The daughter of Martin Kleeberg and Henriette Cahn, natives of Germany, she was born in Paris.

She began taking private piano lessons at the age of five and later studied at the Conservatoire de Paris with Louise Massart [fr].

She performed her first concert in Paris in December 1878 in front of an audience of 4000 people.

As well as works by composers such as Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann and Chopin, she also played compositions by Cécile Chaminade, Camille Saint-Saëns, Friedrich Gernsheim, Max d'Ollone, Eduard Schütt and Ernst Eduard Taubert.

The French composer Camille Saint-Saëns considered her to be a brilliant pianist and Clara Schumann also commented favourably on her playing.