Vocalists & Songs
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Best known for scoring music for television and movies (The Simpsons and Desperate
Housewives and many of Tim Burton’s films including Alice in Wonderland) and having earned
numerous honors, Elfman joins Cirque du Soleil for the first time.
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Danny Elfman's music for IRIS is primarily orchestral, combining large and small
ensembles throughout the show. Its melodies contain references to many genres of film.
The choice of the orchestral approach reflects the fact that over 95% of film music
since the 1930s has been scored for full orchestras, and this imparts to the Cirque du
Soleil show a sonic connection between circus and film, via strings, brass, harps,
flutes, clarinets, bassoons and so on, as opposed to the sounds of a jazz or rock
ensemble. Supporting the show’s kaleidoscope of movement, moods and images, Danny
Elfman evokes the language of film music, magnifying the emotions of this surrealistic
tribute of the seventh art, cinema.
But here's an interesting question: Did IRIS's acts exist before Elfman wrote
any music, or did the music exist before the acts? "It was both," he admitted in
an intereview with the LA Times. "I'd written quite a bit of music before there
were any acts to see. By the time they started rehearsals, Philippe was already
applying my pieces to some of the acts. Then, when I started going to rehearsals
in Montreal, I got an idea about how I'd need to change my music for the requirements
of the different performers. Take the piece I'd composed for the Atherton twins,
who fly over the audience at the very beginning of the show. It's an amazing act,
yet my music didn’t have the right vibe for them. But it turned out the trapeze artists
really enjoyed that music, so I took the piece I’d originally written for the twins
and reapplied it for the trapeze, all while starting from scratch for the Athertons.
The piece I'd written for them was too delicate, especially because what they were
doing was more masculine. So their music needed a different kind of a feel with a
little more of a beat. I was constantly reinventing my score like that, greatly
elaborating on the music and redesigning it for the artists when I began to learn
what their needs were."
[ Vocalists •
Songs ]
- Elin Carlson (pre-recorded track) — (Jul.21.2011 - Jan.19.2013)
- Danny Elfman (pre-recorded track) — (Jul.21.2011 - Jan.19.2013)
| Opening | Buster's Big Opening |
| Aerial Straps Duo | The Twins |
| Shadows & Contortion | Snake Women |
| Filmstrip | Pellicule Part I and II |
| Kikiri (Icarian Games) | Kiriki Film, Kiriki |
| Movie Set | Movie Studio |
| Trapeze & Brooms | The Broom, Flying Scarlett, Old Toys |
| Trampoline (Rooftops) | Film Noir, Pursuit |
| Aerial Ball (Bungees) | IRIS Finale and Bows |
| Hand-to-Hand (2011-2012) | Paterns |
| Hand Balancing (2011-2012) | Scarlett Balancing |
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