ROSY WERTHEIM
LANCELOET: DRIE VOORSPELEN
Conducted by Shelley Katz using the MicroSymphonova
Voorspel 1e bedrijf – Andante
Voorspel 2e bedrijf – Andante quasi andantino
Voorspel 3e bedrijf – Allegro molto ma non agitato
Lanceloet: Drie Voorspelen Rosy Wertheim hardly ever dated her manuscripts. When and for what occasion Lanceloet – Drie voorspelen was composed remains unknown, nor was this work ever published. In the second movement, Wertheim uses themes from her string quartet written in Paris in 1935. In an article in the Haagsche Courant of 5th October 1936, Lanceloet – Drie voorspelen is mentioned as one of her compositions. It is thus very likely that Rosy Wertheim composed this piece during her stay in Paris. In addition to the manuscript scores and parts for flute, violin, viola and cello, the Wertheim archives also contain a piano reduction of a version for orchestra. This version for string orchestra is based on the parts of the flute quartet and the piano reduction. With very minor changes, this version for string orchestra is also suitable for amateur string players.
Carine Alders
Rosy Wertheim (1888-1949) studied composition with Sem Dresden in Amsterdam. She was one of the first women in the Netherlands to complete a professional music and composition education. In 1921, she was employed at the Amsterdam Music Lyceum, where she taught piano and music theory until 1929. In 1929, Wertheim moved to Paris, where she worked hard and met many musicians and artists. Her apartment was a meeting place for prominent French composers like Milhaud, Honegger, Messiaen, Jolivet and Ibert. She took composition lessons with Louis Aubert and developed a profound friendship with the composer Elsa Barraine. In 1935, she moved to Vienna to continue her studies with Karl Weigl. The following year she moved to New York, where she was active in the Composers’ Forum Laboratory, aimed to bring contemporary music to the public’s attention. In 1937, Rosy Wertheim returned to Amsterdam. She survived the war in hiding, but died of cancer in 1947.
Carine Alders
Image Source: Leo Smit Foundation
