Women at the Piano - A History Through Images

Explore the fascinating evolution of the "femme au piano" genre in 19th-century French painting through this illuminating lecture delivered by renowned musicologist Marina Frolova-Walker at Barnard's Inn Hall, London. Trace the artistic journey from Italian Renaissance clavichord depictions through Vermeer's Dutch domestic scenes to the works of Renoir, Van Gogh, and Matisse, examining how these artists portrayed women at the piano. Understand the piano's transformation into a middle-class status symbol and its modernist reinterpretation in the 1910s-20s. Gain deep insights into women's historical role in music-making through the lens of these paintings, presented by a distinguished music historian who brings her expertise in Russian music and extensive background in musicology to this cultural exploration. Learn how these artistic representations reflect broader societal changes and attitudes toward women's musical education and performance in domestic settings.