Musicians, Students, Listeners: Women and the Conservatoire in pre-war Paris and St Petersburg

The masculine façade of the music Conservatoire belies the extent to which these establishments fostered close relationships between women. This article analyses the student cohorts of the Paris and St Petersburg Conservatoires in the early twentieth century, to show that women made up a formidable presence and created supportive communities within these institutional frameworks. It argues that these relationships not only facilitated women’s involvement in public cultural life, but also impacted their private experience of music and listening, as illustrated by the close musical bond between sisters and conservatoire alumnae, Lili and Nadia Boulanger.