Mark-Anthony Turnage (born 10 June 1960) is an English

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

contemporary classical music Contemporary classical music is Western art music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st-century classical music, 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 Modernism (music), post-tonal music after the death of ...

Life and career

Mark-Anthony Turnage was born in Corringham, Essex on 10 June 1960. Turnage was the eldest of three children. His parents were lovers of classical music and were enthusiastic

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...

Christians. He began composing at age nine and at fourteen began studying at the junior section of the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music (RCM) is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including pe ...

. His initial musical studies were with Oliver Knussen, John Lambert, and later with

Gunther Schuller Gunther Alexander Schuller (November 22, 1925June 21, 2015) was an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, educator, publisher, and jazz musician. Biography and works Early years Schuller was born in Queens, New York City ...

. He also has been strongly influenced by

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

, in particular by the work of

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

, and has composed works featuring jazz performers, including

John Scofield John Scofield (born December 26, 1951) is an American guitarist and composer. His music over a long career has blended jazz, jazz fusion, funk, blues, soul and rock. He first came to mainstream attention as part of the band of Miles Davis; he ...

Peter Erskine Peter Clark Erskine (born June 5, 1954) is an American jazz drummer who was a member of the jazz fusion groups Weather Report and Steps Ahead. Early life and education Erskine was born in Somers Point, New Jersey, U.S. He began playing the d ...

John Patitucci John Patitucci (born December 22, 1959) is an American jazz bassist and composer. Biography John James Patitucci was born in Brooklyn, New York. He began playing the electric bass at age 10, performing and composing at age 12, and at age 15, s ...

, and Joe Lovano. Turnage has composed numerous

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

l and chamber works, and three full-length

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

s. ''

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

'', composed with the encouragement of

Hans Werner Henze Hans Werner Henze (1 July 1926 – 27 October 2012) was a German composer. His large List of compositions by Hans Werner Henze, oeuvre is extremely varied in style, having been influenced by serialism, atonality, Igor Stravinsky, Stravinsky, Mu ...

and first performed in 1988 at the Munich Biennale, is based on

Steven Berkoff Steven Berkoff (born Leslie Steven Berks; 3 August 1937) is an English actor, author, playwright, theatre practitioner and theatre director. As a theatre maker he is recognised for staging work with a heightened performance style known as "Be ...

's adaptation of ''

Oedipus Rex ''Oedipus Rex'', also known by its Greek title, ''Oedipus Tyrannus'' (, ), or ''Oedipus the King'', is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles. While some scholars have argued that the play was first performed , this is highly uncertain. Originally, to ...

''. '' The Silver Tassie'', first performed in 2000, is based on the play by Seán O'Casey. '' Anna Nicole'', with a libretto by Richard Thomas and first performed in 2011, relates the rise and fall of ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

'' model and media celebrity

Anna Nicole Smith Vickie Lynn Marshall (née Hogan; November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007), known professionally as Anna Nicole Smith, was an American model, actress, and television personality. Smith started her career as a ''Playboy'' magazine centerfold in M ...

. His opera for family audiences, ''

Coraline ''Coraline'' () is a 2002 British dark fantasy horror children's novella by author Neil Gaiman. Gaiman started writing ''Coraline'' in 1990, and it was published in 2002 by Bloomsbury and HarperCollins. It was awarded the 2003 Hugo Award for ...

'', is based on the dark fantasy novel by

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon Gaiman (; born Neil Richard Gaiman; 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, audio theatre, and screenplays. His works include the comic series ''The Sandman (comic book), The Sandma ...

, and was staged by The Royal Opera at the Barbican Theatre in 2018. His operas have been performed around the world including notably by

New York City Opera The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through its 2013 bankruptcy, and again since 2016 when it was revived. The opera company, dubbed "the peopl ...

(2013), Opernhaus Zurich (2019),

Theater Dortmund Theater Dortmund is a theatrical organization that produces operas, Musical theatre, musicals, ballets, plays, and concerts in Dortmund, Germany. It was founded as the Stadttheater Dortmund in 1904. Supported by the German Government, the organiz ...

(2013), Theater Freiburg (2018) and the Opera de Lille (2018). Other works include ''Three Screaming Popes'' (after the paintings by

Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626) was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England under King James I. Bacon argued for the importance of nat ...

), '' Your Rockaby'' (a

concerto A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The ...

for

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

and orchestra), ''Yet Another Set To'' (a concerto for trombone and orchestra, dedicated to Christian Lindberg), and ''From the Wreckage'' (a concerto for trumpet and orchestra, written for Håkan Hardenberger). '' Blood on the Floor '' (1993–1996), for jazz quartet and large ensemble, contains nine sections with a shared theme of drug addiction, the section titled "Elegy for Andy" being a lament for the loss of his brother in a drug-related death. More recent Turnage scores have included the orchestral work ''Remembering'', conducted by Simon Rattle in 2017 with the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

and Berlin Philharmonic; double violin concerto ''Shadow Walker'' for soloists Vadim Repin and Daniel Hope, performed by the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra in 2018; and ''Testament'' (2018), his setting of Ukrainian texts for soprano and orchestra. He has composed song cycles for a number of celebrated singers including Sarah Connolly, Gerald Finley and Allan Clayton. Turnage's work ''Blood on the Floor'' was choreographed by Wayne McGregor for Paris Opera Ballet in 2011 and in the same year he composed the score for Undance, collaborating with McGregor and visual artist

Mark Wallinger Mark Wallinger (born 25 May 1959) is an English artist. Having previously been nominated for the Turner Prize in 1995, he won in 2007 for his installation '' State Britain''. His work ''Ecce Homo'' (1999–2000) was the first piece to occupy th ...

. In 2012 ''Trespass'', a ballet choreographed by

Christopher Wheeldon Christopher Peter Wheeldon (born 22 March 1973) is an English international choreographer of contemporary ballet. Early life Born in Yeovil, Somerset, to an engineer and a physical therapist, Wheeldon began training to be a ballet dancer at th ...

and Alistair Marriott with score by Turnage, was first performed by

The Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded ...

. In 2017 he composed the score for Strapless, choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon for The Royal Ballet. Other choreographers that have made ballets to Turnage's works include Heinz Spoerli (Zurich Ballet 2007 and Staatsballet Berlin 2012), Ashley Page (Rambert Dance Company 2013),

Jorma Elo Jorma Elo is a contemporary choreographer. Early life He was born 30 August 1961 in Helsinki, Finland. His father, Jaakko Elo, is a urological surgeon, mother Ruth Elo née Carlstedt, a dentist. Jorma Elo's partner since 1994 is Nancy Euveri ...

(Hubbard Street Dance Chicago 2007) and Gregor Zollig (Tanztheater Bielefeld 2006). Turnage was the first Radcliffe Composer in Association with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra from 1989 until 1993 and between 2000 and 2003 was the

BBC Symphony Orchestra The BBC Symphony Orchestra (BBC SO) is a British orchestra based in London. Founded in 1930, it was the first permanent salaried orchestra in London, and is the only one of the city's five major symphony orchestras not to be self-governing. The ...

's first Associate Composer. He was Composer in Residence with the

London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is a British orchestra based in London. One of five permanent symphony orchestras in London, the LPO was founded by the conductors Thomas Beecham, Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a riv ...

from 2005 until 2010. Between 2006 and 2010, Turnage was a co-composer-in-residence of the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891, the ensemble has been based in the Symphony Center since 1904 and plays a summer season at the Ravinia F ...

, a position he held alongside Argentinian

Osvaldo Golijov. In autumn 2005 he was appointed the Royal College of Music's Research Fellow in Composition. In 2015 he was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) for his services to music.

Personal life

His partner is the director Rachael Hewer, who founded the Virtual Opera Project (VOPERA) in 2020. In January 2025 Turnage was the castaway for BBC Radio 4's ''

Desert Island Discs ''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942. Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight audio recordin ...

'', where his choices included "Notre Dame des Jouets" by Oliver Knussen, " Blue in Green" by

and " Living for the City" by

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

. In the same programme he spoke about volunteering regularly at a food bank, and about working on music projects with prisoners.

Works

Opera

Ballet

* ''From All Sides'' (2005–06) * ''L'Anatomie De La Sensation'' (2011) * ''Undance'' (2011) * ''Trespass'' (2012) * ''Strapless'' (2016 revised 2017)

Orchestral

* '' Night Dances'' (1981), for offstage string quintet, solo instrumental group and orchestra * ''Three Screaming Popes'' (1988–89) * ''Some Days'' (1989),

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

for mezzo-soprano and orchestra * ''Momentum'' (1990–1991) * ''Drowned Out'' (1992–1993) * '' Your Rockaby'' (1992–93), for soprano saxophone and orchestra * '' Dispelling the Fears'' (1993–1994, rev. 1995), for two trumpets and orchestra * ''Scorched'' (1996–2001), for jazz trio and orchestra * ''Still Sleeping'' (1997) * ''Evening Songs'' (1998) * ''Silent Cities'' (1998) * ''About Time'' (1999–2000), for ensemble and chamber orchestra of period instruments * ''Another Set To'' (1999–2000),

for trombone and orchestra * ''A Quick Blast'' (2000), for orchestral winds, brass and percussion * ''Dark Crossing'' (2000), for chamber orchestra * ''Etudes and Elegies'' (2000–2002) * ''Four-Horned Fandango'' (2000), for four horns and orchestra * ''On Opened Ground'' (2000–2001), concerto for viola and orchestra * ''Uninterrupted Sorrow'' (2000–2001) * ''Fractured Lines'' (2001), double concerto for two percussion and orchestra * ''When I Woke'' (2001), for baritone and chamber orchestra * ''A Quiet Life'' (2002), for string orchestra * ''A Man Descending'' (2003), for tenor saxophone and chamber orchestra * ''Riffs and Refrains'' (2003), concerto for clarinet and orchestra * ''Scherzoid'' (2003–04) * ''A Soothing Interlude'' (2004), for trombone and orchestra * ''From the Wreckage'' (2004), concerto for trumpet and orchestra * ''Yet Another Set To'' (2004), concerto for trombone and orchestra * ''Ceres'' (2005) * ''Hidden Love Song'' (2005), for soprano saxophone and chamber orchestra * ''Juno'' (2005) * ''Lullaby for Hans'' (2005), for string orchestra * ''Three Asteroids'' (2005) * ''The Torino Scale'' (2005) * ''From All Sides'' (2005–06) * ''A Prayer Out of Stillness'' (2007), concertante for double bass (doubling

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

) and string orchestra * ''Chicago Remains'' (2007) * ''Five Views of a Mouth'' (2007), concerto for flute and orchestra * ''Mambo, Blues and Tarantella'' (2007), concerto for violin and orchestra * ''Texan Tenebrae'' (2009) * ''Hammered Out'' (2010) * ''Cello Concerto'' (2010) * ''Speranza'' (2011–12) * ''Canon Fever'' (2012), premiered at the opening night of the 2012

BBC Proms The BBC Proms is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in central London. Robert Newman founded The Proms in 1895. Since 1927, the ...

. * ''Frieze'' (2013) BBC co-commission with the Royal Philharmonic Society and the New York Philharmonic * ''Erskine'' (2013), concerto for drum set and orchestra * ''Passchendaele'' (2013) * ''Piano Concerto'' (2013) * ''Dialogue'' (2014), for violin and cello soloists, strings, percussion, harp and piano * ''Håkan'' (2014), for trumpet and orchestra * ''Martland Memorial'' (2014–15), for percussion and orchestra * ''Remembering'' (2016), for orchestra * ''Shadow Walker'' (2017), double concerto for two violins and orchestra * ''Symphonic Movements'' (2017), for orchestra * ''Towards Alba'' (2017–18), for horn and orchestra * ''Time Flies'' (2019), for orchestra * ''Go For It'' (2019), for orchestra * ''Last Song for Olly'' (reduced version) (2018 arr.2020), reduced version for orchestra * ''Up for Grabs'' (2020), for jazz trio and orchestra * ''Cortege for Bernard Haitink'' (2021), for orchestra

Choral

* ''The Game Is Over'' (2001–2002), for S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra * ''A Relic of Memory'' (2003), for S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra * ''Calmo'' (2003), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir and bells * ''Two Fanfares and a Lament'' (2003), for S.A.T.B. choir and large ensemble * ''Christmas Night'' (2006), for S.A.T.B. choir and piano * ''Claremont Carol'' (2006), for upper-voice choir and piano or organ * ''Miserere Nobis'' (2006), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir * ''At Sixes and Sevens'' (2012), for soprano and baritone soloists, youth chorus and chamber orchestra * ''Hibiki'' (2014), for two solo voices, children's chorus and orchestra (world premiere: Tokyo, 11 December 2016; European premiere: London, BBC Proms, 14 August 2017) * ''Sing Out Loud'' (2017), two Welsh part songs for a cappella male chorus

Chamber

* ''On All Fours'' (1985), for chamber ensemble * ''Sarabande'' (1986), for soprano saxophone and piano * ''Release'' (1987), for soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, bass clarinet, trumpet, trombone, percussion, piano and double bass * ''Kai'' (1989–1990), for cello solo and ensemble * ''Three Farewells'' (1989–1990), for flute, bass clarinet, harp and string quartet * ''Set To'' (1992–1993), for brass dectet * ''This Silence'' (1992–1993), for clarinet, bassoon, horn and string quintet * '' Blood on the Floor'' (1993–1996), for jazz quartet and large ensemble * ''Barrie's Deviant Fantasy'' (1995), for string quartet and referee's whistles * ''Bass Invention'' (1999–2000), for double bass solo and ensemble * ''Cantilena'' (2001), for oboe quintet * ''Snapshots'' (2002), for large ensemble * ''Crying Out Loud'' (2003), for large ensemble * ''A Short Procession'' (2003), for piano trio * ''Eulogy'' (2003), for viola solo and small ensemble * ''No Let Up'' (2003), for ensemble * ''Three Trios'' (2003–05), for piano trio * ''Carnac'' (2004), for B♭ Clarinet and piano * ''A Few Serenades'' (2004), for cello and piano * ''A Slow Pavane'' (2004–2005), for piano trio * ''A Fast Stomp'' (2005), for piano trio * ''Bleak Moments'' (2005), for horn and string quartet * ''Fanfare (from all sides)'' (2006), for brass ensemble * ''Returning'' (2006), for string sextet * ''Tango'' (2007), for ensemble * ''Out of Black Dust'' (2007–08), for brass ensemble * ''Four Chants'' (2008), for violin and piano * ''Twisted Blues with Twisted Ballad'' (2008) (aka String Quartet No 1) * ''Grazioso!'' (2009), for small ensemble * ''Five Processionals'' (2009), for clarinet, violin, cello and piano * ''Hilary's Hoedown'' (2009) encore for violin and piano * ''GG'' (2010), for cello and percussion * ''Three for Two'' (2010), for piano quartet * ''Amelia's March'' (2010), for small ensemble * ''Silem'' (2010), for solo trumpet and big band * ''Undance'' (2011), for ensemble * ''Johnston'' (2011), for two cellos * ''Falling Apart'' (2012), for clarinet and piano * ''Contusion'' (2013) (aka String Quartet No 2) * ''Run Riot'' (2013), for saxophone quartet * ''Power Play'' (2014), for viola and piano * ''Maya'' (2014), for solo cello and chamber orchestra * ''Duetti d'Amore'' (2015), for violin and cello * ''Shroud'' (2016) (aka String Quartet No 3) * ''Seven Pint-Sized Pieces'' (2016), for violin and piano * ''Prussian Blue'' (2016), Quintet for piano, violin, viola, cello and double bass * ''Cleethorpes Chorale'' (2017), for solo violin and piano * ''Massarosa'' (2018), for bassoon quintet * ''Nocturne'' (2018), for trumpet and strings * ''Romanian Rhapsody'' (2018), for solo violin and ensemble * ''Lament'' (2018–19), for solo violin and string orchestra * ''A Furious Fanfare'' (2019), for trumpet, horn, trombone and percussion * ''Winter's Edge'' (2019) (aka String Quartet No 4) * ''Chorale'' (2020), for flute, bass clarinet, viola and cello * ''Split Apart'' (2020), for string quartet * ''Uli'' (2021), for eight players

Vocal

* ''Lament for a Hanging Man'' (1983), for soprano and ensemble * ''Some Days'' (1989),

for mezzo-soprano and orchestra * ''Greek Suite'' (1989), for mezzo-soprano, tenor soli and ensemble * ''The Torn Fields'' (2000–2002), song cycle for baritone and large ensemble * ''When I Woke'' (2001), song cycle for baritone and orchestra * ''Two Baudelaire Songs'' (2003–04), for soprano and ensemble * ''About Water'' (2006), for solo jazz singer; soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, bass soli; solo instrumental septet and large ensemble * ''A Constant Obsession'' (2007), song cycle for tenor and ensemble * ''Bellamy'' (2008), for

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a ...

and singing harpist * ''In The Bleak Mid-Winter'' (arr. 2010) arranged for voice, harp, cello and double bass * ''Testament'' (2017), cantata for solo soprano and orchestra * ''Refugee'' (2018), for tenor and chamber orchestra * ''Black Milk'' (2019), for jazz singer and sixteen players * ''Owl Songs'' (2019), for soprano and eight players * ''Without Ceremony'' (2019), for baritone and piano * ''Of Nature's Light'' (2020), song cycle for mezzo-soprano and piano * ''Silenced'' (2020), for tenor and piano * ''Songs of Sleep and Regret'' (2020), for mezzo-soprano and piano

Solo instrumental

* ''True Life Stories'' (1995–1999), for piano * ''An Aria (with Dancing)'' (2004), for trumpet * ''Ah, Quegli Occhi!'' (2006), for soprano saxophone * ''Air with Variations'' (2007), for guitar * ''Cradle Song'' (2009), for clarinet * ''Milo'' (2009), for cello * ''Leap'' (2010), for clarinet * ''Four Meditations'' (2018), for harp * ''On Marylebone Road'' (2019) for piano

Other

* ''Anthem'' by

, ed. Turnage (1996), for jazz trio and chamber orchestra * On the CD ''Music to Hear'' (Black Box, BBM 1065, 2001): ** ''Two Memorials'' (1997–2001) ** ''An Invention on "Solitude"'' (1997–98, rev. 1999) ** ''Sleep On'' (1992) ** ''Cortège for Chris'' (1997) ** ''Two Elegies Framing a Shout'' (1994) ** ''Three Farewells'' (1990) ** ''Tune for Toru'' (1995–1999)

References

External links

Mark-Anthony Turnage
at Boosey & Hawkes (publisher) *
Mark-Anthony Turnage
introduction to his music, by Anthony Burton
Mark-Anthony Turnage
at Schott Music Ltd.
Mark-Anthony Turnage
biography on CDMC {{DEFAULTSORT:Turnage, Mark-Anthony 1960 births Living people 20th-century English classical composers 20th-century English male musicians 21st-century English classical composers 21st-century English male musicians British ballet composers English opera composers English male opera composers Academics of the Royal College of Music Deutsche Grammophon artists Commanders of the Order of the British Empire People from Corringham, Essex