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.
Other information:
- Recordings date from 1994-2024
- Booklet in English contains liner notes by Peter Quantrill
- The revival of interest in female classical composers reflects a growing recognition of their overlooked contributions to music history.
For centuries, women composers were marginalized, 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 (baptized 1620-1704), Francesca Caccini (1587-1640) und Barbara Strozzi (baptized 1619-1677), traversing the Baroque and Classical eras, and arriving in the contemporary field, with composers such as Galina Ustvolskaya (1919-2006) and Grazyna Bacewicz (1909-1969).
- A long due homage to the art and voice of female composers, spanning nearly a thousand years!
Like gazing into a kaleidoscope, this double-CD album brings a treasure-trove of musical miniatures tracing the sweeping panorama and historic perspective of 10 centuries. A mirage-like journey through 1000 years - from the 11th Century until present day - introduces evanescent encounters with a dizzying array of epochs, genres and styles: from otherworldly chants half-whispered beyond ancient monastery walls, to the traditions of Indian Raga, Bulgarian folk tunes and Mongolian throat-singing, to rustic bagpipes and medieval troubadours, to the Baroque splendor of Bach, Handel and Rameau, to Mozart and Schubert, to Italian and French opera, flamenco and tango, jazz and blues, Stravinsky and Shostakovich, Piazzolla, Duke Ellington, Erroll Garner and David Bowie. This charismatic retrospective is a fascinating collection, brimming with world-premiere recordings (50 out of 51 tracks) and presenting a stunning variety of compositions - some original, some arranged by the performing artists - violinist Elmira Darvarova (first and to date still only ever, woman-concertmaster of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra) and hornist Howard Wall (a former long-time member of two of the world's greatest orchestras - the New York Philharmonic, and the Philadelphia Orchestra). 17 nations from 5 continents are represented, including by ten women composers (one of whom composed operas in the 17th C. and had her works performed for the likes of Galileo). The meticulous album notes cover the multi-dimensional, serendipitous and cross-pollinating nature of essential events and legacies, which endure and continue to fascinate and transport us.
La Grazia Delle Donne is a collection of wonderful works by female composers of the Baroque era who have been excluded and forgotten, like so many other musicians, from music history courses. The Ensemble La Cigale, under the direction of Madeleine Owen, specializes in music of the Renaissance and Baroque eras on period instruments. The group presents original programs that blend formal and popular styles. For this project, the ensemble invited soprano Myriam Leblanc, who is recognized for her warm, supple voice and pure timbre. "A voice of rare beauty." - La Presse
After their explorations of Italian repertoire in Che fai tù? (MU-037) and French in Vous avez dit brunettes? (Alpha 761), Les Kapsber'girls, a vocal and instrumental ensemble founded by lutenist Albane Imbs in 2015, devotes it's third album to Baroque women composers: hidden talents, unrevealed destinies, few of these composers have had the opportunity to reveal their art, which is nevertheless very real. Recent research has made it possible to revive the fascinating works of composers such as Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677), Isabella Leonarda (1620-1704), Lucia Quinciani (1566-1611), Francesca Caccini (1587-1641), Antonia Bembo (c.1643-1715), and Francesca Campana (c.1615-c.1665), who spent sixty-nine years of her life in an Ursuline convent in Novara, although this did not prevent her from composing no fewer than two hundred works!
La Femme - Journey of Female Composers / Goranci, World Chamber Orchestra
Naxos
CD
$19.99Oct 28, 2022
Through much of history the language of women has been told through men, but La Femme turns this narrative upside down. All of these composers share an unrelenting will to be artistic, often in opposition to the societies in which they found themselves. From the very earliest medieval verses by Kassia via the blind virtuoso Maria von Paradis’ famed Sicilienne and Holocaust victim Ilse Weber’s moving Wiegla, to powerful modern statements by the likes of Niloufar Nourbakhsh and Flaka Goranci’s own contribution, The Speech of Love - this entire project is dedicated to all creative women in music.
CONTENTS:
Suad Bushnaq: The Borrowed Dress (From "The Borrowed Dress")
Dima Orsho: Those Forgotten on the Banks of the Euphrates
Jasmin Reuter: Salomea
Trad.: Ой не світи місяченьку
Weber, I: Wiegala
Paradis: Sicilienne in E-Flat Major
Nourbakhsh: The Window
Flaka Goranci: The Speech of Love
Pejačević: Blumenleben, Op. 19
Ella Milch Sheriff: Zeh hayofi
Annamaria Kowalsky: Perpetuo (Encore Version)
Kassia: Pelagia
Vratchanska: Peperuga
Nazife Aral Güran: 3 Concert Etudes for Piano
Trad.: Со маки сум се родила
Zebeljan: Sarabande for Chamber Clarinet, Violin & Piano
Caccini, F: 36 Solo Songs & Duets, No. 29, Chi desia di saper
REVIEWS:
This is a very interesting concept album, highlighting not only the creativity and artistry of women but also giving priority to their beliefs and passions. Sources range from the mediaeval period to the present day with an emphasis on the more contemporary. A variety of styles and media are employed – art song, piano solo, western and eastern influences, acoustic instruments and electronic timbres. This is a far-reaching project to educate and inspire and a very enjoyable program.
-- Lark Reviews (Stephen Page)
This disc celebrates female composers and highlights their battle against prejudice. It should be a given that members of half of the world’s population can lead, innovate, make discoveries and create art as well, or better than, the other half. Flaka Goranci has showcased composers whom we should know better. I look forward to hearing more from her and from them. She is also the leading performer, and her stunning voice is ably and sympathetically accompanied by the World Chamber Orchestra conducted by Konstantinos Diminakis.
Goranci has outstanding collaborators. Dima Orsho sings alongside her in Arabic. Zoryana Kushpler performs the Ukrainian folk song. Violinist Maximilian Bratt, cellist Teodora Miteva and pianist Donka Angatscheva make a faultless contribution. This brilliant disc should be cherished and shared around. It shows how women are the equal of men. It comes with my highest recommendation.
The idea behind this recording by the acclaimed harpist Oliver Wass (first prize winner at the "Suoni d'Arpa" International Competition and now professor at the Royal College of Music in London) is to juxtapose music by Misha Mullov-Abbado with works by (mostly) Italian composers from four earlier centuries. The artist's ambition was to record the music he commissioned from Misha Mullov-Abbado and pair it with music for modern harp and Italian triple harp. The album is in fact performed on an Italian triple harp for the early repertoire, and on a modern pedal harp for the classical and modern repertoire. The performance also includes a chamber music section featuring Henry Roberts on flute, Luba Tunnicliffe on viola-both members, along with Wass, of the Pelléas Ensemble-and Gabriela Opacka-Boccadoro on violin. The CD also features a highly fascinating world premiere recording (and performance) of the Concerto for Harp and Orchestra by Luigi Molino, recorded live at the opening concert of the "Suoni d'Arpa" Festival in Saluzzo (Cuneo) on August 24, 2024. Oliver Wass here is accompanied by the Ensemble APM orchestra, conducted by Luca Vacchetti.
