Four Hands

Although the names of the great pianists of the nineteenth century generally mentioned today are those of men (Chopin, Liszt, Rubinstein, etc.), the instrument itself was mostly played by women during this period. The main reason for this is quite simple: it was practically the only instrumental teaching available to them. For example, though it was “mixed” from the time it opened, the Paris Conservatoire restricted women’s access throughout the century to theory, singing and keyboard classes only. The piano, an indispensable piece of furniture in the bourgeois salon, rapidly became the main vehicle for the expression of female creativity, while forcing it to remain outside the visible field of public activity.