ABSTRACT
Although the experiences of her mother’s death and her break with Boulanger were painful for Talma, they gave her a certain amount of freedom she had not previously enjoyed. For the first time, she did not have to worry about wooing or pleasing Boulanger with her compositions, cater to Boulanger and her friends in hopes of receiving commissions, construct her teaching and composing time around her mother’s needs, or answer to anyone about her life and career. She was free to pursue commissions, awards, prizes, and publication for her works that would have previously been vetted or controlled by Boulanger, she could develop new friendships and alliances, and she could take the time to spend long periods during the summer months composing rather than teaching at the Conservatoire Américain.
