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In this Essay series, musicologist Natasha Loges shines the spotlight on five women pianists from across the globe. Each woman faced difference challenges, not only of gender and race, but also social class, sexuality and family responsibilities. Each life unfolded against a tumultuous background of World Wars, the Cultural Revolution and the Vietnam War. These women confronted personal and professional challenges – often controversially – to find creative fulfilment as musicians.

Programme 1: Wanda Landowska

Polish harpsichordist Wanda Landowska (1879–1959) made the first recording of the Goldberg Variations in 1933 and played a huge role in reviving the popularity of the harpsichord in the early 20th century. Her colourful life took her to Berlin, Paris and eventually to the US where she lived openly with her female partner, Denise Restout. Historian and biographer Annegret Fauser brings details from Ladowska's unpublished diaries to life, and we hear extracts from Landowska’s recordings.