Highlighting Women Composers - Violin Recital Series
A Recital Series in Yokohama - Volume 1:
Lili Boulanger
Welcome to my new recital series at Okurayama Memorial Hall in Yokohama. Each recital will feature one or more female composers from the past and present alongside favorite classics. I hope to bring new interest in these strong women as well as excitement and appreciation to their works.
Volume 1: Who was Lili Boulanger?
Lili Boulanger (1893-1918) was born in Paris and the first female winner of the Prix de Rome prize for young composers. Born into a musical family who often associated with large musical figures of the time, Lili’s talent was supported and encouraged. As a child, she accompanied her older sister, Nadia, to classes at the Paris Conservatoire. However, as she got older and plagued by poor health, Lili was unable to attend the Conservatoire as a full-time student. Instead, she attended classes with Nadia sporadically and studied privately with Gabriel Faure. Lili’s chronic illness eventually led to tuberculosis which took her life at the age of 24. During her life, the two sisters encouraged each other in their compositional work. Being too ill to write, Lili’s final compositions were completed by dictating to her sister.
Why is Lili special?
I first encountered Lili Boulanger’s music while attending the San Francisco Symphony playing D’un soir triste (“Of a sad evening”), the last piece Lili wrote before her death at age 24. Dense and dark, yet approachable, I felt compelled to learn more about this young composer. Little sister to the world-renowned composition teacher, Nadia Boulanger, I became struck by their tender and tragic relationship. The two sisters supported each other despite working in the same field. After Lili’s death, Nadia gave up composing full-time feeling her skills could not compare to her sister’s. She switched her focus to teaching where she influenced the lives of some of the greatest composers in history including Aaron Copland and Akio Yashiro.
Lili and Nadia’s supportive relationship reminds me of my own friendship with my sister, a ballet dancer. How heartbreaking that Lili’s life was cut short. Not only did the world miss out on her unwritten compositions, but Nadia lost her dear companion.
I enjoyed researching her history which led me to discover other works I am excited to share at my recital at Okurayama Memorial Hall in Yokohama on November 11, 2022. Please join me in my first recital since moving to Japan.