Female Composers

 
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VON BINGEN / STROZZI / FARRENC / SCHUMANN / BEACH / BACEWICZ / GUBAIDULINA / etc
Female Composers
Ensemble San Felice, Cappella di Santa Maria degli Angiolini, Cappella Artemisia, Canto Fiorito

[ Naxos / 25 CD Box Set ]

Release Date: Friday 9 May 2025

This item is currently out of stock. It may take 6 or more weeks to obtain from when you place your order as this is a specialist product.

What would it mean to 'compose like a woman'? The present collection answers the question, in a literal sense, while undoing the premise on which the question was asked in the first place. In social and historical terms, it means enjoying privileges of upbringing, education and/or wealth that were historically denied to the vast majority of women. It means, on the part of the women represented here, a single-minded determination in pursuit of their vocation, helping them to overcome prejudice and sexism in a cultural, social and political milieu that has consistently denied women the opportunity to find and express their own voice in music. Only with movements of emancipation in the last century, and much more rapidly in the last 50 years, has this situation begun to be addressed and corrected.

What composing like a woman does not mean - as the music in this collection makes clear - is a definable set of qualities or characteristics to the music itself which would distinguish the work of female composers from the music composed by men.

This remarkable set gathers many individual recordings of music by women composers, which Brilliant Classics has quietly yet actively championed in their catalogue for decades, uniting it with exciting new outings, so that a comprehensive historical picture of the highly varied struggles and successes of women composers through the ages to our present time are chronicled and celebrated.

The revival of interest in female classical composers reflects a growing recognition of their overlooked contributions to music history. For centuries, women composers were marginalised, their works overshadowed by their male counterparts. However, recent efforts by musicians, scholars, and institutions have brought these composers into the spotlight, highlighting the richness and diversity of their compositions.

This renewed focus stems from a broader movement toward inclusivity in the arts, challenging traditional narratives that have historically excluded women. The rise of feminist musicology has also played a key role, offering fresh perspectives on these composers' lives and works.

This comprehensive box set offers a wide spectrum of works by female composers, from the Medieval mystic Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) , through the Renaissance Isabella Leonarda (baptised 1620-1704), Francesca Caccini (1587-1640) and Barbara Strozzi (baptised 1619-1677), traversing the Baroque and Classical eras, and arriving in the contemporary field, with composers such as Galina Ustvolskaya (1919-2006) and Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969).

A long due homage to the art and voice of female composers, spanning nearly a thousand years!

Recordings date from 1994-2024

Booklet in English contains liner notes by Peter Quantrill

Tracks:

Anido, Maria Luisa
Aire de vidalita
Aire norteno
Barcarola
Cancion de cuna
Cancion del Yucatan
De mi tierra
Impresiones Argentinas (9)
Preludio campero
Preludios nostalgicos (3)

Bacewicz, Grazyna
Children's Suite
Concert Etudes (10) for Piano
Etudes (2) on Double Notes
Little Triptych
Piano Sonata no.2
Pieces caracteristiques (3)

Beach, Amy
A Hermit Thrush at Eve, op.92 no.1
From Grandmother's Garden, op.97
» no.5 Honeysuckle
From Six to Twelve, op.119
» no.3 Canoeing
Nocturne, op.107
Out of the Depths, op.130
Pianoforte Pieces (3), op.128
Prelude and Fugue, op.81
Serenade 'Standchen' (after R Strauss)
Sketches (4), op.15
» no.3 Dreaming
Variations on Balkan Themes, op.60

Bingen, Hildegard von
Deus, qui beatam
Diffusa est gratia in labiis tuis
Nobilissima viriditas
Nunc gaudeant
O coruscans lux stellarum
O felix anima
O orzchis ecclesia
O pulchrae facies
O vos imitatores excelse

Bonis, Mel
Air vaudois, op.108
Andante et Allegro, op.133
Flute Sonata in C sharp minor, op.64
Melodies (3), op.91
Piece for flute and piano, op.189
Scherzo (Finale), op.187
Une Flute soupire, op.121

Caccini, Francesca
Ch'amor sia nudo
Che t'ho fatt'io
Chi desia di saper
Ciaccona
Dispiegate, guance amate
Dov'io credea
Io veggio i campi
Lasciatemi qui solo
Maria, dolce Maria
Non so se quel sorriso
O che nuovo stupor
O chiome belle
O vive rose
Romanesca
S'io me'n vo
Se muove a giurar fede

Chaminade, Cecile
Arabesque, op.61
Etudes de concert (6), op.35
La Lisonjera (The Flatterer), op.50
Les Sylvains, op.60
Pierrette - Air de ballet, op.41
Poemes provencaux, op.127
Romances sans paroles (6), op.76
Theme varie, op.89

Clarke, Rebecca
Piano Trio

Farrenc, Louise
Cello Sonata in B flat major, op.46
Piano Trio no.1 in E flat major, op.33
Piano Trio no.2 in D minor, op.34

Finzi, Graciane
Espressivo

Gazarossian, Koharik
Etudes (24)

Gubaidulina, Sofia
Ritorno perpetuo

Guerre, Elisabeth Jacquet de la
Pieces de clavecin, Book 1
» Suite no.1 in D minor
» Suite no.2 in G minor
» Suite no.3 in A minor

Leon, Tania
Tumbao

Leonarda, Isabella
Motetti (12), op.7
» no.9 Salve Regina
» no.10 O dulce sonare
Motetti (12), op.13
» no.12 In Caelis gloria
Motetti (12) a voce sola, op.6
» no.3 O flammae
O anima mea
Sacri concenti, op.3
» no.11 Dialogo: Quo pergis Anima
» no.13 Gloriosa Mater Domini
» no.16 Memento rerum
Salmi concertati a 4 voci con strumenti, op.19
» no.2 Dixit Dominus
Sonatas (12), op.16
» no.9 in C major a 2 violini

Mahler, Alma
Gesange (5)
Lieder (4)
Lieder (5) (1911)

Mamlok, Ursula
Bagatelles (3)

Meda, Bianca Maria
Anime belle
In foco ardentissime
Jesu mi clementissime
No non tentate
O lacrime amare
O quante contra me
Spirate vos zeffiri
Vibrate
Volo vivere

Mendelssohn, Fanny
Ostersonate (Easter Sonata) for piano
Piano Sonata in C minor
Piano Sonata in G minor

Mochizuki, Misato
Moebius-Ring

Montanaro, Patrizia
Canto di Penelope

Montgeroult, Helene de
Piano Sonatas (3), op.1
Piano Sonatas (3), op.5
» no.2 in F minor

Obermuller, Karola
Suite des femmages

Pejacevic, Dora
Blumenleben, op.19
Capriccio, op.47
Fantasiestucke (6), op.17
Klavierskizzen (2), op.44
Nocturnes (2), op.50
Piano Sonata in A flat major, op.57
Walzer-Capricen, op.28

Presti, Ida
Bagatelle
Berceuse a ma mere
Chanson et jeux
Danse d'Avila
Danse gitane
Espagne
Etude fantasque
Etude no.1
Etude no.2
La Hongroise
Prelude
Serenade
Tarantelle
Valse de l'an nouveau

Ratniece, Santa
Mira

Schumann, Clara
Piano Sonata in G minor
Piano Trio in G minor, op.17
Romances (3), op.11
Soirees musicales (6), op.6
Variations on a theme by R Schumann, op.20

Sirmen, Maddalena Lombardini
String Quartet no.1 in E flat major
String Quartet no.2 in B flat major
String Quartet no.3 in G minor
String Quartet no.4 in B flat major
String Quartet no.5 in F major
String Quartet no.6 in E major

Strozzi, Barbara
Arie a voce sola, op.8
» Cantata: Che si puo fare
Ariette a voce sola, op.6
» Non vuole amar piu
» Parla alli suoi pensieri
Cantate, ariette e duetti, op.2
» no.16 L'Amante segreto
» no.18 La riamata da chi amava
Cantate, op.3
» no.2 Moralita amorosa
Diporti di Euterpe, op.7
» Lagrime mie, a che vi trattenete?
» Sino alla morte
Havete torto
Sacri musicali affetti, op.5
» O Maria (per la Madonna)

Tailleferre, Germaine
Au Pavillon d'Alsace (Deux Danses du Marin de Bolivar)
Bretagne
Chiens
Fleurs de France
Fugue du Parapluie
Hommage a Debussy
Impromptu
Larghetto
Partita
Pastorale in A flat major
Pastorale in C major
Pastorale in D major
Pastorale inca
Pas trop vite
Romance
Sicilienne
Tres vite...
Valse lente

Thomas, Augusta Read
Fire Waltz - Homage to Bela Bartok

Thorvaldsdottir, Anna
Impressions

Ustvolskaya, Galina
Piano Sonata no.1
Piano Sonata no.2
Piano Sonata no.3
Piano Sonata no.4
Piano Sonata no.5
Piano Sonata no.6

Viardot, Pauline
Album de Chant pour 1850
Canzonetta de Concert
Mazurkas (12) de Frederic Chopin
Melodies (6)
» no.5 Madrid

Wallen, Errollyn
Louis' Loops