CÉCILE LOUISE STEPHANIE CHAMINADE
(PARIS, FRANCE 8 AUGUST, 1857 – MONTE CARLO, 13 APRIL, 1944)
Born in
Paris, she studied at first with her mother, then with Félix Le Couppey on
piano, Marie Gabriel Augustin Savard, Martin Pierre Marsick on violin, and
Benjamin Godard in music composition, but not officially, since her father
disapproved of her musical education. Her first experiments in composition took
place in very early days, and in her eighth year she played some of her music
to Georges Bizet, who was much impressed with her talents. She gave her first
concert when she was eighteen, and from that time on her work as a composer
gained steadily in favor. She wrote mostly character pieces for piano, and
salon songs, almost all of which were published. She toured France several
times in those earlier days, and in 1892 made her debut in England where her
work was extremely popular. Isidor Philipp, head of the piano department of the
Paris Conservatory championed her works. She repeatedly returned to England
during the 1890s and made premieres there with singers such as Blanche Marchesi
and Pol Plançon, though this activity decreased after 1899 due to bad critical
reviews. Chaminade married a music publisher from Marseilles, Louis-Mathieu
Carbonel, in 1901, and on account of his advanced age, the marriage was rumored
to be one of convenience. He died in 1907, and Chaminade did not remarry. In
1908 she visited the United States, where she was accorded a hearty welcome.
Her compositions were tremendous favorites with the American public, and such
pieces as the Scarf Dance or the Ballet No. 1 were to be found in the music
libraries of many lovers of piano music of the time. She composed a
Konzertstück for piano and orchestra, the ballet music to Callirhoé and other
orchestral works. Her songs, such as The Silver Ring and Ritournelle, were also
great favorites. Ambroise Thomas once said of Chaminade: “This is not a woman
who composes, but a composer who is a woman.” In 1913, she was made a Chevalier
de la Légion d’honneur, a first for a female composer. In London in November
1901, she made gramophone recordings of seven of her compositions for the
Gramophone and Typewriter Company; these are among the most sought-after piano
recordings by collectors, though they have been reissued on compact disk.
Before and after World War I, Chaminade recorded many piano rolls, but as she
grew older, she composed less and less, dying in Monte Carlo on 13 April 1944.
Chaminade was relegated to obscurity for the second half of the 20th century,
her piano pieces and songs mostly forgotten, with the Flute Concertino in D
major, Op. 107, composed for the 1902 Paris Conservatoire Concours, her most
popular piece today. Chaminade’s sister married Moritz Moszkowski, also a
well-known composer and pianist like Cécile. Many of Chaminade’s piano
compositions received good reviews from critics, but some of her other
endeavors and more serious works were less favourably evaluated, perhaps on
account of gender prejudices. Most of her compositions were published during
her lifetime and were financially successful.
TRACKLIST
Guitare
(Caprice) (Chaminade) Op. 32 Duo-Art 6480
L’Ondine, Op.
101 (Chaminade) Duo-Art A-114
Elévation
(Romance sans paroles) Op. 76, No. 2 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 7404
Marche
americaine, Op. 131 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 012
Les Sylvains
(The Fauns) Op. 60 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 046
Feuilles
d’Automne (Autumn Leaves) Op. 146 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 066
Etude romantique,
Op. 132 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 091
En Automne
(In Autumn) Concert Etude, Op. 35, No. 2 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 094
Gavotte, Op.
162 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 0203
Valse
Brillante, Op. 80, No. 3 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 0207
Danse creole,
Op. 94 (Chaminade) Duo-Art 097
3 Danses anciennes, Op. 95 No. 3. Courante (Chaminade) Duo-Art 8027
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