Polish Female Composers in the Nineteenth Century

The article discusses the activities of selected women-composers who worked in Poland in the 19th century. They have been presented in a broad social-political context. Specific historical conditions have been taken into account, which have contributed to the perception of women’s creativity as a mission. The model of women’s activity discussed in the categories of social and political mission influenced the shape and forms of Polish women’s creativity in the first half of the century. In the second half of the century, women’s access to education increased and finally a milieu of professional women-composers emerged. Among them, we should distinguish the group of women born into musical families, due to the fact that some among them took up the profession of composer.