As we work through the data collected for our annual Repertoire Report, we also are intentional in collecting information about who is leading these performances and ensembles. The resistance of “top” orchestras to performing with a woman conductor has been well documented, for instance dating back to the agitation of some members of the Baltimore Philharmonic Orchestra against having to perform with Marin Alsop as the newly appointed Music Director. Though there are some visible efforts being made to create opportunities for women conductors, like The Linda and Mitch Hart Institute for Women Conductors hosted by the Dallas Opera, much work still needs to be done to create equitable spaces for women conductors. As recently as 2013, Vasily Petrenko was quoted in The Guardian as saying:
“[orchestras] react better when they have a man in front of them … a cute girl on a podium means that musicians think about other things.”
The article continued:
When conducted by a man, musicians encounter fewer erotic distractions, Vasily Petrenko claimed. “Musicians have often less sexual energy and can focus more on the music,” he said, adding that “when women have families, it becomes difficult to be as dedicated as is demanded in the business”.
While Petrenko later walked back his comments, suggesting that he was speaking only about women conductors in his home country of Russia, it’s unclear how that framework makes anything of what he says any better. Petrenko was also not the only recent commenter on the role of women conductors. In a 2013 interview with The New Yorker Yuri Temirkanov was quoted as saying:
The essence of the conductor’s profession is strength, the essence of a woman is weakness.
Though progress has been made since Marin Alsop first took the podium at BSO in 2006, there has only been two other women serving as Music Director of a top-tier symphony orchestra – Nathalie Stutzmann was appointed by the Atlanta Symphony in 2022, and Xian Zhang will begin her tenure at the Seattle Symphony in the 2025-2026 season.. As we consider the ways in which music is brought to concert stages, and the importance of representation as a whole, who chooses the music and who conducts the music are both important factors to consider.
In the 2025-2026 concert seasons a total of 156 conductors will lead the various ensembles of the top 21 US orchestra, the sample that we study. While many are engaged for single events, this number also includes Music Directors like Stutzmann, who will be leading 22 works in the coming season, and not all of those with Atlanta. Of the156 conductors leading concerts 34 are women, 21.8%.
Of the 1390 individual performances taking place, women are conducting 292, which is a total of exactly 21%.
Of the 132 works by women composers being heard this season, 30 are being conducted by women and 102 are being conducted by men. This means that women are conducting 22.7% of all performances of works by women composers – while not a dramatic number, it does demonstrate that women are conducting works by women composers at a higher rate.
In fact, when looking only at works by women composers, more than half of the women conductors perform at least one work by a woman composer:
The inverse is true with men conductors, with more than half not performing even one work by a woman composer:
The winner for who is leading the most works by women composers is Juraj Valcuha, Music Director of the Houston Symphony. He will be leading eight works by women in the coming season, including conducting Julia Wolfe’s new work, The Liberty Bell Overture at the Pittsburgh Symphony.
Among the conductors who are conducting zero works by women composers are Christoph Eschenbach, Jaap van Zweden, James Gaffigan, Nikolaj Szeps-Anaider, Riccardo Muti, and Robert Spano. While it is disappointing that such active and well known conductors are not leading works by women in the coming season, it is notable that at this time all of the aforementioned conductors are guest conductors, or have other non-Music Director status. In fact, all of the Music Directors of the major symphonies studied are conducting at least one work by a woman composer – this is a first since we’ve been keeping records! So that is some measure of progress — not as much as we would like, but some progress.
Some additional notable women conductors include Dalia Stasevska (leading 18 works), Elim Chan (leading 16), and Tabita Berglund (leading 20). Also let us not overlook the work of distinguished conductors like Susanna Mälkki, Simone Young, Gemma New, and others who continue to demonstrate the artistry, talent, and potential that is possible when women take the baton.
When looking at a year-over-year comparison with the 2024-2025 conductor report, nothing has really changed. All of which means we need to continue our work, advocating for inclusion, equity, and diverse representation on symphony stages. And in fact, given the anti-diversity stance of the current US Executive Branch, we need to do so boldly and loudly!