WOMEN IN MUSIC AND DRAMA.
The prejudice which excluded women for centuries from the realms of science, interfered likewise with their participation in music and art. Up to the midst of the 19th Century almost all European conservatories and art academies were closed to female students. Previous to 1876 no women students of the violin were allowed at the High School in London, and for a long time they could not compete for prizes or receive diplomas. When Elizabeth Sterling presented her beautiful CXXX Psalm for five voices and orchestra to the university at Oxford for the degree of Mus. Bac, the degree, although the work was accepted and its merits acknowledged, could not be given for want of power to confer this degree upon a woman!
As the views of publishers of music and of conductors of orchestras were influenced by similar prejudices, nobody should wonder that women's work in music has shown comparatively unsatisfactory results.
Yet, in spite of all these obstacles, there have been a number of women composers, whose works were appreciated by all their contemporaries. During the glorious time of the Renaissance Francesca Caccini, born in 1581 at Florence, was the pride of her city because of her magnificent church music and madrigals. Compositions of Vittoria Aleotti, a native of Argenta, were likewise much admired, especially her great opus, which was published at Venice, in 1593, under the flowery title "Ghirlanda dei Madrigali a 4 voci." Maddalena Casulana of Brescia, produced also a number of fine madrigal, which were issued in two volumes in 1568 and 1583. Cornelia Calegari, of Bergamo, Barbara Strozzi, of Venice, belong also to the Italian composers of the Renaissance. Maria Teresa Agnesi, born during the 18th Century, produced a number of cantatas, and three operas, "Sophonisbe," "Ciro in Armenia," and "Nitocri," which were the delight of all Italy.
In Austria at the same time appeared Maria Teresa Paradis, born at Vienna in 1759. Notwithstanding her blindness, dating from her fourth year, she had become a most remarkable pianist and composer, dictating her cantatas and several operettas. In 1784 she set out on a concert tour through Germany and England, everywhere exciting admiration by her rare endowments. She often moved her audiences to tears by a cantata, the words of which were written by the blind poet Pfeffel, in which her own fate was depicted. During the later part of her life she presided over an excellent musical institute in Vienna.
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