T H E M USI C
Symphony No. 3 in G minor, Opus 36 By Louise Farrenc BORN : May 31, 1804, in Paris DIED : September 15, 1875, in Paris
Ω COMPOSED : 1847 Ω WORLD PREMIERE : 1849, by the Société des Concerts du Conservatoire Ω CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA PREMIERE : This weekend’s concerts, led by Music Director Franz Welser-Möst, mark the first performances of Farrenc’s music by the Orchestra Ω ORCHESTRATION : 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, timpani, and strings
AS A PIANIST , pedagogue, and composer,
Louise Farrenc was one of the most prominent musicians in mid-19th-century France. She was the only woman appointed professor at the Paris Conservatory in all of the 19th century, a position she held for 30 years. Her music received praise from Robert Schumann, Hector Berlioz, and many a Parisian critic. And she composed three exceptional symphonies decades before her compatriots César Franck and Camille Saint-Saëns made homegrown symphonies a point of pride in France. So why do many of today’s music lovers have no idea who Farrenc is? And why did her magnificent symphonies — equal to those of Schumann and Felix Mendelssohn in terms of structural precision and melodic beauty — lie in the shadows of obscurity for more than 150 years? 6 | 2022/2023 SEASON
Of course, the primary culprit is the systemic sexism and misogyny long upheld by the classical musical establishment — including her alma mater, the Paris Conservatory, which didn’t allow women to study composition until 1870. (Farrenc was only permitted to study piano when she entered the Conservatory at 15, though her parents arranged for private studies with Anton Reicha, the school’s head of composition.) Even after the Conservatory appointed Farrenc professor of piano in 1842, she could only accept female students into her studio, was barred from teaching composition, and received a salary less than that of the school’s male professors. Farrenc had to wage a seven-year Louise Farrenc was among the most exceptional pianists and composers in mid-19th-century France, despite obstacles due to her gender.
IMAGE COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Ω DURATION : about 30 minutes