Johanna Senfter (1879-1961)

Kate Molleson & Nastasha Loges explore the life and music of
Johanna Senfter.


If you know the name Johanna Senfter, it is probably in
connection with her teacher, the composer, Max Reger. Senfter won
the Arthur Nikisch prize for composition in 1910, and went on to
be one of the most prolific of all late-Romantic female
composers, writing at least 150 works, yet she has all but
disappeared from our history books. In between the two World Wars
she was very active within the world of music too, founding the
Oppenheim Music Society, organizing her own concert series and
founding the Oppenheim Bach Society. However, her personal life
is shrouded in mystery with little information published about
either her biography, or her music, and there are substantial
gaps in her story when we know nothing about Senfter.
Unsurprisingly then, there are also questions hanging over
certain elements of her personal life, and her political
allegiances. Over the course of this week, Kate Molleson is
joined by Professor Natasha Loges to explore the life of Johanna
Senfter. They also examine the tumultuous world of early 20th
Century Germany in which Senfter was working, and speculate on
the reasons for her anonymity today.


Music Featured:


Suite for two violins No 2 (Menuet) Symphony No 4 (2nd mvt) Drei
Klavierstucke, op 77 Violin Sonata in G minor, Op 32 (4th mvt)
Trio for clarinet, horn and piano (3rd mvt) Vogelweise Clarinet
Quintet (2nd mvt) Symphony No 4 (3rd mvt) Viola Sonata No 1 in F
minor, Op 41 (3rd mvt) Chorale Preludes, Op 70 (Nos 4, 2 & 9)
Sonata for cello in A Major, Op 10 (4th mvt) Suite for two
violins No 91 No 2 (1st mvt) 5 pieces for viola and piano, Op 76
(No 5) Piano Concerto in G minor, Op 90 (3rd mvt) 6 Little Pieces
for violin and piano, Op 13 (No 3 Elegie) Sonata for cello and
piano in E flat major, Op 79 (2nd mvt) Clarinet Sonata (3rd mvt)
Drei Klavierstucke Op 83, No 1 Sonata for violin and piano in A
major, Op 26 (4th mvt) Concerto in C minor for two violins and
orchestra, Op 40 5 pieces for viola and piano, Op 76
(Weihnachten. In ruhiger Bewegung) Piano Concerto in G minor, Op
90 (1st mvt) Suite for two violins No 1 (Courante) Piano Concerto
in G minor, Op 90 (2nd mvt) Symphony 4 (1st mvt) Quintet for
clarinet and string quartet in B, Op 11 (3rd mvt) 6 Little
Pieces, for violin and piano (No 1, Melodie) Mazurka: Allegretto


Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Sam Phillips for BBC Audio
Wales and West


For full track listings, including artist and recording details,
and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after
broadcast) head to the series page for Johanna Senfter
(1879-1961) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001wqp7


And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve
featured on Composer of the Week here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z