A romantic pioneer

Louise Farrenc succeeded in carving out a place for herself in a very male-dominated world. Supported in her artistic endeavours by her husband, and benefiting too from the aura of the Paris Conservatoire, she became one of the very few women in nineteenth-century France to have a symphony performed in public. Also remarkable is the fact that, at a time when compositions by women were not taken seriously, she received official recognition for her chamber works: twice, in 1861 and 1869, she was awarded the prestigious Prix Chartier by the Académie des Beaux-Arts – a choice that was perfectly justified, as Mihaela Costea, Silvia Chiesa and Linda di Carlo show in this performance.