A Century of Composition by Women: Music Against the Odds

Description

This book presents accounts of creative processes and contextual issues of current-day and early-twentieth century women composers. This collection of essays balances narratives of struggle, artistic prowess, and of "breaking through" the obstacles in the profession. Part I: Creative Work – Then and Now illuminates historical and present-day women’s composition and various iterations and conceptions of the “feminine voice”; Part II: The State of the Industry in the Present Day provides solutions from the frontline to sector inequities; and Part III: Creating; Collaborating: Composer and Performer Reflections offers personal stories of current creation in music. A Century of Composition by Women: Music Against the Odds draws together topical issues in feminist musicology over the past century. This volume provides insight into the professional and compositional procedures of creative women in music and stands to be relevant for composers, performers, industry professionals, students, and feminist and musicological scholars for many years to come. Foreword Acknowledgements Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures List of Tables Chapter 1: Composing Women’s (Very) Long 100-Year Fight: Evolutions, Illuminations, Solutions Introduction Part I: Creative Work—Then and Now Part II: The State of Industry in the Present Day Part III: Creating; Collaborating: Composer and Performer Reflections Conclusion References Part I: Creative Work: Then and Now Chapter 2: Synaesthetic Associations and Gendered Nature Imagery: Female Agency in the Piano Music of Amy Beach Introduction Background Theories of Musical Gendering Eskimos: Four Characteristic Pieces for the Pianoforte, Opus 64 From Grandmother’s Garden, Opus 97 Four Sketches, Opus 15 Conclusion References Chapter 3: Australian Bush Songs as Multimodal Discourse: The Remarkable Collaboration of Ida Rentoul Outhwaite, Annie Rentoul, and Georgette Peterson Introduction Brilliant Careers Intertwined A Golden Age for Children’s Literature and Music ‘Autumn Wind’: Counterpoint, Paradox, and Irony ‘Gobble Wobbles’: Signifiers, Denotation, Connotation, and Myth Notions of Good and Evil: Existential Narratives Notions of Gender: The Triumph of the Feminine The Bush Songs: Syntagmatic or Symptomatic? Conclusion References Chapter 4: The 1940s Australian Ballet That “Far Outstripped … ‘Swan Lake’ in Popular Appeal”: Esther Rofe’s Ground-Breaking Ballet, Sea Legend “This Is a Ballet That Will Surely Be Seen All Over the World” Background to Sea Legend “Captivating”, a “Masterpiece”: “Far Outstripped … ‘Swan Lake’ in Popular Appeal” Genre, Gender and Larger-Scale Orchestral Significance Recognition of Sea Legend References Chapter 5: Italians, Indians and the Indigenous: Innovative Themes and Material Used in Operas Written by Early-Twentieth-Century Australian Women Composers Introduction The Invisible Women Composers of Opera Mona McBurney Florence Donaldson-Ewart Margaret Sutherland Meta Overman Peggy Glanville-Hicks An Unknown Operatic Tradition References Chapter 6: “Conjuring Up the Magic”: Helen Gifford’s Compositional Passage to the Creation of Fable for Solo Harp Introduction Australian Composition in the 1960s Gifford’s Formative Years: Cultivating and Concealing Her Calling Early Compositions: Accidents, Exercises and Critical Acclaim 1955–1967 The Rise of the Harp as a Solo Concert Instrument The Fable Commission and Huw Jones’s Performances Harp Literature of the Mid-Twentieth Century The Critical Reception of Fable A Compositional Legacy References Chapter 7: Of Broken Trees and Elephant Ivories: The Revivification of the Colonial Piano Manifested Through a New Work by Catherine Milliken Introduction Background on the Historical Context of Colonial Pianos in Australia The Piano of Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894): A Cultural Perspective Catherine Milliken’s Utilisation of Music and Text from Robert Louis Stevenson in Her Work Steel-True Gold-Sole (Sounding Robert Louis Stevenson) (2016) References Chapter 8: Beyond Exploitation: Feminist Satire in Jennifer Walshe’s XXX_LIVE_NUDE_GIRLS!!! Introduction Opera: XXX_LIVE_NUDE_GIRLS!!! (2003) Feminist Satire and Reclaiming Humour Satirising Gender Performativity Satire or Exploitation? The Rape Scene Conclusion References Chapter 9: Hildegard’s Daughters: Women Composers “Overcoming Their Astonishment” Introduction Epicœne, the Silent Woman Structural Support: Missing in Action New Music: A Splinter Group Lingering Unconscious Bias Statistical Truths Patriarchal Mechanisms? Affirmative Administration Industry: Scapegoat or Perpetrator? “It’s All Academic” References Chapter 10: Is the Category of the “Woman Artist” Still Helpful? Introduction Central Core Imagery and the Feminine Sensibility Sexual Difference and Feminist Art History Inside the Visible and the Feminine References Part II: The State of the Industry in the Present Day Chapter 11: “Dear Women Composers in Australia (and Beyond)”: (A Letter from a Music Critic) Introduction Addressing Visibility Advocating for Change Leveraging Media Exposure: A “Letter to Women Composers” Conclusion References Chapter 12: Programming Orchestral Repertoire by Women Composers: Challenges and Opportunity Introduction Technical Standards and Requirements Music Performance Standards Compositional Features Featured Orchestral Works Sanchito’s Samba (2016) by Loreta Fin Carmen Vitae (2000) by Katy Abbott A Fan of Nelson Fare (2001)—Fritha Jameson Firecracker for Full Orchestra (1998)—Lissa Meridan Notable Works for Youth Orchestra Future Directions for the Field References Chapter 13: Troubleshooting Gender in the Australian Screen Music Industry: An Insider Perspective Introduction The Meritocracy Myth and Quotas Invisibility Discrimination, Harassment and Bias Education AGSC Roundtable 2016 Pathways to Change Conclusion References Chapter 14: Programming with Gender Parity in Call-Based New Music Festivals Introduction Gender Research in Darmstadt Methods for Programming with Parity Overview of Programmes Aimed at Promoting Change Case Study: Tilde New Music Festival Findings References Chapter 15: Mentoring Emerging Women Composers Introduction Mentoring in the Workplace Gender Balance in Programming Women at the Symphony The TSO Australian Composers’ School Composing Women at the Sydney Conservatorium Mentoring: Does It Work? References Chapter 16: Content Targets Work: A Practical Example of Changing Behaviours and Processes in Programming Women Composers Introduction Background Initial Observations International Women’s Day 2017 Revising the Target International Women’s Day 2018 Changes to Regular Programming Festival of Female Composers 2019 and 2020 The Path Forward References Chapter 17: Working Towards Gender Equality and Empowerment in Australian Music Culture Introduction Women and Policy in Australia Measuring Privilege and Merit Income from Music for Women Perceptions Versus Statistics Mentoring and Education Workplace Pitfalls Movement for Change References Part III: Creating; Collaborating: Composer and Performer Reflections Chapter 18: The Book of Daughters and The Sonic aGender Guitar Project: Inclusivity as Guiding Principle Diversity and Inclusion: The Music Industry JOLT Arts and The Book of Daughters Inclusion and (Dis)ability The (Massed) Electric Guitar Gender and the Electric Guitar The Sonic aGender Guitar Project: A Radical Punk Rock Feminist Statement Moving Forward: Conclusions References Chapter 19: When We Speak: Creating (“Something Personal”) in a Three-Level Collaboration Introduction Personal History: Tertiary Education and the Missing Woman Composer Creating “Something Personal” (After Saariaho:) “That’s the Only Thing That Counts” Saariaho and the “Other”: Feeling Affirmed Saariaho’s Sept Papillons (2000) as a Launching Pad Role of the Cello and the Voice (with Saariaho) in When We Speak Structure, Pitch and Harmony Problematising Agency “Something Personal” “Speaking” on Vulnerability References Chapter 20: “It Gently Makes Itself Known…”: A Composer and Performer Discuss the Genesis and Practice of Cranes for Solo Viola Introduction Phoebe Green (Violist) in Conversation with Lisa Illean (Composer) on August 11, 2017, at the Australian National University, Canberra Reference Chapter 21: Children’s Opera in the Twenty-First Century: The Child-Centred Approach to Writing Introduction An Interdisciplinary Approach A Conceptual and Theoretical Framework Libretto Development: Dramatic Premise Libretto Development: Understanding Operatic Character Conclusion References Chapter 22: Making Music in A Chorus of Women Prologue Lament and Listening into Being Chorus: The Generative Substratum in Creative Action The Mythic Scale of Current Crises: The Big Works Concertare: “So Many Different Voices” Epilogue References Index