Gluck, Christoph Willibald. (1714–1787). Ouverture d'Iphigenie / Ariettes et airs e danse du même Opera / Arranges Pour le clavecin ou le Forté Piano... Par M.r Edelmann 1er recueil. Paris: Mme. Lemarchand. [ca. 1775]. First Edition or Titelauflage.
Piano reduction of the overture and the musical numbers of the first half (?) of the opera Iphigénie en Aulide. Disbound oblong folio. No PN. Title; (publisher's catalogue); 1 - 25 pp. Engraved. Printed on high-quality, wide-margined paper with a greenish hue. 9.25 x 13 inches (23.6 x 33 cm). First few pages somewhat foxed; else in fine condition. RISM A/I/3 and A/I/12 G 2757. BUC p.386.
The music is printed from the same plates as the copy at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris (accessible at IMSLP), but the title page of the latter is different in style and also gives a different publisher (Des Lauriers). The price is the same, which makes it difficult to decide which issue is earlier, but the very clear appearance of the pages of the present copy suggests that it was printed from new plates, in which case it would be the first edition of this arrangement.
It is notable that the edition does not mention the composer, only the arranger (Jean-Frédéric Edelmann), and Gluck's adopted daughter, to whom the arrangement is dedicated. Apparently there was no need to mention the composer because everybody knew. The opera was first performed in Paris on April 19, 1774.
Iphigénie en Aulide (Iphigeneia in Aulis) is an opera in three acts, the first work Gluck wrote for the Paris stage. The libretto was written by François-Louis Gand Le Bland Du Roullet and was based on Jean Racine's tragedy Iphigénie, itself based on the play Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides. It was premiered on 19 April 1774 by the Paris Opéra in the second Salle du Palais-Royal and revived in a slightly revised version the following year.
