Hélène de Montgeroult

[Mark Thomas]

A couple of month ago I attended a short piano recital in a nearby town, given by the excellent pianist Clare Hammond. Amongst more familiar fare she played several etudes by the French revolutionary-era aristocrat turned composer, pianist and teacher Hélène de Montgeroult (1764-1836), who was a complete unknown to me. From her dates I was expecting something pleasantly late-classical, and that's just what some of the etudes were, but what surprised was that others of them displayed strong romantic-sensibilities and wouldn't have been out of place had they been written thirty years later than they were. They must have seemed very avant-garde to her contemporaries. Talking to Clare Hammond after the recital she confirmed that she will soon be recording a selection of de Montgeroult's piano works for BIS, and since then I've been exploring the several recordings already available, which have born out the impression that de Montgeroult really was a very early romantic, and her piano music is well worth getting to know.

[jimsemadeni]

Thank you Mark for this tip, I was inspired to follow up on your post and I also found Mongeroult's piano works wonderful, (and then the evil acquisitive imp shows up and says wouldn't it be nice if there was a piano concerto hidden somewhere)! In the meantime, the etudes and sonatas are lovely and I plan to listen to them all. Typically I go for big music like orchestral and chorus and orchestra, but it is nice to settle back a little and just relax and enjoy some elemental sounds.

[jdperdrix]

For those who just discovered Hélène de Montgeroult, let me recommend this document about her life and work, featuring among others Jérôme Dorival and pianist Edna Stern. Hélène de Montgeroult's life is quite fascinating, apart from her works.
https://youtu.be/Z_vCr6Totw0
It's in French with English subtitles.
I'm happy a double CD of her piano sonatas is to be released by Nicolas Horvath.

[Mark Thomas]

Yes, that is good news.

[semloh]

Thanks to Mark for bringing this to light; and, to jdperdrix for the link to the fascinating YouTube presentation - which is not only informative but includes many tantalizing and beautifully played excerpts of Montgeroult's music. It is a fine showcase for an unjustly neglected composer. Wonderful to have CDs on their way.

[Mark Thomas]

Yes, belated thanks to jdperdrix for the link to the very interesting YouTube documentary about de Montgeroult.

[razorback]

So far no mention has been made of the artist in the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique - Paris video playing Montgeroult's Etude No. 26 on a Erard copy by Christopher Clarke at the introduction to jdperdrix's link.  Later in the video (around 31:53) she plays Etude 8, an etude that has become a favorite of mine, along with a Nocturne with mezzo-soprano Ambroisine Bre.  I would like to bring her to your attention.  She is Marcia Hadjimarkos and her name needs to be included on the growing list of artists recording Montgeroult's music.  Hadjimarkos makes a excellent case for the music and deserves to be heard.   Etude 8 is more interesting and has more appeal to me than other etudes by Montgeroult that I have listened to.  Unfortunately, no-one, including Edna Stern, Nicolas Stavy or anyone else includes it on their CD.  

Hadjimarkos will be making a recording of Montgeroult's music in September that should be available on CD or for streaming early in 2023. The CD will include Etude 8 along with Nocturnes for voice & piano, the one sonata that includes a violin part, a number of other etudes and a newly discovered fantasy.  The unusual thing about the recording is that it will be the first ever to be made on a period fortepiano, a square piano built in Paris in 1819 and recently restored by  Matthieu Vion.  Thus far all other recordings of Montgeroult's music have been made on modern pianos, or in Edna Stern's case, a piano dating from 1860. The CD and download will be released on the independent French label Seuletoile.  More information about her recording project will be forthcoming.  I plan to be first in line to purchase it.

-Razorback ( Tuesday, Jan 25)

[Mark Thomas]

De Montgeroult is to be BBC Radio 3's "Composer of the Week" next week - I hope it'll be an interesting listen.

[Mark Thomas]

The programmes are well worth hearing and are available for 28 days on catch up here. In addition to the series' usual presenter, they feature the pianist Clare Hammond, whose recital in Tetbury sparked my interest in de Montgeroult.

[ahinton]

Yes, an interesting and gravely under-represented composer indeed - and to have Clare Hammond as advocate is wonderful!

[jdperdrix]

British pianist Clare Hammond is another advocate for Montgeroult's piano pieces. A CD by her playing a selection of 29 études has been published by Bis. She presents it on her youtube channel https://youtu.be/-kGKGxB1yJc (she also made the effort of presenting it in French https://youtu.be/8cWRFEgyV2s)

[razorback]

The recording Hélène de Montgeroult, Portrait d'une compositrice visionnaire (Portrait of a visionary composer) was released in October 2023 on the French label Seulétoile. It incudes a selection of Montgeroult's études played by Marcia Hadjimarkos, the 6 Nocturnes for voice and piano with the mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor, and the violin sonata with violin ad libitum with Nicolas Mazzoleni. The Nocturnes and some of the études are world premiere recordings. It can be streamed or downloaded on major platforms. Physical CDs can be ordered from this French site, which ships anywhere in the world. The liner notes in English are available here (the CD booklet is in French only). This is the first recording made on a French square piano of Montgeroult's time, an instrument built in 1817 by Antoine Neuhaus in Paris. This beautifully restored instrument features four pedals that enable the player to showcase a wide variety of musical color and texture. The pedals are reminiscent of the registers on organs and harpsichords, and are used in a similar way, to bring out (or create) a particular atmosphere. Though typical of their time, the registers make for