Music Monday - International Women's Day
/On this International Women’s Day, I have been reflecting on gender differences in the various aspects of music and teaching activity I am involved in.
As a registered teacher, I am firmly part of a majority. In 2017-18 the ratio of female to male teachers in Australian government schools was 76% to 24%. ( www.abs.gov.au)
As a registered music teacher, the ratio of females increases further to around 82% female to 18% male.
And in the world of singing teaching and our professional association in Australia, ANATS, the female members significantly outnumber the males. (www.anats.org.au)
Yet when we look at the statistics on singing performance in Australia, males dominate the scene. In radio, for example, solo female artists tend to make up about 28% of the top 100 most-played songs. This kind of statistic is reflected across all aspects of the industry – festival line-ups, board representation, awards, grants.
How do we redress this imbalance? Certainly, there is much being achieved by passionate young musicians of all genders, but there is still a very long road ahead.
Finally, in a post that offers no solutions, I would like to commemorate the composer generally acknowledged to be one of the first female composers – Hildegard of Bingen (12th century).
Check out her biography on www.classicfm.com
