Hélène de Montgeroult – the missing link between Mozart and Chopin
Today’s broadcast is dedicated to French composer and pianist Hélène-Antoinette-Marie de Nervo de Montgeroult. She was born in Lyon in 1764 as Hélène de Nervo into an aristocratic family. She studied piano in Paris with Jan Ladislav Dussek and Muzio Clementi, among others. In 1784 she married Marquis André Marie Gautier de Montgeroult, which made her the Marquise Hélène de Montgeroult. She died in Florence in 1836.
Her compositions have been considered the bridge between classicism and romanticism. Her biographer Jerome Dorival calls her “the missing link” between Mozart and Chopin.
De Montgeroult has remained best known for her 114 piano etudes. Mostly, they are not dull finger exercises but pieces that express her originality and versatility.
Hélène de Montgeroult
Piano Sonata in F major, Op. 1 No. 1. Nicolas Horvath, piano
Violin Sonata in a minor, Op. 2 no. 3. Sophie Rosa, violin; Ian Buckle, piano
Piano Etudes No. 101 in C-sharp major, No. 103 in f-sharp minor, No. 106 in B, No. 104 in g-sharp minor, No. 107 in d minor, No. 110 in A major, No. 111 in g minor. Clare Hammond, piano
Thème varié dans le genre moderne. Edna Stern, piano
