Mark-Anthony Turnage

English composer Mark-Anthony Turnage was born on 10 June 1960 at Corringham in Essex, and studied with Oliver Knussen, John Lambert and Gunther Schuller. His music is influenced by jazz and popular music, including Miles Davis, Duke Ellington and TV theme tunes from the period in which he was growing up in the 1970s.

Works include Three Screaming Popes (based on the paintings by Francis Bacon) and the operas Greek, The Silver Tassie and Anna Nicole.

He has worked with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, English National Opera, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra., and has recordings on the Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, EMI, Chandos, LPO, Black Box and Onyx labels.

A selection of articles about Mark-Anthony Turnage

Classical music news. March 2025 Newsletter - 'Transformation', our March 2025 PDF newsletter, has just been published

Ensemble. Nothing Short of a Masterpiece - Frances Forbes-Carbines finds Mark-Anthony Turnage's opera 'Festen' far from easy viewing

Ensemble. Powerfully Expressive - Mike Wheeler listens to saxophonist Anthony Brown

Mixed Reviews - Gregory Moomjy discusses docu-opera, bad language, taboo subjects and negative reviews in the context of Mark-Anthony Turnage's 'Anna Nicole'

Ensemble. Forever Ingrained - Gregory Moomjy pays tribute to New York City Opera

Ensemble. Dark Lyricism - Mark-Anthony Turnage's 'Greek' at the Buxton Festival, heard by Mike Wheeler

DVD Spotlight. Outrageously Flamboyant - Christian Lindberg as trombonist, composer and conductor, recommended by Ron Bierman. '... an extraordinary character ...'

DVD Spotlight. Not for Everyone - A collaboration between Turnage and Scofield, reviewed by Ron Bierman. '... well executed ...'

Ensemble. A Riotous Production - Mark Anthony Turnage's 'Anna Nicole', reviewed by Robert Hugill

CD Spotlight. Cuts and Dissolves - Music by Turnage, Rihm and Benjamin, reviewed by Carson Cooman. '... a well-planned listening experience ...'

Writing new opera - A composer's perspective, by Robert Hugill