Woman at a Piano (Signora al pianoforte), Giovanni Boldini, circa 1870.
Public-domain image via Wikimedia Commons.
Resources
The resources below offer pathways to discover women composers, find scores, listen to their music, and
explore the historical record. Each organization has its own focus; some resources are primarily in French,
and not every catalogue record links to a freely downloadable score. Please check individual sites for
current access, availability, and publication information.
Discover Women Composers
Présence Compositrices — Demandez à Clara |
https://www.presencecompositrices.com/
A searchable resource devoted to women composers across eras and nationalities. Explore composer
and work records, discover repertoire, and follow references to editions and other resources.
Primarily French-language; useful for broad repertoire discovery.
Boulanger Initiative Database (BID) |
https://www.boulangerinitiative.org/database/database-info
An open-access database of works by historical women and gender-marginalized composers. Search by
composer, instrumentation, ensemble, voice type, language, publication date, or publisher, and follow
links to scores and recordings.
https://rism.online/
An international catalogue for locating historical musical sources, including manuscripts and printed
editions, and identifying libraries and collections that hold them.
Explore French Women Composers
Association Mel Bonis |
https://www.mel-bonis.com/EN/Accueil/
A specialist resource for Mel Bonis, with biographical information, a catalogue of works, research
materials, recordings, and information about published scores.
Palazzetto Bru Zane — Compositrices |
https://bru-zane.com/en/pubblicazione/compositrices/
A major project exploring French Romantic women composers through recordings and related
resources. The Bru Zane Mediabase also provides research materials and archival documentation.
Explore the Mediabase: https://www.bruzanemediabase.com/en
Christine Géliot — Mel Bonis: The Woman and the Composer (1858-1937) |
https://www.furore-verlag.de
Christine Géliot's comprehensive biography explores the life, musical career, and legacy of French composer Mel Bonis. Long available in French, this important work is now available in English, making Géliot's research accessible to a wider international audience. An essential resource for anyone wishing to understand Bonis not only as a composer, but also as a woman navigating the musical and social world of her time.
Florence Launay — Les compositrices en France au XIXe siècle |
https://www.fayard.fr/
Florence Launay’s landmark study offers a broad scholarly account of women composers in nineteenth-
century France and is an important starting point for researching the composers featured by MBP.
Search the publisher’s catalogue by the full book title to confirm current edition and availability.
Library of Congress — French Women and Feminists in History |
https://guides.loc.gov/feminism-french-women-history/famous/mel-bonis
An English-language research guide that includes Mel Bonis and offers a route into further library and
archival resources.
Find Scores and Historical Sources
IMSLP / Petrucci Music Library |
https://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Female_composers
A large online library of public-domain scores and other music materials. Search composer pages for
available scores, parts, and recordings; check the rights and access information for each item.
Gallica — Bibliothèque nationale de France |
The French National Library’s digital library provides access to historical printed music, manuscripts,
books, periodicals, photographs, and other primary sources.
https://catalogue.bnf.fr/
Use the catalogue to verify publication details, locate library holdings, and trace editions. A catalogue
record confirms bibliographic information but does not always provide a downloadable score.
Publishers and Scores for Purchase
Éditions Fortin-Armiane |
https://www.fortin-armiane.fr/
A French publisher and source for editions of Mel Bonis’s music, including repertoire for piano, voice,
chamber ensembles, and other forces. Check the catalogue for current editions and ordering details.
https://furore-verlag.de/
A music publisher specializing in works by women composers, with repertoire spanning historical
periods, instruments, and genres.
Hildegard Publishing Company |
https://www.hildegard.com/
Publishes music by women composers, past and present, across a wide range of genres and ensembles.
Browse the catalogue for scores and collections.
Listen and Explore
Bru Zane Mediabase |
https://www.bruzanemediabase.com/en
Connect listening and performance with research through materials on French Romantic music,
including archival documents, biographies, and contextual information.
https://www.radiofrance.fr/francemusique
French public radio’s classical-music service offers programs, interviews, broadcasts, and
performances that can lead to further discoveries.
Spotify |
https://www.spotify.com
Explore recordings of 19th-century French women composers through Spotify's extensive music catalogue. Search by composer name to discover works for piano, voice, chamber ensembles, and orchestra. Recording availability varies, but each search offers an opportunity to encounter music that deserves to be heard.
https://www.lieder.net
Explore an extensive database of art song and vocal music texts, with translations into multiple languages. Search by composer, poet, song title, or first line to discover vocal repertoire and explore the poetry behind the music. Especially useful for singers, voice teachers, and collaborative pianists researching French mélodies and other art songs.
Using These Resources
A useful search often moves through several stages: discover a composer or work; verify bibliographic
details; locate a digital or printed source; then determine whether the available edition is practical for
study, teaching, or performance. A record in a catalogue is not always the same as an accessible score, and a digital scan may require additional editorial work before it is easy to use.
The Mel Bonis Project offers this selection as a curated starting point. Links are provided for research and
discovery; inclusion does not imply endorsement of every resource or guarantee that every score is free, in print, or available in a usable edition.