Maria Anna de Raschenau (''fl.'' 18th century) was an Austrian composer and

canoness A canoness is a member of a religious community of women, historically a stable community dedicated to the celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours in a particular church. The name corresponds to a canon, the male equivalent, and both roles share a ...

(a type of Augustinian

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

). She was active in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, but was not a member or servant of the

noble court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be ap ...

.Cusick She was the choirmaster at the convent of St Jakob auf der Hülben in Vienna.Jackson, pg 126 Raschenau wrote an

oratorio An oratorio () is a musical composition with dramatic or narrative text for choir, soloists and orchestra or other ensemble. Similar to opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguisha ...

on a libretto by MA Signorini, ''Le sacre visioni di Santa Teresa'', which was first performed on 20 March 1703. The score was once in the

Österreichische Nationalbibliothek The Austrian National Library (, ) is the largest library in Austria, with more than 12 million items in its various collections. The library is located in the Neue Burg Wing of the Hofburg in center of Vienna. Since 2005, some of the collection ...

, but was not in the catalogue by 1991, and is assumed to be lost. Her two oratorios and two secular works written for the state are now only known from libretti given out at performances. Raschenau was a contemporary of fellow female oratorio-writers

Caterina Benedicta Grazianini Caterina Benedicta Grazianini (''1685-1715'') was an Italian composer of oratorios in Vienna. She was among the female composers of oratorios in Vienna who, according to Wellesz, were regular canonesses, rather than employed at the court. This gro ...

, Maria Grimani, and

Camilla de Rossi Camilla may refer to: People * Camilla (given name), including a list of people with the name * Queen Camilla (b. 1947), wife of Charles III, king of the Commonwealth realms Characters * Camilla (mythology), daughter of King Metabus and Casmil ...

, who were also canonesses.

References

* *Pendle, Karin ''Women in Music: A History'' "Musical Women of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries" by Barbara Garvey Jackson, Indiana University Press, Bloomington IN, 2001.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raschenau, Maria Anna de 18th-century Austrian people Augustinian nuns Austrian classical composers Austrian Baroque composers Austrian women classical composers