Female composers

Be honest, how many female composers can you name? Probably far fewer than those of their male colleagues. It’s not surprising, because for centuries, social norms prevented women from performing their own compositions in public. Our playlist presents music from the 19th century to the present day written by highly talented female composers such as Amy Beach, Clara Schumann, Unsuk Chin and Kaija Saariaho.

Clara Schumann owes her fame above all to her unique career as a pianist – and to her marriage to Robert Schumann. The latter ultimately resulted in her prematurely abandoning her ambitions as a composer. A great loss, as her Piano Concerto demonstrates, which showcases all the advantages of the instrument between lyrical melody and virtuoso brilliance. The American Amy Beach decided to pursue a career as a composer against her family’s wishes. In 1913, she appeared as the soloist in her own Piano Concerto in a concert with the Berliner Philharmoniker. Germaine Tailleferre was similarly determined; she studied music behind her father’s back, and became the only female member of the famous Parisian Groupe des Six. Both composers were among the few women who succeeded in having their works performed in public.

Today, however, compositions by women fortunately have a firm place in the concert hall: Sofia Gubaidulina is regarded as a contemporary classic, stage works by Kaija Saariaho, Olga Neuwirth and Unsuk Chin are performed at leading opera houses and, like the Korean, Rebecca Saunders received the prestigious Ernst von Siemens Music Prize.

The works presented here by the Berliner Philharmoniker reveal a fascinating expressive potential: the tonal languages of Sofia Gubaidulina and Maija Einfelde are characterised by spirituality, and those of Kaija Saariaho by rich, impressionistic colour. Unsuk Chin’s works cover a spectrum ranging from humorous exaggerations to cosmic tonal visions, while Betsy Jolas combines atmospheric Pointillism with idiosyncratic melodies.

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