Ouvertures op. 23 and op. 24

Louise Farrenc (1804–1875) studied under Anton Reicha and worked in Paris for decades as a respected composer, pianist and music scholar. In 1842 she was the first woman to be appointed to the position of professor for piano at the Conservatoire National, a position she held for 30 years.

More than 20 of Farrenc’s 51 numbered opuses were originally devoted to piano music. Beginning around 1840, Louise Farrenc turned to composing orchestral and chamber music. Having produced two overtures, three symphonies and numerous pieces of chamber music characterised by their intriguing instrumentation, she soon belonged to the small elite of French musicians who oriented themselves towards German classical and romantic music.

The Critical Edition of the Orchestral, Chamber Music and selected Pianoworks of Louise Farrenc is intended to advance academic work in this field as well as to contribute to the performance of Farrenc’s music. The manuscripts are based on contemporary sources, relying particularly on hand-written scores and first printings approved by the composer. This is the first time that most of these works have been made available in modern print.

Each volume contains an explanation of the most important principles used in editing the manuscripts as well as a foreword with information concerning the circumstances surrounding the composition and first public performance of each work. In addition, each volume includes an appendix with information on the condition of the sources used. Whenever more than one version of a source was available, or when departures from the original sources were deemed necessary, this has been noted in the appendix.

Each work includes the complete score as well as individual parts. Orchestral parts are available as rental material from the publisher