Male Domination?!

Ever since Professor Manning mentioned that the large majority of symphony orchestras are male, I was intrigued as to why women are a minority in orchestras. Perhaps this is my intrigue in social inequality coming out, but anyway...on to the good stuff!

I found a great site promoting Women's History Month and orchestra concerts. All of my information can be found here.

Many U.S. ensembles are making progress. For example, about 40% of the San Diego Symphony are women in comparison with Russia's Mariinsky Orchestra's 25% women players. The Vienna Philharmonic promoted Albena Danailova to concertmaster, making her the first woman to hold the key post of top violinist in the orchestra's 168 year history!

Unfortunately, despite these advances, leadership positions like conductor, executive director, and concertmaster are usually held by men.The women’s movement in the 1960s helped change perceptions. However, the break-through came in the 1970s and 1980s, when orchestras began using screens in preliminary audition rounds so that the judges couldn't tell if the applicant was male or female. A study by a Princeton economist showed that screens played a significant role in increasing the number of women who landed orchestra jobs.

What does this mean? Well, to me, I feel there must be some sort of hesitation about having women in charge. In any case, progress is being made, regardless of how slow this shift is. Maybe someday there will even be a full female symphony orchestra! Until then...