Many concerts follow a similar format: an overture, then a concerto, followed by the interval, with a symphony to finish. Of course,  concerts can and do break free from this configuration, particularly when it comes to composer anniversaries. For many different reasons, where a violin concerto is programmed, the ”giants” of the genre are reliable and relied upon. They are popular for a reason - the ”Big Five” violin concertos by Beethoven, Bruch, Brahms, Mendelssohn & Tchaikovsky are performed regularly. No less performed are any of the five written by Mozart, or indeed the Sibelius concerto, or Vivaldi's nearly ubiquitous The four seasons.

But when was the last time you heard, live in concert, a violin concerto by any of Adams, Barber, Berg, Bartók, Corigliano, Glass, Khachaturian, Korngold, or Lutoslawski♭ or, indeed, Prokofiev, Saint-Saëns, Schnittke, or Shostakovich♭ These are all ”big name” composers with other works regularly performed on the concert platform!

In fact, there are many violin concertos to be found when venturing off the beaten path. With just a little lateral thinking, other violin concertos come to mind, including works by Arensky, Berwald, Conus, Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Finzi, Martinu, Chevalier de Meude-Monpas, Myaskovsky, Matthias, Piston, Szymanowski, Tveitt and Vaughan Williams. Busoni, Gál, Galamian, Hartmann, McCabe, Pritchard, Robert Schumann, Schwertsik, Rautavaara, Sawyers and Weinberg also wrote violin concertos.

Female Composers

What is particularly stark is the vanishingly small number of violin concertos written by female composers that are regularly performed. This theme is much in keeping with our previous post, Women in Publication: A Sampling.

Interestingly, in researching this post, we came across Madison Ryan, a recent graduate of the University of Miami's Frost School of Music, who presented part of her doctoral research on violin concertos by women. In a talk at the 2025 ASTA Conference conference, Ryan described how, throughout much of history, many women lacked the socio-economic power to compose large-scale pieces and lacked access to large ensembles such as orchestras. Therefore, female composers tended to write a lot of chamber music and solo works, which were easier to perform in the domestic spheres they occupied.

Violin Concertos

Here is a non-exhaustive list of some of the female composers who have composed violin concertos (ordered by birth year):

Maddalena Laura Lombardini Sirmen (1745-1818), Six Violin Concertos, Op. 3

Amanda Röntgen-Maier (1853-1894), Violin Concerto in D minor - a single movement piece approximately 19 minutes long.

Florence Price (1887-1953), wrote two violin concertos, the second of which was performed more widely in her lifetime.

Ina Boyle (1889-1967), Violin Concerto

Margaret Sutherland (1897-1984), Violin Concerto

Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969), wrote seven violin concertos.

Ruth Gipps (1921-1999), Violin Concerto, Op.24

Julia Perry (1924-1979), Violin Concerto

Sofia Gubaidulina (1931-2025), Offertorium, Concerto for violin and orchestra - Gubaidulina also wrote a triple concerto for violin, cello, bayan, and orchestra.

Shulamit Ran (1949-present), Violin Concerto

Kaija Saariaho's (1952-2023), Graal théâtre, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra is dedicated to the violinist Gidon Kremer.

Unsuk Chin (1961-present), Violin Concerto No.1

Jennifer Higdon (1962-present), Concerto for Violin and Orchestra was written for the violinist Hilary Hahn.

Missy Mazzoli's (1980-present), Violin Concerto (Procession)

< Back to Barbican Chimes in the City of London
< Back to Chimes Revisits ”Women in Publication: A Sampling”
< Back to Choosing An Edition: The Chimes Guide
< Back to Urtext Editions at Chimes
< Back to Instrument rentals at Chimes
< Back to Instruments at Chimes
< Back to Rare Breeds: The Chimes Guide
< Back to Back to School at Chimes
< Back to Exam Essentials at Chimes

Photocopies & downloads
Candidates should not perform from unauthorised photocopies (or other kinds of copies) or illegal downloads of copyright music in examinations. There are limited circumstances where copies can be used in the UK. The MPA's Code of Fair Practice gives further guidance. Before making a copy an application should be made to the copyright holder. Evidence of permission should be provided. Musicians must act within the law with regard to copyright.