The dark corner : a study of the dynamic dialectic between women composers and the Australian orchestral milieu

Abstract

This thesis is an exploration of Australian women composers' interaction with their orchestral world. The purpose is to gain an understanding of the socio-cultural forces which impact upon women's participation as orchestral composers, and to understand the ways in which women composers impact upon their orchestral environment. It has also been my intention to draw attention to specific problems women composers encounter in the orchestral sphere, and to investigate the way in which the sociocultural elements manifest within the musical works themselves. The methodology which forms the basis of this study draws on a wide range of theoretical and methodological perspectives, most specifically feminism and postmodem theory. The thesis relies on the basic presupposition that music is essentially a social construct, and as such, like language, it reflects the gender bias of our society on many levels and in many ways. The orchestral world is particularly susceptible to bias due to its longstanding associations with power and prestige. The first part of the study examines the topic from a broad cultural basis beginning with an overview of women as orchestral composers and examining assumptions which have hindered their progress. In Chapter Three statistical data was used to indicate the situation of female orchestral composers within Australia and confined, for the most part, within the boundaries of Australian contemporary music. The second part of the thesis contextualises eight orchestral women composers and attempts to understand how they position themselves within the Australian orchestral context by documenting their individual methods of negotiating the orchestral milieu. A work was selected from each of the eight case studies and its progress was traced through the repertorial process, from inception to mediation and dissemination. In Part Three of the thesis there is a detailed study of three selected works. In this case the orchestral works were selected for analysis as socialised, cultural artefacts. The analyses tease out the composer's relationship to culture articulated within the work itself, and examine the way in which the work can act as a cultural force by reflecting ideas back into the culture. In each of the works the three women composers, in a sense, authenticate themselves within the male dominated orchestral world of musical composition by writing works which are, in some way, strongly related to the 'feminine'. Finally, an original orchestral work Gair Na Mara completes the thesis. The writing of an orchestral work as a part of this thesis provided insights into the orchestral environment from a personal perspective. Some of the findings to come out this study are that in building a composing career networking and self-promotion play crucial roles, yet these are areas in which women have been disadvantaged. Women composers have not (and still do not) have the same access to those with power and influence in the musical world, and due to gendered socialisation they are not well equipped, in some ways, to negotiate the orchestral world. It is of concern to note that under 20% of Australian composers are female, and that only 10% of Australian women composers are writing orchestral works. I argue that this is due, in part, to the fact that women composers have so few established role models. In conclusion I argue that there is an onus of responsibility on males operating in the orchestral milieu to support and facilitate the entry of their female colleagues into a rich and full participation.