The Opera Reformer
Christoph Willibald
Gluck
When?
July 2 1714
November 15 1787, age 73
Where?
Erasbach, Bavaria (now Germany)
Gluck was a
Classical
composer.
Gluck was frustrated by the opera he heard. All the singers wanted to do was sing high notes and show off! Sometimes they stretched out a word so long, the audience couldn’t even understand what they were saying.
Gluck believed the music should serve the story, not just show off the singer. He changed opera forever by writing music helps tell the story instead of showing off the singer.
In his opera Orfeo and Euridice, when Orfeo sings, the audience could finally understand the words and feel the sadness, hope, and love in the story.
And that’s how Gluck changed opera forever!
Fun Facts
Both Maestros
Don’t Look Back!
Gluck’s opera Orfeo and Euridice is based on a Greek story about Orpheus’s journey to the underworld to rescue his wife, Eurydice. Orfeo is told he can bring his wife back to earth if he promises to not turn around and look at her. Guess what he decides to do?
Both Maestros
Shh! I’m practicing!
Gluck came from a family with no musical background. As a child, he secretly taught himself to play instruments and later left home to study music properly.
Both Maestros
Musical Feud
In Paris, music lovers were split between Gluck and composer, Piccinni. Some people thought Gluck’s music was too intense and dramatic, while others said Piccinni was too slight and shallow.Fans wrote angry letters to the newspaper supporting one or the other composer.
