Mayer, Notturno

Before moving on from the nocturne (the subject of the last two entries in this series), I want to consider an example by Emilie Mayer (1812-1883). Mayer was recognized in her lifetime as a fine composer. Robert Schumann was among those who called her a brilliant talent. She was the first woman to conduct the Berlin Philharmonic in a performance of one of her works. But her compositions were overshadowed by those of her male counterparts. Recent efforts to rediscover the works of women composers has rekindled interest in her compositions.

While only two years younger than Chopin, she lived quite a while after Chopin’s death and might be considered in some ways to represent the next generation. Born in Brandenburg, Germany, she was taught by her father who was a church musician. She later studied with Carl Loewe. She lived most of her life in Berlin.

There have been many composers of nocturnes after Field and Chopin, and Mayer was not primarily known for her nocturnes. She wrote in many genres, producing 15 symphonies, 9 string quartets, and, not surprisingly having studied with Loewe, numerous Lieder.

Composers in the decades following Chopin naturally took the nocturne into some new directions. This nocturne retains the the prominence of a lyrical melody and, at least for a significant portion of the work, the nighttime mood. But the interplay of the violin and piano and a more robust atmosphere clearly contrast with Field and Chopin.

There is some confusion in the list of works by Emilie Mayer. At least one publication lists this as opus 46. Another source indicates no opus numbers above 47. Without trying to sort that out (not really our concern here) I will just include the cover sheet showing it as opus 48 and dated 1883.