La Descente d’Orphée aux Enfers is in just two acts, which is rather uncommon for operas of the time. Some scholars suggest that a third and final act may have been lost, or never composed at all, while others consider it to be complete, as its length is equivalent to several other Charpentier theatrical works. The title indicates that this opera is not a complete retelling of the legend, but rather it focuses on Orphée’s arrival in the Underworld in search of Euridice, and the winning of his quest for permission to return with her. Thus the libretto has a mostly positive ending, with no explicit indication of the legend’s tragic conclusion.

Several years after this work’s premiére, at an unspecified occasion but featuring all of his household musicians, Charpentier codified a system of keys and their moods, which clearly relates to La Descente. The opening Nymphs scene is in A major (rustic and joyous), leading to the sudden death of Euridice and poignant lament of her friends in A minor (tender and plaintive). Orphée’s father, Apollo appears to comfort and exhort him to action in Scene 3, which is in C major (cheerful and warlike), but the chorus of desperate Nymphs and Shepherds concludes Act 1 in A minor.  Act 2 starts in F major (furious and outburst), where we meet the trio of tortured spirits in Scene 1 and the Furies in Scene 2. The following scene, largely in D minor (grave and devout), is where Orphée approaches Pluton, God of the Underworld, and his consort Prosperine. After three iterations of Orphée’s extended song, his music lightens up to G major (gently happy). This more animated style is taken up by Pluton in D major (cheerful and very warlike), the key of the concluding Scene 4. Charpentier’s succession of keys and their associated moods shows how carefully he paces and colours the dramatic narrative.

Seventeenth-century audience members would have been trained in dance as a normal accomplishment of persons of high society. It was also a pre-requisite for one’s attendance at the court of Louis XIV, himself a skilled dancer from his early years. There are many examples of baroque dance forms within La Descente. The opening scene has airs and choruses in the style of a Gavotte or a Minuet, while one of the instrumental interludes is a Bourrée. Throughout the work there are many sections in a medium tempo triple meter, suggesting a Sarabande, and this dance type is explicitly indicated in the final chorus and instrumental section. Our director Lois Redman has incorporated some of the traditional choreography of these formal dances into our production, but with clear links to the narrative.

Like many works by Charpentier, the original performers are named in his manuscript score, so we have a rare example of a complete opera cast list. Six of the singers were in their early twenties including most of the women, some of whom held the title of ‘chambermaid and musician in ordinary’, that is a full-time position. Three others were in their early thirties including two of the men, while only Charpentier was in his forties, having joined the household in about 1670. Although his voice type would have suited the title role, the singer cast as Orphée was François Anthoine, while Charpentier took the other haute-contre role of Ixion. Even some of the instrumentalists’ names are indicated in the score, which comprised two violins which double or alternate with flutes / recorders, two violas da gambas which accompany Orphée during Act 2, and a continuo group for which we are using harpsichord, cello and lute.

This production is an important landmark for early music in Brisbane. Although we cannot claim it as an Australian premiére – the opera was performed in Melbourne in 2016 – it is definitely a first local performance. For Peter Roennfeldt this is his third staged production of a Charpentier chamber opera, having presented performances of both Les Plaisirs de Versailles and Les Arts Florissants during the 1990s and early 2000s with his ensemble Cantilena Singers and Queensland Conservatorium student ensembles. A major advantage of these works is their modest scale, both in length and orchestration, which makes them highly accessible both for performers and audiences. We look forward to the day when circumstances might permit a production of the larger operas by Charpentier, particularly David et Jonathas and Medée, both of which have been already been performed in Sydney by Pinchgut Opera.

- Lois Redman
‍ ‍Director, The Descent of Orpheus