With Iphigénie, Gluck took his operatic reform to its logical conclusion. The recitatives are shorter and they are récitatif accompagné (i.e. the strings and perhaps other instruments are playing, not just continuo accompaniment). The normal dance movements that one finds in the French tragédie en musique are almost entirely absent. The drama is ultimately based on the play Iphigenia in Tauris by the ancient Greek dramatist Euripides which deals with stories concerning the family of Agamemnon in the aftermath of the Trojan War.
Original Name | Iphigénie en Tauride |
Librettist | Nicolas-François Guillard |
Date of composition | 1779 |
Premiered | 1779, May 18th (Salle du Palais-Royal) in Paris, France |
Type | Opera |
Catalogue | Wq. 46 |
Spoken language | French |
Instruments |
Chorus/Choir
Orchestra Voice (Soprano) - Iphigénie (Iphigenia), Priestess of Diana Voice (Baritone) - Oreste (Orestes), her brother Voice (Tenor) - Pylade (Pylades), his friend Voice (Bass) - Thoas, King of Scythia Voice (Soprano) - Diane (Diana) |
Arrangements |
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Christoph Willibald Gluck: Iphegenie auf Tauris
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Autotranslations beta |
Christoph Willibald Gluck: Iphigenia in Tauris, Wq. 46 Christoph Willibald Gluck: Iphigenia in Tauris, Wq. 46 Christoph Willibald Gluck: Iphigenia in Tauris, Wq. 46 |