News and Music to start your week!
A great new episode of Listening To Ladies is ready to educate, enlighten, and entertain! The conversation with with Sakari Dixon Vanderveer. Check out the website for more information, music, and links – and stream the episode below:
The Guardian looks at a recent report that 95% of concerts performed by classical music organizations around the world completely ignore the work of women. Mark Brown, Arts Correspondent, talks to composer Emily Hall, and Gabriella Di Laccio, the founder of the new organization Donne: Women and Music, about their work and the changes that they advocate.
Inge Kloepfer provides an insightful article in the Frankfurter Allgemeinen that looks at the larger issues surrounding the sexism that continues to pervade the musical scene — it is all part of the larger, pervasive patriarchy. — “CULT OF MALE GENIUS: Classical is so sexist.” Here is a PDF of the article.
It seems that a long standing – and ridiculous – policy at the New York Philharmonic requiring women to wear skirts in performance may be coming to an end. The New York Philharmonic is the only ensemble among America’s 20 largest orchestras to have such a policy — what a surprising thing to have such an archaic dress code in organization that represents an innovative and sophisticated city. The New York Times has the story.
Alex Ross shares on his blog, The Rest is Noise, a video of composer Galina Ustvolskaya sitting in a rehearsal. The link is to a video about the world premiere of the Ustvolskaya’s Symphony № 2 (1979). Ustvolskaya was at one point a student of Shostakovitch but her own musical idiom evolved into something powerful and unique, uncompromisingly modern and astringent, and — in a positive way, never pleasant.
Next week in Boston, OperaHub presents DIVAS — a hilarious and poignant showcase of larger-than-life women whose voices reverberate across the centuries. Inspired by divas’ extraordinary contributions to music, fashion, and the political and economic progress of women, DIVAS asks: what is the power of opera? Can women harness it to new ends? DIVAS is a new play by Laura Neill, with music from operas from “Purcell to Pucinni,” but we hear that some Florence Price is included, too! The play runs June 21 – 30. 
We’d love to hear about what’s happening with you and the world of women in music! Drop us a line at [email protected].