Brico was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on June 26, 1902, but moved to California at the age of five.
She was the subject of a documentary movie. Antonia: A Portrait of the Woman in 1973.
Antonia Brico died in Denver, Colo., Aug. 3, 1989.
While a student at the University of California at Berkeley, she assisted the conductor Paul Steindorff. She studied piano with Sigismund Stojowski in New York, then went to Germany, where she attended the Berlin State Academy of Music.
Brico's first professional conducting appearance was with the Berlin Philharmonic in 1930. She made her American debut the same year with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. In 1934 she formed the New York Women's Symphony, partly to demonstrate that orchestral competence is not dependent on a person's sex. Though her sponsors included Albert Schweitzer and Jean Sibelius, her career subsequently sagged.
In 1973 Brico was the subject of a documentary movie. Antonia: A Portrait of the Woman. Its popularity resulted in a resurgence of her career, including engagements with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Minnesota Orchestra, and the National Symphony.
