Chantal Incandela

Marie-Juliette Olga "Lili" Boulanger (Aug. 21, 1893 - March 15, 1918) was a French composer, and  the younger sister of the famed composition teacher/composer Nadia Boulanger. Born in Paris, Lili Boulanger was a child prodigy; at the age of two, it was discovered that she had perfect pitch. Her parents, both musicians, encouraged her musical education, and she accompanied her sister Nadia...

Hélène de Nervo de Montgeroult (March 2, 1764 - May 20, 1836) was a French pianist, composer, and professor. Born in to an aristocratic family, she studied piano with Jan Ladislav Dussek. She married the Marquis de Montgeroult, and it was her compositions that saved her during The Terror of the French Revolution. She performed one of her works for...

Augusta Holmès (Dec. 18, 1847 - Jan. 28 1903) was a pianist and composer, born in Paris, and of Irish descent. Despite showing great talent as a child, she wasn't allowed to take piano at the Paris Conservatory. Instead she took private piano lessons with Mademoiselle Peyrnnet, and later on, harmony and counterpoint with Henri Lambert, and composition lessons with Hyacinthe Klosé. Holmès became...

Theodore Akimenko (Feb. 8, 1876 - Jan. 8, 1945) was a Ukranian pianist, professor, and composer.  He is the older brother of the composer Jakob Akimenko.  Continue reading →

Jean Huré (Sept. 17, 1877 - Jan. 27, 1930) was a French organist and composer; much of his musical knowledge was self-taught. After some musical instruction in Angers, Huré was advised by teachers to study at the Paris Conservatory, but he much preferred to go his own way. He made his living in Paris as an organist at several churches...

Niels Wilhelm Gade (Feb. 22, 1817 - Dec. 21, 1890) born in Copenhagen, was the son of an instrument maker. Gade, a violinist, composer, and conductor, started his career with the Royal Danish Orchestra as a violinist, and was able to see compositions of his played by the orchestra. Felix Mendelssohn was an early champion of Gade's work, and they became close...

Selim Gustav Adolf Palmgren (Feb. 16, 1878 - Dec. 13, 1951) was a Finnish composer, conductor, and pianist. He studied at the Helsinki Conservatory in Helsinki from 1895 to 1899, then continued his piano studies in Berlin. He conducted several orchestras and music societies in Finland, and had successful performances as a pianist in Finland and Scandanavia. In 1921 he moved to the United...

Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (May 12, 1842 - August 13, 1912) was a French composer and professor, who started piano lessons with his mother, and began studies at the Paris Conservatory when he was around 10 years old.  Massenet's studies at the Conservatory were interrupted due to some family issues, and during his time away from school, he taught piano lessons...

Antonio Scontrino (May 17, 1850 - Jan. 7, 1922) was an Italian double bassist, composer, and professor. He studied at the Palermo Conservatory from ages 11 to 20, and also studied in Munich. He began performing as a double bassist in 1891, and eight years later taught composition at the Palermo Conservatory. He also taught counterpoint at the conservatory in Florence...

Albert Charles Paul Marie Roussel (April 5, 1869 - Aug. 23, 1937) was a French composer, who started his musical journey as an adult. As a child, Roussel was interested in mathematics, and then went went in to the French Navy. After resigning in 1894, he turned to music, and attended the Scholar Cantorum de Paris until 1908. He worked...