Women in music: Classicism

There were a lot of women composers during the Classical period but they remain unknown. Two
of well-known woman composers of the classical period are Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia Mozart
(Mozart´s sister) and Marianne von Martinez (a friend of Mozart´s.)

Anna Mozart (30 July 1751 – 29 October 1829) also known as Marianne and “Nannerl”. She was
four and a half years older than Mozart, and showcased in shows with her brother in Paris and
Vienna. She was an accomplished harpsichord player and fortepianist. Starting in 1769 she gave up
music because she had come upon the age of marriage. There is evidence that Marianne wrote
musical compositions, as there are letters from Wolfgang praising her work, but the voluminous
correspondence of her father never mentions any of her compositions, and none has survived.

Marianne von Martinez (Vienna, May 4, 1744 – December 13, 1812), was an Austrian singer,
pianist and composer of the classical period. Already as a child Marianna was good enough to
perform before the Imperial court, where according to the Helene Wessely, she "attracted attention
with her beautiful voice and her keyboard playing." The adult Marianne was frequently asked to
perform before the Empress Maria Theresa. Marianna wrote a number of secular cantatas and two
oratorios to Italian texts. Surviving compositions include four masses, six motets, and three litanies
for choir. She wrote in the Italian style, as was typical for the early Classical period in Vienna.
Marianna’s compositions were well regarded in her time, and some scholars have suggested that
Mozart modeled his 1768 Mass, K. 139, after the "Christe" of Martines’s Mass No. 1 in D major. She
never got married. Though she was an active and highly accomplished performer and composer she
never sought an appointed position; it would have been unacceptable for a woman in her social
class to seek such employment.

Women in music: Classicism

There were a lot of women composers during the Classical period but they remain unknown. Two
of well-known woman composers of the classical period are Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia Mozart
(Mozart´s sister) and Marianne von Martinez (a friend of Mozart´s.)

Anna Mozart (30 July 1751 – 29 October 1829) also known as Marianne and “Nannerl”. She was
four and a half years older than Mozart, and showcased in shows with her brother in Paris and
Vienna. She was an accomplished harpsichord player and fortepianist. Starting in 1769 she gave up
music because she had come upon the age of marriage. There is evidence that Marianne wrote
musical compositions, as there are letters from Wolfgang praising her work, but the voluminous
correspondence of her father never mentions any of her compositions, and none has survived.

Marianne von Martinez (Vienna, May 4, 1744 – December 13, 1812), was an Austrian singer,
pianist and composer of the classical period. Already as a child Marianna was good enough to
perform before the Imperial court, where according to the Helene Wessely, she "attracted attention
with her beautiful voice and her keyboard playing." The adult Marianne was frequently asked to
perform before the Empress Maria Theresa. Marianna wrote a number of secular cantatas and two
oratorios to Italian texts. Surviving compositions include four masses, six motets, and three litanies
for choir. She wrote in the Italian style, as was typical for the early Classical period in Vienna.
Marianna’s compositions were well regarded in her time, and some scholars have suggested that
Mozart modeled his 1768 Mass, K. 139, after the "Christe" of Martines’s Mass No. 1 in D major. She
never got married. Though she was an active and highly accomplished performer and composer she
never sought an appointed position; it would have been unacceptable for a woman in her social
class to seek such employment.