Irene Russo - Sguardi femminili in musica. Female visions on music

Clara Wieck Schumann

Clara Wieck Schumann was the first concert pianist of 19th-century piano history, wife of composer Robert Schumann. She was a great source of inspiration for other artistic personalities of the 19th century, including Johannes Brahms and Franz Liszt, with whom Clara had a strong affinity. When Johannes Brahms arrived at the Schumann family home in September 1853, a musical harmony was immediately established between him and Clara Wieck Schumann. Between 1854 and 1856 some of Clara's most intense piano pieces were created, including the Romance op.21 specifically dedicated to Brahms, and the Romance in B minor, written on Christmas night 1856, the first without her husband Robert. Brahms' Ballades op.10, written in 1854 and published in 1856, coincides with the development of this emotional relationship of mutual sympathy between the young man from Hamburg and Clara.

Hazel Scott

Hazel Scott was an African-American woman and music pioneer who lived between 1920 and 1981. The second part of the program is a journey around this brilliant pianist who shone in a short but impressive career. Throughout her life, Scott shared her ideals and fight for the dignity of women and artists of color with the world and her audiences. By pursuing her ideas with determination, against the puritan and conformist mentality of the time, she personally risked paying a high price. She was condemned to oblivion for simply being herself. This project aims to emphasize how important it is that women can be themselves in order to develop their own perspective on the world. In this way, a creativity can emerge that is free from the fears that have so often suppressed female action.

For detailed information about the program and the background of the project, visit the IICA website.