Emma Rush Illuminates 19th-Century Guitar Pioneer With The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten Album
Acclaimed classical guitarist Emma Rush, hailed as “one of Canada’s premier classical guitarists” (Vivascene Magazine), brings a forgotten icon to vibrant life with her latest album, The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten, available everywhere now. With a rare blend of historical depth, expressive mastery, and curatorial brilliance, Rush presents the first-ever album dedicated to 19th-century virtuosa Catharina Josepha Pratten, a woman whose legacy she is determined to restore.
“Pratten was so prolific as a performer, composer, educator, and publisher,” says Rush. “She taught Queen Victoria’s daughter, invented new music notation, and even tuned her guitar down to D—a hundred years before Black Sabbath did!” But despite her influence, Pratten has been “largely excluded from guitar history,” Rush notes. “I intend to set the record straight.”
The album features seven previously unrecorded works by Pratten alongside first recordings of music by her father Ferdinand Pelzer, her husband Robert Sidney Pratten, colleague Leonard Schulz, and student Frank Mott Harrison, and works by her contemporaries Francisco Tárrega, Giulio Regondi, and Ernest Shand. “I wanted an album that showed Pratten’s work in context—to give a picture of the guitar scene in London in the 1800s,” says Rush.
Rush recorded the album using two historically significant guitars associated with Pratten: one bearing Pratten’s personal signature, and the other a Boosey and Sons “Pratten model” from the 1850s, effectively making them the first-ever signature series guitars. “To hold and play instruments that she herself endorsed—it’s like reaching through time,” Rush reflects.
Highlights include “Absence,” which Rush calls her personal favourite: “It is a technically rich piece, but has such emotional depth and I find it really moving.” The single “Evening Song” showcases Pratten’s lyrical sensitivity and harmonic flair, demonstrating her gift for writing compact yet profoundly expressive works.
Rush is no stranger to uncovering hidden voices. Her 2020 release, Wake the Sigh, featured rare music by 19th-century women composers, while her 2023 album A Dream of Colour commissioned new works inspired by Canadian painter William Blair Bruce. With The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten, she extends her mission even further – connecting the dots between performance, research, and advocacy.
Rush’s international reputation continues to grow, with past performances at the Altamira Shanghai International Guitar Festival, Future Echoes in Sweden, and a cross-country tour aboard The Canadian. Her 2025–26 touring schedule will take her across Canada and into Europe, including the prestigious Iserlohn International Guitar Symposium in Germany and a U.K. tour.
A sought-after lecturer and festival director, Rush is Co-Director of GuitarFest West (Calgary), Director of Pigeon Lake Guitar Retreat and Hamilton Guitar Day (Ontario), and a collaborator with Wakefield Guitar Festival (Québec). Her work has been supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, and FACTOR.
The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten is not just a tribute—it’s a reclamation.
“She really defined the guitar in Britain for most of the 19th century,” says Rush. “And now, finally, she can take her rightful place in our musical memory.”
What was your first encounter with Catharina Pratten’s music or legacy — and what made you decide that she deserved a whole album of her own?
I started researching early guitar music written by women back in 2018, and Catharina Pratten was one of the most fascinating figures I came across. I’ve learned more and more about her since then and realised how incredibly influential she was as a guitarist, composer, educator, and more. She started performing when she was a young child and stayed active until her death – so she was working from about 1830 to 1895! She kept the guitar alive in Britain for all that time, and for me, really defines the century of guitar there. This album highlights Pratten’s music alongside that of her circle, and I hope it paints a picture of the guitar scene at that time and how connected Pratten was to all of it.
You’ve said Pratten was “largely excluded from guitar history.” Why do you think her name and music have been overlooked for so long?
Because she was a woman! We see this throughout music history: women who have extraordinary careers are written out of the history books. A great example is Dolores de Goñi, who was definitely the most famous guitarist in America in the mid-1800s, and has been almost completely forgotten. Or Clara Schumann – she was an incredible composer and unstoppable performer who has been largely remembered as the wife of composer Robert Schumann. Luckily, there are a lot of people working to correct these omissions… It’s not exactly rewriting history, but bringing a history that was always there back to life.
From teaching royalty to inventing notation and developing her own guitar model, Pratten was clearly ahead of her time. What aspect of her life or work surprised you most during your research?
It was very cool to learn that Pratten tuned her guitar down to D to get a richer sonority from the instrument. Some of my favourite metal bands do that to get a darker sound ,and I love it that Pratten was a hundred years ahead of them!
You recorded the album using two guitars historically linked to Pratten — that’s extraordinary. What was it like to play her music on instruments she actually knew and endorsed?
Playing those guitars is absolutely thrilling. I always feel like playing vintage guitars is a beautiful way to step back in time, and with these guitars, it’s a very special experience. I get goosebumps thinking that Pratten would have played these guitars herself. This album has been such a meaningful project for me, and to use these guitars added an extra level of depth to the experience – and of course, they sound fantastic.
What do you hope young guitarists — especially women — take away from learning about Catharina Pratten?
The guitar world, classical and otherwise, is a bit of a boys’ club. Pratten’s legacy is proof that women have always been important to the instrument and always will be. I want a guitar scene where everyone who wants to play the instrument can see they have a place there. I hope this album contributes to that!
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