Dances to Gluck

Isadora Duncan held a great admiration for the music of Christoph Willibald von Gluck. She used the dance (often in Act 2) and vocal music sections of his operas, Orpheus and Eurydice, Iphigenia en Aulide, Iphigenia en Tauride, Armide and Don Juan from as early as 1903.

Isadora, as Gluck, held a firm and full belief in music, poetry, and dance being combined as one on the simplest of stages – no sets, just the music/the dance/the meaning.

Note: Gluck often re-used his themes and melodies from one opera and inserted them into others. Gluck made changes to his existing repertoire and constructed new versions of his music when it was being performed in different locations. This sometimes creates confusion and adds a challenge to those searching for exact musical information.

Repertory List