Marianne Davies.

About Marianne Davies

Marianne Davies was an English classical musician, daughter of the composer and flautist Richard Davies and the sister of the soprano Cecilia Davies. She was a singer who also played flute and harpsichord. She was hailed as a child prodigy of the flute, and on April 7, 1751 at Hickford's Long Room, at the age of seven, played not only a concerto of her own composition on the flute, but also a harpsichord concerto by Handel. She was prevented from pursuing the flute by prevailing gendered stereotypes, as the flute was almost exclusively played by men. Performing in public on male-coded instruments, as Davies did on the flute at this time, was a highly radical act, so she switched to the glass harmonica.