Chopin — Etude in A flat major, Op. 25, No. 1 "Aeolian Harp"
- Music:
Chopin — Etude in A flat major, Op. 25, No. 1 "Aeolian Harp"
- Original choreography by: Isadora Duncan (c. 1917)
- Other titles: Ondine, Harp, Anunciation
- Categories: lyrical dances
This dance is often performed with a wing-like scarf attached to the fingers and mid-back of the dancer, and is also often performed with "Butterfly." Choreographed later in Isadora's career, it nonetheless is like her more lyrical work of her earlier period, and was created for her adopted daughters, the Isadorables, to perform as they grew older and more mature as dancers.
This dance has a series of quick steps in relevee, which can look like a ballet bouree, but must be performed in a more fluid, organic and pliable manner to maintain the appropriate Duncan aesthetic and naturalness. Tiny hand presses, in harmony with the music, are performed alongside the quick, high footsteps. After this beginning, the dance breaks away into beautiful balancees, turns and rushes forward and back, depending on the particular variation being performed. The dance ends in a frenzy of vibrations through the hands, fingers and feet, resolving into a yielding with the neck and back bending, arms alongside the body, a surrender of spirit.
Notes
Valerie Durham
This fluttering dance is performed extensively on relevee, almost performing a Duncan-esque bourree, with hands that press against an unseen pool, sending out urgent ripples of energy with fluid palms. The dancer, wearing a scarf hanging like wings from the back to the fingertips, presses outward in every increasing arcs, hiding and then revealing self. The dance progresses into a series of swells back and forth, then spiraling turns, finally culminating in a passionate flurry of vibrating gestures, up and down with the arms, until reaching purely up, and finally surrendering in a release of arms and energy with arching back and exposed neck.
This dance has been shared as a water dance - an exploration of ripples, wavelets and splashes, as well as a dance to represent the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
It is often performed in tandem with "Butterfly," Chopin Etude Op. 25, No. 9, which also uses the same winged scarf configuration.
This dance has several interpretations. As "Aeolian Harp" the main focus thematically is on the expression of the musical vibrations of the harp, the symbolically abstract plucking of the strings, the vibrational quality of the strings, the swelling and circling of the sound. The arm-length scarf beautifully reflects the vibrations of the movement.
As "Ondine" (a water nymph) or simply "Harp" the dance has a more aqueous quality. In this case, the pressing of the hands indicates the creation of ripples and waves while the feet splishsplash through the shallow water. The balancees, turns and rushes forward and back, the presence of the wing like scarf, represent the larger motion of water, waves and whirlpools, splashes and currents. The water nymph searches for the meaning of her life, her soul and ultimately resolves her quest with a release of the body.
The dance has also been interpreted as the story of the Anunciation of Mary by the Angel Gabriel. In this version, the dancer, as Mary, resists the announcement, using the hand pressing as a way to push away the good news from the Angel. The ending includes the receiving of the spirit, and a surrender to the will of God.
Barbara Kane
Julia Levien, in teaching this dance, referred to the Undine/Ondine as searching for her mortal soul.
Videos
| Title | Date | Dancers | Full Dance? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harp and Narcissus | 2022-05-28 | Christy Cornell-Pape | Yes | |
| Hortense Kooluris Memorial | 2007-10-01 | Adrienne Ramm | Yes | |
| Dances by Isadora: Harp Etude | 2004 | Catherine Gallant | Yes | |
| DDD Performance at Mountain View, CA | 1994-03-25 | Deborah Vaernes-Leeb | Yes | |
| Dionysian Duncan Dancers Julia Morgan | 1993-09 | Yes | ||
| Isadora Duncan's 110th Birthday Celebration | 1987 | Jeanne Bresciani | Yes |
Related items in the Archives
The Collection of Barbara Kane > Programs > Linda Elkin — Isadora Duncan Dancers — Nov 05, 1987
The Collection of Janaea Rose Lyn (McAlee) > Programs > Isadorables
The Isadora Duncan Archive Collection > Programs > Isadora Duncan in the 21st Century — Jan 20, 2017