Hélène de Nervo de Montgeroult, 1764-1836, France
A brilliant virtuoso pianist and respected piano pedagogue whose life spanned the French Revolution, Hélène de Nervo de Montgeroult lived and composed throughout many social upheavals, the Reign of Terror, the transition from the harpsichord to the piano and from the Classical era to the Romantic. Montgeroult was the very first female professor of piano at the Paris Conservatory when it opened in 1795 and is credited with introducing Bach’s music to the conservatory syllabus. She was known for her expressive cantabile style of playing, which she patterned after famous Italian singers; she taught that the piano was capable of singing and imitating the singer’s breath by lifting the wrist at the end of phrases. She based her piano method, which includes 114 beautiful etudes, on this concept.
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