Unsung Heroines Danielle de Niese on the Lost World of Female Composers

Danielle de Niese explores the lives and works of five female composers from the Middle Ages to the late 20th century who were famous in their lifetimes but whose work was then forgotten Western classical music has traditionally been seen as a procession of male geniuses but the truth is that women have always composed Hildegard of Bingen Francesca Caccini Clara Schumann Florence Price and Elizabeth Maconchy all these women battled to fulfill their ambitions and overcome the obstacles that society placed in their way They then disappeared into obscurity and only some have found recognition again