Three women pioneers

English Ethel Smyth (1858–1944) has been rediscovered in modern times, but was also prominent in her lifetime. She studied at the conservatory in Leipzig, where she met Dvorák, Tchaikovsky and Grieg. She was an acclaimed cultural personality, both as a composer and as one of the leaders of the suffragette movement. We hear the piano trio from 1880.

In the generation after Smyth, British-American Rebecca Clarke (1886–1979) was a pioneer among female composers, and her music has long been neglected. In her last 30 years, she barely composed anything. The piano trio from 1921 is one of her finest works, daring and original. A note of inspiration may be detected from the musical paintings of French Impressionists. 

On Swedish soil, Elfrida Andrée (1841–1929) was a role model who paved the way for future generations of women in music. She studied with Ludvig Norman and Niels W. Gade, and was an organist, conductor and composer. She wrote the Piano Quintet at age 24, an achievement that quickly landed her among the Swedish composer elite.

We hear concertmaster Joakim Svenheden; second concertmaster Patrik Swedrup; Pascal Siffert, who is section leader of the viola section; and solo cellist Marie Macleod. These philharmonic musicians are joined by versatile pianist Martin Sturfält, who is particularly well-known as a Stenhammar specialist.