Where Are the Female Composers?

Author's Note:  Too often we shy away from discussing gender bias in the field of composition.  We are silent for many reasons, including the fact that we don’t want to upset the countless teachers and peers who have been supportive to us and who have never displayed any sort of prejudice.  Please know that this discussion is about an ingrained culture and we are forever grateful to those who support us and treat us fairly. 

As female composers, none of us want to come off as “whiners,” “victims,” etc.  Nor do we want to feel that our achievements are due to affirmative action or, even worse, sexuality.  In her last post, Sarah shared an important quote by Jill Halstead that addresses a fallacy that composers, male and female alike, reference far too often: the idea that if a female composer’s music is really strong it will speak for itself. 

Competition Winners and Gender: What's Up with That?

Like most young composers I know, I apply to composition competitions, awards, festivals, etc. all the time.  I have a lot to say on the subject of these competitions, but today I want to talk about the gender breakdown of the winners. Specifically, that time and again, it seems that a disproportionate number of winners are male.

RIP, Milton Babbitt

A few articles on the great composer Milton Babbitt:

January 31, 2011:
The Baltimore Sun, Tim Smith:  On the Death of Milton Babbitt at 94 

January 29, 2011:
Sequenza21:  Milton Babbitt, RIP

January 29, 2011:
The New York Times, Allan Kozinn: Milton Babbitt, a Composer Who Gloried in Complexity, Dies at 94

January 29, 2011:
NewMusicBox.org: Milton Babbitt (1916-2011)

Writing with a Purpose

In the past couple weeks, Sarah and I have been discussing harmony, specifically trying to defend the use of tonality (in its broad definition) and melodies (both “tonal” and abstract) in new music.  In adding to this, I want to discuss the idea of harmonically purposeful composing.

Why is Melody a Dirty Word?

I was sitting in a composition seminar one day when a fellow composer presented a piece that was fairly atonal (meaning there was no tonal center, or key- see Natalie's previous post on tonality for a brief explanation). The discussion after the piece was presented focused largely on whether or not there was a melody at one point, which clearly outraged several of my colleagues. Part of the problem was that they felt a melody didn't fit in the piece based on the rest of its contents, which may have been a perfectly valid point. But a few disparaging comments about melody were made, and that bothered me. What's wrong with a good melody? And what have melodies done to deserve our wrath?

The “Tonal” Composer

I know we’re long past the days of the mid-20th century, when serialism and high modernism reigned in the American academy. Yet, despite the academy’s relatively more recent embracing of minimalism and post-modernism, you still run into people here and there who suggest that there’s no place for tonality in the art music of today.

Happy New Year!

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