Composer Maria von Paradis
Life and Works of Blind Austrian Pianist-Composer & Friend of Mozart
A brief look at the life and career of Maria Theresa von Paradis, a blind piano virtuoso and composer who was a friend of Mozart.
Maria Theresa von Paradis was born at Vienna in 1759, the daughter of Joseph Anton von Paradis, Imperial Secretary of Commerce to Empress Maria Theresa, and unfortunately met with an accident in her fourth year which rendered her sightless for life. She showed musical talent at a very early age, and her parents were encouraged to provide an atmosphere in which she could experiment with her musical aptitude. The best available teachers were engaged and she flourished in this environment in spite of her disability.
When she was eleven years old, Maria sang, in public, the soprano solos from Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, accompanying herself on the organ. This performance was heard by the Empress Maria Theresa, who was so enthusiastic about the young girl's talent that she saw to it that the finest teachers were put at her disposal.
Public Performances
Under the tutelage of her new teachers ( Carl Friberth; Leopold Kozeluch; Vincenzo Righini; Anton Salieri and Abbe Vogler), she made rapid progress and soon embarked on a number of concert tours, receiving warm receptions wherever she went. During a visit to Paris, she performed at the Concerts Spirituelles, and played often in private for Queen Marie Antoinette. She had many performances before royalty in Germany and England and retired from concert life in the 1790's to devote her time to teaching and composition.
Amazing Memory
It has been acknowledged that von Paradis (sometimes spelled Paradies), had a phenomenal memory. Her repertoire was said to have included sixty piano concertos and innumerable smaller works, all played accurately from memory. She was able to dictate her compositions without need for revisions, and they received praise from some of the great musicians of her time. Her friend, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart dedicated his Piano Concerto in B-Flat Major, K.456 to her.
Compositions
Her body of works includes a fairy opera, "Rinaldo and Alcina," a pastoral operetta, "Der Schulcandidat," and a melodrama, "Ariadne and Bacchus." Her other works encompass sonatas and variations for the piano , a piano trio, some cantatas and songs. She had a very successful career as a teacher of piano and voice and established, in 1898, her own music school for handicapped students.
One of her most famous compositions is "Sicilienne," for violin and piano, which is still performed in recital.
Whever female composers are written about, the name of Maria Theresa von Paradis is always mentioned, partly because of her friendship with Mozart but also for the qualitry of her compositional output. Paradis died in Vienna in 1824.
For further reading about women composers see Eugenie Rocherolle, Pianist-Composer Mana-Zucca and Composer Gena Branscombe.
Sources
Women of Notes, by Anya Laurence. Richards Rosen Press, NYC, 1978.
Woman's Work in Music, by Arthur Elson, L.C.Page & Company , Boston , 1903.
