Louise Farrenc — portrait by Luigi Rubio (1835)
News and music to start your week!
The New York Times ran a feature on the life and music of Louise Farrenc, pictured above. The French composer broke boundaries on many fronts, and her symphonies are fantastic works long overdue of performances and recognition. Read the story here, which includes a Spotify playlist of her works.
A new book about Florence Price is in preparation – one is geared towards younger readers. Operawire shared the story. Students at the Kaufman Music Center have created Who is Florence Price as a means to share the extraordinary life of the composer with young students. The book will be published by Schirmer and will be available in November. A scholarly biography (for mature readers) by Dr. Rae Linda Brown was published in 2020.
Congratulations to The Michigan Philharmonic, an orchestra long committed to diverse and inclusive programming thanks to the artistic director and conductor Nan Washburn. The ensemble is celebrating their 75th anniversary with a robust season of contemporary composers, and many women! Read on at The Detroit News.
FUN FACT! — The First U.S. performance of a Symphony by Louise Farrenc was by The Women’s Philharmonic in 1987, Symphony no. 3, edited by Nan Washburn!
The Oregon Arts Watch celebrates Pauline Viardot’s 200th birthday with a feature about her life and work – sharing, too, upcoming performances of her works in Portland.
And The New York Times writes about the first all-women team commissioned to create a new work for the New York City Ballet. Composer Lido Pimienta and the choreographer Andrea Miller have collaborated on a new piece titled “sky to hold”. In addition, Pimienta is the first woman composer of color to compose a work for the New York City Ballet.
What did we miss? What are you reading? Let us know at [email protected]