Mel Bonis at age 27
Painting by Charles-Auguste Corbineau (1885)
French composer Melanie Bonis (1858-1937) studied harmony with Ernest Guiraud and organ with César Franck at the Paris Conservatoire. In 1879, she won second prize in accompaniment and harmony, and in 1880, she was awarded first prize in harmony.
Writing under the pseudonym Mel-Bonis, her composition career began to flourish in the 1890s. Most of her 300 compositions were published, and her output includes 20 chamber works, 150 piano pieces, 27 choral compositions, organ music, songs, and orchestral works. Her notebooks were published in 1974 as Souvenirs et réflexions.
Resources
Sources
Tsou, Judy. “Bonis, Mélanie (Hélène).” Grove Music Online. 2001.
Works Featured on Expanding the Music Theory Canon
Gai Printemps
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Page: Passing Tone
Carillon Mystique
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Page: Pedal
Viennoise
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Pages: Secondary Function, Modulation, Period
Viennoise, Op. 8
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Page: Modulation