La princesse de Polingac et Nadia Boulanger; les amies formidables

In her article “Nadia Boulanger and the Salon of the Princesse de Polignac,”¹ Jeanice Brooks argues that separating salon and concert hall culture as two seperate spheres in the development of music in 20th century France fails to critically interrogate the work of patrons such as Winaretta Singer a.k.a. La princesse de Polignac. 

Brooks is a Professor of Music at Southampton University where she teaches and mentors graduate students. Her PhD is in Musicology from Catholic University, and she holds a minor in French literature. Before teaching at Southampton, Brooks taught at Georgetown University and other positions in Europe. Brooks has done extensive research on Nadia Boulanger, especially looking at her personal papers. 

The focus on Boulanger in the article comes as no surprise based on Brooks’ expertise with her career and personal relationships. Understanding the reach and power that Polignac wielded is best understood in context with her contemporaries and how she interacted with those that she funded and organized. This article was particularly striking because it gets at the core of initial assumptions that come with reading the word “salon.” This is perhaps best illustrated by the photographs Brooks includes of the intense displays of wealth in Polignac’s enterprise, a 200-seat auditorium that is a far cry from typical images of the intimacy of small drawing rooms.

While Polignac is most commonly described in relational terms, or even referred to more as a place than as a person, la princesse comes alive most in the act of organizational power. Polignac appeared to thrive on detail and coordination, she was more of a living Google calendar than a living checkbook. 

Finding primary sources was more complicated than I initially expected, so as I continue to shape my letter about Winnaretta Singer, my success will come down to the amount of personal communication I can find between her and close key figures like Boulanger, part of the reason I found this article to be such a great jumping off point.