Luise_Adolpha_Le_Beau_1872

Composer Information

Birth - April 25, 1850 | Rastatt, Germany

Death - July 17, 1927 | Baden-Baden, Germany

Nationality - German

Era - Romantic

Composer Biography

Written by: Trevor Nelson

Luise Adolpha Le Beau began writing music when she was 15 years old and made her debut as a concert pianist with the Baden Court Orchestra when she was 18. She briefly studied piano with Clara Schumann, though her primary teacher was Joseph Rheinberger. He was a champion of her playing and compositions, introducing her to Hanslick, Liszt, and Brahms. However, she had a falling out with her teacher in the early 1880s, which led to immense difficulty in her arranging performances. She eventually settled in Baden-Baden, where she was able to present a number of chamber concerts and premier her opera, Haudmoth. She also established herself as a music critic. Her music is notable for her strict use of form with innovative phrase structures and colorful harmonies. Hanslick, in particular, noted that her choral works and dance movements were the most successful of her pieces.

See Also

  • Mary French McVicker. Women Opera Composers: Biographies from the 1500s to the 21st Century. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company Publishers, 2016.
  • Judith E. Olsen. “Luise Adolpha Le Beau: Composer in Late Nineteenth-Century German,” in Women Making Music: The Western Art Tradition, 1150-1950, edited by Jane Bowers and Judith Tick, 282-303. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1986.Women & Music: A History. Edited by
  • Karin Pendle. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2001.Musik und
  • Gender im Internet – Le Beau
    https://mugi.hfmt-hamburg.de/en/artikel/Luise_Adolpha_Le_Beau

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