Romantic
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Mendelssohn Fanny
Akimenko, Theodore
Albeniz, Isaac
Andersen, Joachim
Barnett, John Francis
Bazzini, Antonio
Beach, Amy
Bellini, Vincenzo
Bizet, George
Blahetka, Leopoldine
Blodek, Wilhelm
Boehm, Theobald
Bonis, Mel
Borne, François
Brahms, Johannes
Briccialdi, Giulio
Bruch, Max
Caplet, André
Chaminade, Cécile
Chopin, Frédéric
Danzi, Franz Ignaz
Debussy, Claude
Demersseman, Jules-Auguste Edouard
Donizetti, Gaetano
Donjon, Johannes
Doppler, Albert Franz
Du Puy, Édouard
Dvořák, Antonin
Elgar, Edward
Fauré, Gabriel
Foote, Arthur
Franck, César
Frühling, Carl
Fürstenau, Anton Bernhard
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Ganne, Louis
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Kohler, Ernesto
Kreisler, Fritz
Kuhlau, Friedrich
Lefebvre, Charles Edouard
Liszt, Franz
Maier, Amanda
Massenet, Jules
Mendelssohn, Fanny
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Strauss, Richard
Taffanel, Claude Paul
Tulou, Jean-Louis
Vitali, Tomaso Antonio
Wagner, Siegfried
Widor, Charles Marie Jean Albert
Lieder No. 4, "Du bist die Ruh", Op. 7
Fanny Mendelssohn: 6 Lieder, Op. 7: No. 4 for flute and piano was written in 1841, originally as a song for voice and piano "Du bist die Ruh" (You are peace) with text by German poet Friedrich Rückert.
The piece was conceived as a German Romantic Lied, with the piano accompaniment playing a crucial role in creating the mood.
The poem is a profound expression of deep, peaceful love and devotion, where the beloved is described as the source of peace, rest, and fulfillment.
After decades of composing privately, and with some of her individual songs published under her brother Felix's name (in his Op. 8 and Op. 9), Fanny decided to publish this collection under her own name, "Fanny Hensel geb. Mendelssohn-Bartholdy". This was a bold step for a woman composer in the 19th century and marked her official public debut as an author.
Eric Le Sage (piano), 2023, Parlophone Records / Warner Classics
Lieder No. 4 "Du bist die Ruh"
Mendelssohn Fanny
Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel (1805–1847) was a brilliant German composer and pianist of the early Romantic era, the eldest sister of the renowned composer Felix Mendelssohn. Despite facing significant societal barriers as a woman in the 19th century, she became one of the most important female composers of her time.
Born in Hamburg into a prominent, wealthy, and cultured family, Fanny displayed exceptional musical talent from a young age. Both she and her brother Felix received superb musical education, studying piano with Ignaz Moscheles and composition with Carl Friedrich Zelter.
Fanny composed over 450 works, including Lieder (songs), chamber music, piano works, and oratorios. However, the prevailing social customs of the time dictated that a woman's place was in the home, not in public life as a professional composer or performer. Her father famously advised her that while music would be Felix's profession, for her it could only be an ornament. Felix, though supportive of her talent, initially discouraged her from publishing her work under her own name (in his Op. 8 and Op. 9 collections). It was only later in her life, in 1846, that she began to publish her music under her own married name, Fanny Hensel.