Maria Herz
• Maria Herz is one of the few women who made a name for themselves as a composer in the early 20th century
• Married the Cologne chemist Albert Herz in 1901, with whom she lived near Manchester
• Gave concerts there with commentary, in which she appeared as a pianist, composer and speaker
• Surprised by the outbreak of war during a visit to Germany in 1914, the family was unable to return and remained in Cologne
• Widowed in 1920, Maria Herz moved with her children to her brother’s house and as a composer increasingly oriented herself towards modern trends
• Threatened as a Jew, she moved with a son to London in 1935, later to Birmingham and New York
• Wrote songs, chamber music, solo concertos and orchestral works, partly under the name “Albert Maria Herz”, also left behind numerous writings on music history
Maria Herz’s works include:
Piano Concerto op.4
String Quartet in B minor op.6
Four Short Orchestral Pieces op.8 (1929)
Suite for Orchestra op.13 (1929)