[1] A letter to the Journal des nouvelles de Paris in 1736 reported she was known by the name La Légende because she was an illegitimate child, possibly indicating that Duval was a stage name.
[3] Much of what is known about Mlle Duval's life comes from mentions in contemporary accounts; for instance, her birth date is deduced from a letter stating that she was 18 in 1736, the year she composed her best-known work, the opera ballet Les Génies, ou Les caractères de l'Amour (Geniuses, or Love's Characters).
[1] The libretto of Les Génies, which was written in the heroic ballet style, was by Fleury de Lyon, and its publication was sponsored by the Prince of Carignan.
However, an air, Tout ce que je vois me rappelle (Everything I See Reminds Me), which has been attributed to her, is now thought to be by Marie-Elizabeth Cléry.
[1] One source states that she performed at the Académie Royale de Musique and retired with a substantial pension, while another notes her as a former actress and supernumerary dancer with the Paris Opera.