A “Distinta Discípula” Maria das Dores Castanheira Guimarães: Formação e atuação de uma aluna do Conservatório de Música no Rio de Janeiro Oitocentista

Abstract

In this paper I provide an account about the Montevideo teacher Maria das Dores Castanheira Guimarães, one of the first women to study at the Music Conservatory of Rio de Janeiro. Based on Carlo Ginzburg’s microhistorical approach (1989) and the Jacques Revel’s jeux d’échelles (1998), I look for answers to the following questions: What do biographical traces left by a former student of the Conservatory can tell us about the visibility and the professional activity of women working in music during the second half of the 19th century? In what ways did the Conservatory, and its connection to the intellectual Francisco Manoel da Silva, impact the practice and teaching of music in the period, particularly in relation to women? The work of Maria das Dores suggests that women took part intensively and effectively in the music scene of the 19th century, and that the Conservatory and the work of Francisco Manoel da Silva played a role in their livelihoods and social mobility. This paper highlights the relevance of newspapers as a privileged source of data about the daily life of so-called “common people” and showcases a unique female life, uncovering details of 19^th-century musical practices that so far have been overlooked by historical narratives about the period.