Bettine von Arnim

The daughter of a French mother and an Italian father, Bettine Brentano, a German poet, composer, singer and sculptor was one of the most versatile and flamboyant figures of the early 19th century. She received training in piano, singing and composition. Her style is very much improvisational. One of her co-students, Alois Bihler, seemed to be able to understand her musical thoughts perfectly well and was able to meet her with just the right chord during improvisation. Due to the colour of her voice she would have performed male roles – a remnant of the baroque period. In her personal appearance she refused to be the ideal feminine. She was close friends with many of the leading figures in the world of politics and the arts, a close friend and great admirer of Beethoven; Johanna Kinkel, Robert and Clara Schumann, Johannes Brahms, Franz Liszt and Joseph Joachim were among her closest friends. She was in close correspondence with Goethe and the Brothers Grimm belonged to the family circle. Brentano’s collections of letters, written in a fresh and direct style, provide a vivid picture of her life, the personalities and attitudes of her time. Bettine broke the restrictions that were usually allocated to women in the same way as she transgressed the rules of composition, but therefore gained a much more encompassing intellectual space for herself. She felt greatly drawn to the harmonic language of Liszt. Her versatility, intellect and enthusiasm reveal one of the most accomplished women of German Romanticism.