Amy Beach was born in 1867. She was a child prodigy who already composed a few simple waltzes at the age of 4. When she was six years old, she gave her first solo concert, with music by Beethoven and Chopin. But also works that she had composed herself, says pianist Carol Ruiz from Maarssen: “Her mother was a pianist, not a professional, because that was not possible at the time. She did teach her.” But Amy also learned by studying hard and reading a lot of books. “She also analyzed all kinds of pieces. She actually learned everything herself and developed her own style. When you play it it sounds very natural, but when you see the sheet music you think that is difficult.”
Emancipation in classical music
