ROTHSCHILD, Mathilde Von

Hannah Mathilde von Rothschild was a German-Jewish baroness, composer and patron. Known to her family as ‘Matty’, she showed her musical talent early, being an excellent pianist and composer. Mathilde spent her childhood between Vienna and Frankfurt where the family lived just outside the city. Chopin taught various members of the Rothschild family, including Mathilde who would have taken lessons from him during one of her frequent visits to her cousins. Chopin was so impressed that even during his last illness, when he took few pupils, he found time for ‘the Rothschild girl’.

During the first 12 years of her marriage, Willy (her husband) and Mathilde divided their time between Naples and Frankfurt, but in 1861, they moved permanently to Frankfurt. Rothschild’s international lifestyle results in a rich and varied collection of songs; her exposure to the culture of mid-nineteenth century Paris is evident in her French songs while her German settings are testimony to her life in Frankfurt.

Mathilde’s work was published by the major houses of the day under her own name as ‘La Baronne Willy de Rothschild’ or ‘Freifrau Willy von Rothschild’. She was asked by many leading singers to compose for them, including Christine Nillson, Selma Kurz and Adelina Patti.