Marie Jaëll

Marie Jaëll was born Marie Trautmann in 1846, the daughter of the mayor of Steinseltz, Alsace. She fell under the spell of Franz Liszt upon first hearing him play in 1868. Later, she became his pupil. He commented that she “has the brains of a philosopher and the fingers of an artist”. Jaëll’s accomplishments as pianist and teacher (her students included the organist Albert Schweitzer) were exceeded only by her determination to compose. Saint-Saëns, a vital influence on her music, once remarked: “Her first attempts [at composition] have been tumultuous, excessive, not unlike the bursting forth of a devastating torrent…” Fortunately, her husband, Albert Jaëll, was a fellow pianist who proved supportive to her musical ambitions; the couple often gave concerts together. She died in Paris in 1925. Her works, ranging from piano duets and song cycles to several highly virtuosic concertos—two for piano, one for cello—are demanding, energetic and lyrical. Her very personal harmonic language can be quite acerbic, full of deliberate, startling clashes. Her piano method, based on her studies of neuroscience, is still in use today.