Dame Ethel Mary Smyth (; 22 April 18588 May 1944) was an English composer and a member of the

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...

movement. Her compositions include songs, works for piano, chamber music, orchestral works, choral works and operas. Smyth tended to be marginalised as a "woman composer", as though her work could not be accepted as mainstream. Yet when she produced more delicate compositions, they were criticised for not measuring up to the standard of her male peers. She was the first female composer granted a

damehood ''Dame'' is a traditionally British honorific title given to women who have been admitted to certain orders of chivalry. It is the female equivalent of ''Sir'', the title used by knights. Baronetesses in their own right also use the title ''Da ...

Family background

Ethel Smyth was born in

Sidcup Sidcup is an area of south-east London, England, primarily in the London Borough of Bexley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, bordering the London Boroughs of London Borough of Bromley, Bromley and Royal Borough of Greenwich, Greenwich. It was ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, which is now in the London Borough of Bexley, on 22 April 1858, the fourth of eight children. While 22 April is the actual date of her birth, Smyth habitually stated it was 23 April, the day that was celebrated by her family, as they enjoyed the coincidence with

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's.Collins. Fuller. Music & History. Her father, John Hall Smyth, who was a major general in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

, was very much opposed to her making a career in music.Gates (2013), pp. 1 – 9 She lived at Frimhurst, near

Frimley Green Frimley Green is a large village and wards of the United Kingdom, ward of in the borough of Surrey Heath, in Surrey, England. It lies south of the town of Frimley and south-west of central London. Lakeside Leisure Complex, Lakeside Countr ...

Jebens and Cansdale, p. 4 for many years, before moving to Hook Heath on the outskirts of

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

. Her youngest brother was Robert ("Bob") Napier Smyth (1868–1947), who rose to become a Brigadier in the British Army.

Musical career

Smyth was a child prodigy. She was a stellar pianist at a very young age and was able to compose her first hymn by the age of 10. She decided to study music at the age of 12. Smyth first studied with Alexander Ewing when she was 17. He introduced her to the music of

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

and

Berlioz Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the ''Symphonie fantastique'' and ''Harold en Italie, Harold in Italy'' ...

. After a major battle with her father about her plans to devote her life to music, Smyth was allowed to advance her musical education at the

Leipzig Conservatory The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig () is a public university in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn as the Conservatorium der Musik (Conservatory of Music), it is the oldest music ...

, where she studied Brahmsian musical composition with

Carl Reinecke Carl Heinrich Carsten Reinecke (23 June 182410 March 1910) was a German composer, conductor, and pianist in the mid-Romantic era. Biography Reinecke was born in what is today the Hamburg district of Altona; technically he was born a Dane, as u ...

. She left after a year, however, disillusioned with the low standard of teaching, and continued her music studies privately with

Heinrich von Herzogenberg Heinrich Picot de Peccaduc, Freiherr von Herzogenberg (10 June 1843 – 9 October 1900) was an Austrian composer and conductor descended from a French aristocratic family. He was born in Graz and was educated at a Jesuit school in Feldkirch ...

. While at the Leipzig Conservatory, Smyth met Dvořák,

Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of N ...

and

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

. Through Herzogenberg, she also met

Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; ; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic music, Romantic era, she exerted her influence o ...

and

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, often set within studied ye ...

. Upon her return to England, Smyth formed a supportive friendship with

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

in the last years of his life; he respected her and encouraged her work. John Singer Sargent Dame Ethel Smyth

Smyth's extensive body of work includes the Concerto for Violin, Horn and Orchestra and the Mass in D. It was the latter's performance in London's Albert Hall in 1893 that helped her gain recognition as a serious composer. Her opera ''

The Wreckers The Wreckers were an American country music duo formed in 2005 by Michelle Branch and Jessica Harp, both of whom had solo recordings before the duo's foundation. In 2006, the duo released its debut album '' Stand Still, Look Pretty'', which pr ...

'' is considered by some critics to be the "most important English opera composed during the period between Purcell and Britten". Her best known work, she composed it to a French libretto by Henry Brewster. It premiered in 1906. In 2022 it received its first professional production in its original French text at the

Glyndebourne Festival Opera Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an annual opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England. History Under the supervision of the Christie family, the festival has been held annually since 1934, e ...

. It was also performed at the

BBC Proms The BBC Proms is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in central London. Robert Newman founded The Proms in 1895. Since 1927, the ...

, where its prelude or overture was presented 27 times between 1913 and 1947. Another of her operas, ''

Der Wald ' ''(The Forest)'' is an opera in one act by Ethel Smyth to a German libretto by Henry Brewster and Smyth, written between 1899 and 1901. It was Smyth's second opera and it was first performed on 2 April 1902 at the Königliches Opernhaus in Ber ...

'', mounted in 1903, was, for more than a century, the only opera by a woman composer ever produced at New York's

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

(until

Kaija Saariaho Kaija Anneli Saariaho (; ; 14 October 1952 – 2 June 2023) was a Finnish composer based in Paris, France. During the course of her career, Saariaho received commissions from the Lincoln Center for the Kronos Quartet and from IRCAM for the En ...

's '' L'Amour de loin'' in December 2016). On 28 May 1928, the nascent

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

broadcast two concerts of Smyth's music, marking her "musical jubilee", The first comprised chamber music, the second, conducted by Smyth herself, choral works. Otherwise, recognition in England came somewhat late for Smyth, wrote the conductor

Leon Botstein Leon Botstein (born December 14, 1946, in Zürich, Switzerland) is a Swiss-born American conductor, educator, historical musicologist, and scholar serving as the President of Bard College. Biography Botstein was born in Zürich, Switzerland, ...

at the time he conducted the

American Symphony Orchestra The American Symphony Orchestra is a New York–based American orchestra founded in 1962 by Leopold Stokowski whose mission is to demystify orchestral music and make it accessible and affordable for all audiences. Leon Botstein is the orchestra ...

's US premiere of ''The Wreckers'' in New York on 30 September 2007: After her release from prison, Smyth composed her final major work, the hour-long vocal symphony ''The Prison'', setting a text by Henry Bennett Brewster. It was first performed in 1931. The first recording was issued by Chandos in 2020. Smyth’s composing and conducting career came to a premature end before the 1920s as she started to develop hearing loss, which eventually led to her becoming completely dea

However, she found a new interest in literature and, between 1919 and 1940, she published ten highly successful, mostly autobiographical, books.

Critical reception

Overall, critical reaction to her work was mixed. She was alternately praised and panned for writing music that was considered too masculine for a "lady composer", as critics called her. Though Smyth’s four movement Serenade earned her orchestral and public debut in England, she had to use the pseudonym E.M. Smith to avoid biased criticism. Eugene Gates writes that:

Smyth's music was seldom evaluated as simply the work of a composer among composers, but as that of a "woman composer". This worked to keep her on the margins of the profession, and, coupled with the double standard of sexual aesthetics, also placed her in a double bind. On the one hand, when she composed powerful, rhythmically vital music, it was said that her work lacked feminine charm; on the other, when she produced delicate, melodious compositions, she was accused of not measuring up to the artistic standards of her male colleagues.Gates (2006), "Damned If You Do and Damned If You Don't", ''Kapralova Society Journal''.

Other critics were more favourable: "The composer is a learned musician: it is learning which gives her the power to express her natural inborn sense of humour... Dr. Smyth knows her Mozart and her Sullivan: she has learned how to write conversations in music... /nowiki>The Boatswain's Mate">The_Boatswain's_Mate.html" ;"title="/nowiki>The Boatswain's Mate">/nowiki>The Boatswain's Mate/nowiki> is one of the merriest, most tuneful, and most delightful comic operas ever put on the stage."

Involvement with the suffrage movement

In 1910, Smyth joined the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), which agitated for

, giving up music for two years to devote herself to the cause. Smyth argued in her memoirs that the disadvantages that women face in music stem from the lack of a political vote or voice. She developed a very close relationship with the charismatic leader of the WSPU,

Emmeline Pankhurst Emmeline Pankhurst (; Goulden; 15 July 1858 – 14 June 1928) was a British political activist who organised the British suffragette movement and helped women to win in 1918 the women's suffrage, right to vote in United Kingdom of Great Brita ...

, and accompanied her on many occasions. Soon after, Smyth composed her most famous, "The March of the Women" (1911) to words by

Cicely Hamilton Cicely Mary Hamilton (née Hammill; 15 June 1872 – 6 December 1952), was an English actress, writer, journalist, suffragist and feminist, part of the struggle for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom. She is now best known for the feminist ...

. The text was used to inspire women to unite and free themselves from patriarchal rule. This eventually became the anthem of the WSPU and the

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

movement. Smyth is credited with teaching Emmeline Pankhurst how to throw stones in 1912. After further practice aiming stones at trees near the home of fellow suffragette Zelie Emerson, Pankhurst called on WSPU members to break a window of the house of any politician who opposed votes for women. Smyth was one of the 109 members who responded to Pankhurst's call, asking to be sent to attack the home of Colonial Secretary

Lewis Harcourt Lewis Vernon Harcourt, 1st Viscount Harcourt (born Reginald Vernon Harcourt; 31 January 1863 – 24 February 1922), was a British Liberal Party politician who held the Cabinet post of Secretary of State for the Colonies from 1910 to 1915. Lord ...

, who had remarked that if his wife's beauty and wisdom was present in all women, they would have already won the vote. Smyth stood half the bail for Helen Craggs, who had been caught on the way to carry out the arson of the leading politician's home. During the stone-throwing, Pankhurst and 100 other women were arrested, and Smyth served two months in

Holloway Prison HM Prison Holloway was a British prison security categories, closed category prison for adult women and young offenders in Holloway, London, England, operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. It was the largest women's prison in western Europe, ...

.Abromeit, Kathleen A.
"Ethel Smyth, ''The Wreckers'', and Sir Thomas Beecham"
''The Musical Quarterly'', Vol. 73, issue 2, 1989, pp. 196–211. By subscription or payment on JSTOR When

Thomas Beecham Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philh ...

, her proponent-friend, went to visit her there, he found suffragettes marching in the quadrangle and singing, as Smyth leaned out of a window conducting the song with a toothbrush. In her book, ''Female Pipings in Eden'', Smyth said her prison experience was of being "in good company" of united women "old, young, rich, poor, strong, delicate", putting the cause they were imprisoned for before their personal needs. Smyth revealed that the prison was infested with cockroaches, even in the hospital ward. She was released early, due to a medical assessment that she was mentally unstable and hysterical. Smyth gave written evidence in the November trial of Pankhurst and others for inciting violence, stating that she (Smyth) had freely engaged in activism. She continued to correspond with Pankhurst, and heard of her getting lost trying to find the safe house provided for her to avoid re-arrest in Scotland. Smyth strongly disagreed with the support Pankhurst and her daughter Christabel gave to the war effort in 1914, but she did train as a

radiographer Radiographers, also known as radiology technologists, radiologic technologists, diagnostic radiographers and medical radiation technologists, are healthcare professionals who specialise in the imaging of human anatomy for the diagnosis and tr ...

in Paris. Her fractious friendship with Christabel ended in 1925, and Smyth conducted the Metropolitan Police Band at the unveiling of the statue to Pankhurst in London in 1930.

Personal life

Smyth had several passionate affairs, most of them with women. Smyth was at one time in love with the married suffragette Pankhurst. At the age of 71, she fell in love with writer

Virginia Woolf Adeline Virginia Woolf (; ; 25 January 1882 28 March 1941) was an English writer and one of the most influential 20th-century modernist authors. She helped to pioneer the use of stream of consciousness narration as a literary device. Vir ...

– herself having worked in the women's suffrage movement – who, both alarmed and amused, said it was "like being caught by a giant crab", but the two became friends. Smyth's relationship with

Violet Gordon-Woodhouse Violet Gordon-Woodhouse (23 April 18729 January 1948) was a British keyboard player. She specialised in the harpsichord and clavichord, and was influential in bringing both instruments back into fashion. She was the first person to record the h ...

is depicted satirically in

Roger Scruton Sir Roger Vernon Scruton, (; 27 February 194412 January 2020) was an English philosopher, writer, and social critic who specialised in aesthetics and political philosophy, particularly in the furtherance of Conservatism in the United Kingdom, c ...

's 2005 opera, ''

Violet Violet may refer to: Common meanings * Violet (color), a spectral color with wavelengths shorter than blue * One of a list of plants known as violet, particularly: ** ''Viola'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants Places United States * Vi ...

.'' Her philosopher-friend and the librettist of some of her operas, Henry Bennet Brewster, may have been her only male lover. She wrote to him in 1892: "I wonder why it is so much easier for me to love my own sex more passionately than yours. I can't make it out, for I am a very healthy-minded person". She met

Willie Wilde William Charles Kingsbury Wilde (26 September 1852 – 13 March 1899) was an Irish journalist and poet of the Victorian era. He was the older brother of Oscar Wilde. Background Willie was the oldest son born into an Anglo-Irish family, at 21 ...

, the brother of

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

, during a trip to Ireland. They became engaged on the return railway journey from

Holyhead Holyhead (; , "Cybi's fort") is a historic port town, and is the list of Anglesey towns by population, largest town and a Community (Wales), community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales. Holyhead is on Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island ...

to Euston, but she broke it off within three weeks. In recognition of her work as a composer and writer, Smyth was made a

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(DBE) in 1922, becoming the first female composer to be awarded a damehood. Smyth received honorary doctorates in music from the universities of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England **County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham *Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States Durham may also refer to: Places ...

and

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

.Wiley, Christopher (8 May 2014)
"Five facts about Dame Ethel Smyth"
''OUPblog'', Oxford University Press. She died in Woking in 1944 at the age of 86. Smyth was actively involved in sport throughout her life. In her youth, she was a keen horse-rider and tennis player. She was a passionate golfer and a member of the ladies' section of Woking Golf Club, near where she lived. After she died and was cremated, her ashes were, as she had requested, scattered in the woods neighbouring the club by her brother Bob.
. Retrieved 23 May 2016 Her musical executor was the composer and musicologist Kathleen Dale, a close neighbour.

Representations and legacy

Ethel Smyth featured, under the name of Edith Staines, in

E. F. Benson Edward Frederic Benson (24 July 1867 – 29 February 1940) was an English novelist, biographer, memoirist, historian and short story writer. Early life E. F. Benson was born at Wellington College (Berkshire), Wellington College in Berkshire, ...

's ''Dodo'' books (1893–1921), decades before the quaint musical characters of his more famous

Mapp and Lucia ''Mapp and Lucia'' is a 1931 comic novel written by E. F. Benson. It is the fourth of six novels in the popular Mapp and Lucia (novel series), Mapp and Lucia series, about idle women in the 1920s and their struggle for social dominance over the ...

series. She "gleefully acknowledged" the portrait, according to

Prunella Scales Prunella Margaret Rumney West Scales (''née'' Illingworth; born 22 June 1932) is an English retired actress. She portrayed Sybil Fawlty, the bossy wife of Basil Fawlty (John Cleese), in the BBC comedy ''Fawlty Towers'' and Queen Elizabeth ...

. She was later a model for the fictional Dame

Hilda Tablet Hilda Tablet is a fictitious "twelve-tone composeress" created by Henry Reed in a series of radio comedy plays for the British Broadcasting Corporation's Third Programme. Hilda is the inventor of ''musique concrète renforcée'' (literally, "r ...

in the 1950s radio plays of Henry Reed. In "''Recomposing Her History: The Memoirs and Diaries of Ethel Smyth''" by Amanda Harris she speaks deeper on Smyth’s memoirs and how she resisted a male-dominated culture in the music world of the time. In these memoirs she also breaks away from the term “Lady Composer” pushing for a world of representation at a level of “composer amongst composers’.” Smyth also addresses this dilemma in “Female Piping in Eden” where she speaks on how the female element of music is implicit to the male element establishing the importance of both and the need for more representation for women in the music world. Both of these works play a crucial role in the commentary on societal and institutional changes that were needed and challenged in this era, and the role Smyth played in creating valuable insight not only through commentary but also through music that pushed her to a level of “composer amongst composers’.” She was portrayed by

Maureen Pryor Maureen St John Pook (23 May 1922 – 5 May 1977), known professionally as Maureen Pryor, was an Irish-born English character actress who made stage, film, and television appearances. ''The Encyclopaedia of British Film'' noted, "she never playe ...

in the 1974 BBC television film ''

Shoulder to Shoulder ''Shoulder to Shoulder'' is a 1974 BBC television serial relating the history of the women's suffrage movement, created by script editor Midge Mackenzie, producer Verity Lambert and actor Georgia Brown. It was broadcast on BBC2 between 3 Apri ...

''.

Judy Chicago Judy Chicago (born Judith Sylvia Cohen; July 20, 1939) is an American feminist artist, art educator, and writer known for her large collaborative art installation pieces about birth and creation images, which examine the role of women in history ...

's monumental work of

feminist art The feminist art movement refers to the efforts and accomplishments of feminists internationally to produce feminist art, art that reflects women's lives and experiences, as well as to change the foundation for the production and perception of co ...

, ''

The Dinner Party ''The Dinner Party'' is an installation artwork by American feminist artist Judy Chicago. There are 39 elaborate place settings on a triangular table for 39 mythical and historical famous women. Sacajawea, Sojourner Truth, Eleanor of Aquitaine, ...

'', features a place setting for Smyth. Since 2018, the actress and singer, Lucy Stevens, has portrayed Ethel Smyth on stage at various venues in Britain. In 2021, Smyth posthumously received a Grammy for Best Classical Vocal Solo based on the recording of The Prison by conductor James Blachly and soloists Sarah Brailey and Dashon Burton, members of Experiential Orchestra. Their rendition was released in August 2020 to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment, which gave women the right to vote in the United State

In March 2022, in recognition of

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on 8 March, commemorating women's fight for equality and liberation along with the women's rights movement. International Women's Day gives focus to issues such as gender equality, reproductive righ ...

, a larger-than-size statue by

Christine Charlesworth Christine Charlesworth FRSA (born 1949) is an English sculptor. She has undertaken many private and public commissions, some of her works standing in locations in England. Life Born Christine Fullwood in Wolverhampton, Charlesworth studied at the ...

of Smyth conducting was unveiled in Duke's Court Plaza, Woking, by the Mayor of Woking, Cllr Liam Lyons, with invited guests who included members of Smyth's family as well as academics and councillors. Charlesworth described her sculpture as:

Ethel stands, wearing her usual tweed skirt, enthusiastically conducting passers-by with her over-sized baton, as presented to her at the Royal Albert Hall by Emeline Pankhurst.
Her jacket is half open, her arms are beating out the time and her eyes are full of concentration as she battles with her hearing loss, which went completely in her 50's.
Also detailed in her pocket is a sheaf of paper which could be ideas for a new opera, or maybe notes for a new book, as well as sketches and polemical essays.

Literary Works

Writings

*''Impressions That Remained: Memoirs'' (1919
Vol. 1
�
Vol. 2''Streaks Of Life''
(1921)
'
(1927)
'
(1928) *''Female Pipings in Eden'' (1933) *''Beecham and Pharaoh'' (1935)
'
(1936) *' (1936)
''Maurice Baring''
(1938), a memoir of

Maurice Baring Maurice Baring (27 April 1874 – 14 December 1945) was an English man of letters, known as a dramatist, poet, novelist, translator and essayist, and also as a travel writer and war correspondent, with particular knowledge of Russia. During Wo ...

*''What Happened Next'' (1940)
The Memoirs of Ethel Smyth
(1987), abridged and edited by

Ronald Crichton Ronald Crichton (28 December 1913 – 16 November 2005) was a music critic for the ''Financial Times'' in the 1960s and 1970s. He was a scion of the Earls of Erne. In his '' Times'' obituary he was described as "one of the last of the school of ...

. Available on 14-day loan at Archive.org (free registration required)

Recordings

* ''The Boatswain's Mate''. Nadine Benjamin, Rebecca Louise Dale, Edward Lee, Ted Schmitz, Jeremy Huw Williams, Simon Wilding, Mark Nathan, Lontano Ensemble, c.

Odaline de la Martinez Odaline de la Martinez (born 31 October 1949) is a Cuban-American composer and conductor, currently residing in the UK. She is the artistic director of Lontano, a London-based contemporary music ensemble which she co-founded in 1976 with New Zeal ...

. Retrospect Opera RO001 (2016, two CDs). * ''Cello Sonata in C minor''. Friedemann Kupsa cello, Anna Silova piano; Lieder und Balladen, Opp. 3 & 4. ''Three Moods of the Sea''. Maarten Koningsberger baritone, Kelvin Grout piano. TRO-CD 01417 (1997). * ''Cello Sonata in A minor''. Lionel Handy cello, Jennifer Hughes piano: Lyrita SRCD412 (2023).Reviewed at ''MusicWeb International''
/ref> * ''Complete Piano Works''.

Liana Șerbescu Liana Șerbescu (born 25 August 1934), is a Romanian pianist, piano pedagogue and musicologist, a pioneer in the field of women's music. Through her many-sided activity as a performing pianist, researcher and writer, she contributed to enrich ...

. CPO 999 327-2 (1995). * ''Concerto for Violin, Horn and Orchestra''. BBC Philharmonic, c.

. Chandos Chan 9449 (1996). * ''Double Concerto in A'' for violin, horn and piano.

Renate Eggebrecht Renate Eggebrecht (August 12, 1944 – January 8, 2023) was a German violinist and record producer. Music training Born in Selent, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, Eggebrecht received her first music lessons from her mother, before she was four ye ...

violin, Franz Draxinger horn, Céline Dutilly piano; ''Four Songs'' for mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble (1907):

Melinda Paulsen Melinda Paulsen (born 1964) is an American mezzo-soprano and contralto who has appeared mostly in Germany, with a focus on concert singing. She has been an academic voice teacher at the Musikhochschule Frankfurt. Early life and education Pauls ...

mezzo, Ethel Smyth ensemble; ''Three Songs'' for mezzo-soprano and piano (1913): Melinda Paulsen mezzo, Angela Gassenhuber piano. TRO-CD 01405 (1992). * ''Entente Cordiale''. Retrospect Opera fundraising campaign for future recording, 2024. * ''Fete Galante: A Dance Dream''. Charmian Bedford (soprano), Carolyn Dobbin (mezzo soprano), Mark Milhofer (tenor), Alessandro Fisher (tenor), Felix Kemp (baritone),

Simon Wallfisch Simon Wallfisch (born 22 May 1982) is a British-German classical singer and cellist. Life and career Simon Joseph Lasker Wallfisch was born in London in 1982 to a family of professional musicians: his father is British cellist Raphael Wallfisch ...

(baritone), Lontano Ensemble/Odaline de la Martinez. Retrospect Opera RO007 (2019). * ''Mass in D'', ''March of the Women, Scene from The Boatswain's Mate''. Eiddwen Harrhy, The Plymouth Music Series, Philip Brunelle. Virgin Classics VC 7 91188-2 (1991). * Piano Trio in D minor (1880): Neave Trio, Chandos CHAN20238 (2024) * ''The Prison''. Sarah Brailey, Dashon Burton, soloists; Experiential Orchestra and Chorus; James Blachly, Conductor. Steven Fox, Chorus Master, Blanton Alspaugh and Soundmirror, producer
Chandos Records
(2020). * ''Serenade in D major''. BBC Philharmonic, c.

. Chandos Chan 9449 (1996). * ''Serenade in D major''. On 'Lauter!', Ensemble reflektor. Solaire SOL1017 (2024). * ''String Quartet in C minor''. Maier Quartet. DB Productions, DBCD197 (2020). * ''String Quartet in E minor'', ''String Quintet in E Major'', Op. 1. Mannheimer Streichquartett and Joachim Griesheimer. CPO 999 352-2 (1996). * ''Suite for String Orchestra'', Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim, conducted by Douglas Bostock
CPO 555 457-2
(2022). * ''Violin Sonata in A minor'', Op. 7, ''Cello Sonata in A minor'', Op. 5, ''String Quintet in E major'', Op. 1, ''String Quartet in E minor''. Renate Eggebrecht, violin, Friedemann Kupsa cello, Céline Dutilly piano, Fanny Mendelssohn Quartet. TRO-CD 01403 (2012, two CDs). * ''Violin Sonata in A minor'', Op. 7. Annette-Barbara Vogel, violin, Durval Cesetti, piano. Toccata TOCN0013 (2021). * ''Der Wald''. Natalya Romaniw, Claire Barnett-Jones, Robert Murray, Andrew Shore, Morgan Pearce, Matthew Brook; BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by John Andrews (2023).Resonus announcement of ''Der Wald'', 3 August 2023
/ref> * ''The Wreckers''. Anne-Marie Owens, Justin Lavender, Peter Sidhom, David Wilson-Johnson, Judith Howarth, Anthony Roden, Brian Bannatyne-Scott, Annemarie Sand. Huddersfield Choral Society, BBC Philharmonic, c.

. Conifer Classics (1994). (Re-released in 2018 by Retrospect Opera, RO004).

References

;Sources * *Benson, E.F. (1986),
Dodo: An Omnibus
'. London: Hogarth Press, 1986 * Collis, Louise. ''Impetuous Heart: The Story of Ethel Smyth''. London: William Kimber, 1984. * *Gates, Eugene (2006), "Damned If You Do and Damned If You Don't: Sexual Aesthetics and the Music of Dame Ethel Smyth", ''Kapralova Society Journal'' 4, no. 1, 2006: 1–5. *Gates, Eugene (2013), "Dame Ethel Smyth: Pioneer of English Opera". ''Kapralova Society Journal'' 11, no. 1 (2013): 1–9. *Jebens, Dieter and R. Cansdale (2004), ''Guide to the Basingstoke Canal''. Basingstoke Canal Authority and the Surrey and Hampshire Canal Society, 2004. (2nd Edition) * St. John, Christopher (1959), ''Ethel Smyth: A Biography''. London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1959.

External links

* * *
LiederNet Archive

Dame Ethel Smyth: Pioneer of English Opera
– by Eugene Gates, ''Kapralova Society Journal''.

– by Valarie Morris, Sandscape Publications.
Ethel Mary Smyth letter
from the Special Collections and University Archives Department at the

University of North Carolina at Greensboro The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina, University of North Carolina system. It is accredited by the S ...

Ethel Mary Smyth letter 2
from the Special Collections and University Archives Department at the

Dame Ethel Mary Smyth (1858–1944), Composer and writer
(National Portrait Gallery) * *
Dame Ethel Smyth: Composer, suffragette, sportswoman and resident of WokingRetrospect Opera"The March of the Women"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smyth, Ethel 1858 births 1944 deaths 19th-century English classical composers 19th-century English LGBTQ people 19th-century English women composers 20th-century English non-fiction writers 20th-century English classical composers 20th-century English LGBTQ people 20th-century English women writers 20th-century English women composers English women classical composers Composers awarded damehoods Composers from London Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire English autobiographers English expatriates in Germany English feminist writers English bisexual musicians English bisexual writers English LGBTQ composers English opera composers English Romantic composers British feminist musicians Bisexual composers LGBTQ classical composers LGBTQ people from London Musicians from Kent People from Frimley People from Sidcup Pupils of Carl Reinecke Pupils of Salomon Jadassohn University of Music and Theatre Leipzig alumni English women autobiographers Women of the Victorian era British women opera composers Women's Social and Political Union Writers from the London Borough of Bexley