt wieder mit einem besonderen Augenmerk auf der Ausgestaltung des Basses – führt die New Dutch Academy durch diesen bislang unbekannten Schaffenskosmos. Sehr zu empfehlen! (Concerto, Germany)

Simon Murphy (Sydney, 1973) is Chief Conductor of The Hague's Baroque Orchestra, the international award winning "The New Dutch Academy" (NDA). Recent performance highlights have included appearances at the Händel Festival Halle and Bachfest Leipzig, for the Zaterdagmatinee at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, and cycles of the symphonies of Stamitz, Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven for Dutch radio. In season 2011-2012, the Murphy and the NDA present well and lesser known 18th century masterpieces by Corelli, Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Cimarosa, Paisiello, Rossini and their contemporaries in the orchestra's symphonic, Baroque orchestral and chamber series at home in The Hague and around the Netherlands. Upcoming tours take the orchestra through eastern Europe and Asia.

2012-2013 sees Murphy and the NDA orchestra celebrate their 10 year anniversary together.

Listen to the CD

Watch Murphy and the NDA perform Schmitt's “Hurdy Gurdy” Symphony live in concert

Read more about Simon Murphy on www.simonmurphyconductor.com

Read Murphy's liner notes

Murphy's performing editions of the symphonies of Schmitt are available for hire via Albersen's music





Monday 14 May 2012

"Effervescent Bach!" Murphy's NNO appearance a success


Dutch-based Australian conductor Simon Murphy's recent guest-conducting appearance with the Noord Nederlands Orkest (NNO) has been most enthusiastically received. Press, orchestra and audience alike welcomed Murphy's fresh and personal approach to music making in the NNO's 2012 February programme of works by Bach and van Wassenaer. It was the first co-operation between Murphy and the orchestra.

“Effervescent Bach! … Guest conductor Simon Murphy doesn't only present the Baroque in a lively and captivating manner – he paces the musical development beautifully, letting the music breathe and rest along the way, whereby the listener's ears remain fresh and alert until the final chord.”
Dagblad van het Noorden

The NNO programme saw Murphy in action together with vocal soloist, Swiss soprano Julia Neumann. Devised by the NNO's artistic director Marcel Mandos, the programme featured Bach cantatas “Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen” and “Ich habe genug” together with the Brandenburg Concerto no. 1 in F.
More info: http://www.nno.nu/concerten/julia-neumann-zingt-bach

Simon Murphy (Sydney, 1973) is chief-conductor of The Hague's Baroque Orchestra, The New Dutch Academy (NDA). He has won much recognition for his work as a “repertoire refresher”, presenting fresh perspectives on established masterworks and by introducing newly rediscovered musical gems to modern audiences:

“Murphy is a musician with “guts”: a conductor with the passion and conviction of a born missionary. He serves his music up to his audience con spirito and presto energico.”
De Volkskrant, The Netherlands

“The repertoire-refresher, conductor Simon Murphy radiates joie de vivre. His interpretation distinguishes itself by its enthusiasm. 5 stars!”
Diapason, France

“Breathtaking. Compelling, technically brilliant and unusually effervescent! Murphy has it all - verve and pulsating temperament - presented with the finest finesse. A sensational interpretation!”
Concerto, Germany

“Murphy's music making is full of imagination, great love and unstoppable drive”
NRC Handelsblad, The Netherlands

“Murphy exhibits liveliness and groove, great dynamic profile and a beautiful use of timbre”
Frankfurter Neue Presse, Germany

Murphy's upcoming performances with the NDA include the opening of the orchestra's 10 year anniversary season in The Hague in October 2012 with the programme “Black Magic” featuring Mendelssohn's first piano concerto and arias and overtures by Spohr, von Weber, Mozart,  Rust and Lortzing.

Murphy's upcoming guest conducting engagements include a double bill with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra in Brisbane in May and June 2013 with music by Corelli, Handel, Stamitz, J.C. Bach, C.P.E. Bach, Abel and Reichardt. Handcrafted by Murphy, the two concert programmes “Roman Holiday” and “New Generation” will be broadcast live by Australia's ABC.

www.simonmurphyconductor.com