Catharina Margareta Torenberg, also referred to as Katariina Torenberg-Annell (1787–1866), was a Finnish

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

ist. She was the daughter of the organist builder Karl Torenberg. She debuted in Åbo (Turku) in 1802 and was active as a concert violinist there until she moved to Sweden in 1805. She was the first professional female violinist in

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. A student of Erik Ferling, she attracted attention for her talent. She discontinued her career after her marriage with the vicar Johan Annell of

Strängnäs Strängnäs is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Strängnäs Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 15,363 inhabitants in 2020. It is located by Lake Mälaren and is the episcopal see of the Diocese of Strängnäs, one of t ...

in Sweden, because contemporary norm did not regard it suitable for a married woman of her class to perform in public, and then performed only before her friends in private. She returned to Åbo in 1865.

References

Kansallisbiografia (National Biography of Finland)
1787 births 1866 deaths Finnish classical violinists Finnish women violinists Swedish-speaking Finns 19th-century Finnish musicians Musicians from the Russian Empire {{finland-musician-stub