From Salon to Stage: The Genius of Female Baroque Musicians. Keynote at the London Festival of Baroque Music. 15 May 2015

Report by Andrew Benson-Wilson: Early Music Reviews

The traditional opening Festival Talk was given by Dr Berta Joncus of Goldsmiths, University of London (Friday 15 May). She reflected the festival theme of Women in Baroque Music with her comments on the story of how women were both rejected as well cajoled into becoming musicians. Rejection came from the Catholic church and most Courts, but encouragement came from the initiative of women themselves, from certain female patrons and the apparent curiosity value of female prodigies and the likes of Vivaldi’s Pietà girls.