The Instrumentalist by Harriet Constable
- Dec 15, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 22
Harriet Constable’s The Instrumentalist is a tense and atmospheric debut novel that unravels the mystery of a young woman’s disappearance in contemporary London. Blending psychological suspense with sharp social observation, the book follows a journalist who becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth about a missing musician whose life was marked by ambition, secrecy, and exploitation. Constable weaves a narrative that examines power, gender dynamics, and the hidden costs of artistic pursuit, while keeping readers gripped with mounting tension.
Harriet Constable’s The Instrumentalist: Reviving a Forgotten Musical Prodigy
Though countless talented women have performed and composed music in Europe over the centuries, few are remembered in the classical canon. Why have their names and works vanished from history?
The reasons are numerous. Women were often barred from public performances and saddled with domestic responsibilities, leaving them little time to pursue creative work. Musical opportunities were also limited—certain instruments were deemed inappropriate for women, such as the “lascivious” cello or the “unflattering” flute. Even when women made significant artistic contributions, they were frequently dismissed as muses rather than recognized as creators in their own right.
A Forgotten Genius Reimagined
Harriet Constable’s debut novel, The Instrumentalist, explores these historical injustices through the story of Anna Maria della Pietà, an 18th-century Venetian violinist and composer. As a favorite pupil of the celebrated composer Antonio Vivaldi, Anna Maria was a star in her time—but her legacy was eventually erased. In The Instrumentalist, Constable reclaims her story, imagining the life and struggles of this remarkable, forgotten figure.
A Life Shaped by Adversity
Anna Maria was born in Venice in 1696 and abandoned as an infant at the Ospedale della Pietà, an orphanage known for its extraordinary girls’ orchestra, the figlie di coro. Led by Vivaldi, these orphans defied societal norms by earning incomes, collecting treasures, and performing for European royalty—a rarity for women in their era. Among these gifted musicians, Anna Maria emerged as a singular talent, eventually becoming the orphanage’s master of music.
Despite her fame, little is known about Anna Maria’s personal life. Constable bridges historical gaps with richly imagined scenes, crafting an origin story often denied to women in history. In a harrowing opening, baby Anna Maria survives her mother’s postpartum despair: “She is a raging firestorm of a thing, and she cannot hold it back.” That relentless will becomes the driving force behind Anna Maria’s journey.
Music as a Lifeline and Prison
Deprived of parental care, Anna Maria finds refuge in music—but at a steep cost. Under Vivaldi’s tutelage, she flourishes musically while enduring emotional manipulation. Constable’s portrayal of Vivaldi is anything but idealized: he is moody, self-serving, and resentful of Anna Maria’s talent, even as he depends on her to enhance his compositions.
For Anna Maria, music is both a lifeline and a trap. She is haunted by the fear of being discarded into a life of servitude, like other girls deemed unfit for the orchestra. Her only path to freedom is artistic excellence—a pursuit marked by sacrifice, survival, and self-discovery.
Bringing Music to the Page
Capturing music in written form is a daunting challenge, yet Constable skillfully makes it a vivid, sensory experience. Anna Maria perceives music as colors, emotions, and stories. During her first concert, “the notes come, splashing and luminous. A bolt of orange here, a dash of magenta there.” The music becomes more than sound—it is a living, breathing presence, almost a character of its own.
A Feminist Reckoning Through Fiction
While Anna Maria’s technical prowess is undeniable, her gender keeps her perpetually under Vivaldi’s thumb. “You are, after all, a girl, a woman. What did you think? That you were going to take a place in history as one of the greatest composers of all time?” he sneers, embodying a society bent on dismissing women’s achievements.
The Instrumentalist is more than a historical retelling—it is a feminist reckoning, examining how talent, ambition, and resilience clash against systemic barriers. Anna Maria’s fight for artistic recognition resonates far beyond her era, making Constable’s novel both a compelling drama and a timely meditation on creative identity.
An Engrossing Musical Legacy Reclaimed
Constable’s The Instrumentalist tells a gripping tale of survival, ambition, and artistic triumph. By resurrecting the life of Anna Maria della Pietà, Constable offers a long-overdue acknowledgment of a brilliant musician nearly lost to history. The novel is a masterful blend of fact and fiction—a symphony of creativity that ensures Anna Maria’s story will be heard for generations to come.
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