September 13th marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Clara Schumann. In celebration of this remarkable pianist, teacher, composer, wife, and mother of eight, I’ll be especially conscious of honoring the achievements of women in music all month long on The Classical Network, with works by female composers, ranging from the 12th century to the present.

Of course, with few exceptions, women did not enjoy the same advantages as men, in terms of education and acceptance, so it is unlikely that many fulfilled their natural promise.

Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677) and Francesca Caccini (1587-after 1641) were notable exceptions, at least to some extent.

Today’s Noontime Concert on The Classical Network will be devoted to music by these two remarkable women. “Enchanting Voices: Music of Barbara Strozzi & Francesca Caccini” will be performed by the Canzonetta Duo, Elissa Edwards, soprano, and Richard Kolb, theorbo and archlute.

The concert was presented on November 15, 2018, at St. Bartholomew’s Church, 325 Park Avenue, in Midtown Manhattan, where free concerts are held every Thursday at 1:15 p.m. The 2019-2020 season gets underway this Thursday, as The Vivaldi Project will perform a program of classical string trios.

These concerts are made possible in part by Gotham Early Music Scene, or GEMS. GEMS is a non-profit corporation that supports and promotes artists and organizations in New York City devoted to Early Music. For more information and a look at GEMS’ events calendar, visit gemsny.org.

Following today’s broadcast concert, stick around for an afternoon of works by musical women.

Julia Wolfe was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music for “Anthracite Fields” in 2015. The oratorio, composed for the Bang on a Can All-Stars and the Mendelssohn Club Chorus, was given its premiere in Philadelphia the previous year. “Anthracite Fields” examines the plight of Northeastern Pennsylvania coal miners, a topic of particular interest to me, since my father’s father’s family labored in the mines of Pittston. The work was presented at the Roebling Wire Works in Trenton by Westminster Choir in 2017. On this day after Labor Day, we’ll hear a complete performance of the piece in its world premiere recording.

We’ll also enjoy a very impressive Serenade in D – really more of a symphony – by composer and hell-raising suffragette Dame Ethel Smyth. Smyth served time in prison for putting out the windows of politicians who opposed a woman’s right to vote. When Sir Thomas Beecham went to visit her in jail, he found her conducting her associates through the bars of her window with a toothbrush as they sang “The March of the Women,” also composed by Smyth, while gathering for exercise in the prison courtyard.

These women were nothing if not composed. Join me for musical contributions by women, all month long. They’ll punctuate my programming, beginning this afternoon from 12 to 4 p.m. EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: Clara Schumann, Barbara Strozzi, Julia Wolfe, and Ethel Smyth (under arrest)