Renié, Henriette, 1875-1956

Françoise des Varennes (1919-2004) was the goddaughter of Henriette Renié. She was a musically talented harpist but was more passionate about her writing. She wrote many poems, novels, and the biography on Renié.

From birth, Françoise des Varennes was a part of the Renié household. Her grandmother, Louise Regnier, was a close friend of Henriette Renié. Upon Regnier's death, des Varennes chose to stay with her godmother, Henriette Renié. Renié then raised her as her own daughter. Françoise had two passions in life: her literary and historical work, and preserving the memory of Renié and her work. des Varennes made many recordings of Renié playing and in 1975, the centennial of the birth of Henriette Renié, she contributed some of these recordings to the LP Henriette Renié Playing Her Own Works and Transcriptions. She also gave a biographical talk about Renié at the AHS Conference honoring the 200th anniversary. This later led to her book, Henriette Renié, La Harpe Vivante.

Henriette Renié (1875-1956) was a prominent French harpist. She significantly influenced the development of the harp as a solo concert instrument through her efforts in composition, transcription, pedagogy and performance.

At only age five, Henriette Renié knew exactly what she wanted to do. She attended a concert by Alphonse Hasselmanns and afterward said to her father, "That man is going to be my harp teacher." She then began to study the harp, and in 1887, at age eleven, Renié won the Premier Prix for harp at the Paris Conservatory. She eventually composed twenty-three works, such as Concerto en Ut Mineur, and Légende. She also produced twelve collections of transcriptions for solo harp and ninety-six for harp ensembles. Renié dedicated her life to teaching others. Her famous Méthode pour la harpe has helped her to teach some of the most prominent harpists, including Susann McDonald, Mildred Dilling, Marcel Grandjany, and Carlos Salzedo. She received the prestigious Legion of Honor and was one of the first women to receive this award. Renié never married, but cared for her mother Gabrielle, her brother François, her best friend Louise Regnier, and her goddaughter (Regnier's granddaughter) Françoise des Varennes. She helped to set up the Petite Caisse des Artistes, a non-profit organization which was dedicated to helping struggling musicians and artists anonymously. She made a mark on music and the culture of the early twentieth century, when a woman's role in society was generally to be a wife and mother. Throughout her years of teaching, composing, arranging, and performing, Renié gained the respect of Gabriel Fauré, Claude Debussy, Théodore Dubois, Camille Saint-Säens and others. She continued to perform despite persistent health problems until about six months before her death on March 1, 1956.

From the guide to the Henriette Renié and Françoise des Varennes papers, 1875-1994, (L. Tom Perry Special Collections)