I read with interest an article by Diana Ambache in the November issue of Classical Music magazine about the (often sadly lacklustre) profile of female composers past and present. Earlier this year I acquired a Schott publication called Klaviermusik von Komponistinnen - a collection of 24 pieces by both familiar and more obscure female composers from the 18th century to the 1980s. It's a great collection with some absolutely wonderful pieces, including Maria Szymanowska's Nocturne in B flat . For further information on female composers and their works, Ambache has set up the Ambache Charitable Trust to promote women composers and support performances of such works; plus the online resource Women of Note which provides biographical and catalogue details of a range of composers.
The varied musings of a music maniac...