Establishing the female classical canon - a unique opportunity?

[Ilja]

Hi all,

Let's just park whatever we think of identity politics and "female compositions" as a valid category, and allow ourselves to be opportunistic. The introduction of works composed by female composers we see these days is a repertory innovation unlike any I've witnessed before. And it seems to me that this disruption of a iron repertory that has been cast into concrete for almost a century is something we can, and perhaps need to, exploit for our own nefarious ends.

First, in talking about the "female canon" as it is taking shape. Whereas early introductions of female composers appear to have been shaped mainly by connections to their male husband/brothers (and yes, I'm speaking specifically of Clara Wieck and Fanny Mendelssohn), modern performances don't seem to be a continuation of that trend. Predictably, composers with a large and broader body of work seem to feature more prominiently than the "one-offs", but a lot is still undecided.

Therefore: where do you think this movement is heading, and if it causes a fundamental disruption of the iron concert repertory, do you see chance for other "unsungs" to gain admittance as well?

[Alan Howe]

There is a gathering 'female canon', no doubt. And yes, this is an opportunity for the promotion of neglected repertoire in general. However, I have one caveat: might the exploration of music by women actually lead to the further neglect of more deserving repertoire by men?

Just saying...

[John Boyer]

Therefore: where do you think this movement is heading, and if it causes a fundamental disruption of the iron concert repertory, do you see chance for other "unsungs" to gain admittance as well?

1. I see no fundamental change in the repertory, just a few temporary additions dictated by ephemeral trends in identity politics.

2. I also see no general trends, just a changing lineup based on the relative strength of competing special interests. 

3. Because these trends are based on the identity politics of grievance, only members of an aggrieved group can expect temporary admittance to the concert hall.  Since most unsungs are DWEMs, the very antithesis of diversity, we should expect even fewer appearances by unjustly neglected composers of quality because the number of available places is limited by the very tokenism of the current movement.  Chaminade and Coleridge-Taylor will slip through (they each have an aggrieved union card), but Raff, Draeseke, and the rest of the gang can expect nothing.  Remember, the goal is not to explore unjustly neglected music (that's *our* goal), but to satisfy the mandates of grievance.  It's not about the music.

[Ilja]

The intention here was to leave grievances behind and see what opportunities there are to suggest changes to the concert hall repertory. There is movement, and I believe it is fundamental. Not perhaps (for now) with regard to the Beethovens and Brahmses, but the emphasis of programmes is definitely shifting when it comes to "second tier" composers. The establishment of a female canon in itself can offer us insight into how these processes work in our time, and use them for our own nefarious ends.

[Alan Howe]

Probably about right, John. But recordings are (somewhat) different. As Mark T. has often said, we're  living through a golden age of untold riches in terms of neglected repertoire. No, it's never going to make any impact on concert-going, but I live 70 miles from London, I'm not in the best of health these days and I don't much care any more. As long as recordings continue to be made in whatever format, I'll be satisfied.

Now for those Thieriot symphonies - and all those gems unearthed and so superbly rendered by our friend Reverie. In the words of Delia Smith (well, almost); 'cpo, Chandos, Hyperion, where are you? Let's be 'aving you...!'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiC679ASOyA

[John Boyer]

Ilja's point, which is a good one, is to ask how the trend in programming female composers can be exploited to benefit unsung music in general.  My pessimistic response, however, was that the trend is so driven by politics and not by the quality of the music that we cannot expect a general benefit to most unsung composers unless they fall under the remit of a politically minded revival.

Mark and Alan are right to note this golden age of recorded unsungs, but I think that trend predates and is separate from the one that Ilja mentioned and that he hopes can be used for the benefit of all unsung composers. 

In short, while Ilja is right to see the programming of female composers as an opportunity, I think its political motivation precludes a general unsung reappraisal. 

[Alan Howe]

I simply see an expansion of the recorded repertoire in a new direction - and we have already made very clear (e.g. in the case of Florence Price) what we think about one particular female composer's newly elevated status. I very much doubt whether there's going to be a sustained tsunami of recordings by female composers because I don't think one exists.

Take the example of the recent Augusta Holmès recordings on cpo. Is it great music? No. Is it worth recording - well, yes. Will it make the concert repertoire? No. So we're left with (mere) recordings. Perhaps that's good enough. In fact, it's probably about right.

May I suggest that the overriding purpose of this forum is to seek out, assess and commend music irrespective of the identity of its composer? If we do this, we will avoid jumping on bandwagons - indeed, we will expose them for what they are. That probably means that we'll swim against a multitude of tides. But I think that we, collectively, have the experience, ability and courage to do so - even (or perhaps especially) when we disagree.

[eschiss1]

Yes, political motivation is a bad thing, that's why musical series like "Entartete Musik" don't deserve our support...

[Alan Howe]

I think there's more than a political angle to 'Entartete Musik', though, because the result of the politics (in, for example, the Hitler period) was worthwhile music being suppressed or destroyed and composers being persecuted or murdered, mostly on account of their ethnic background. In other words, there are surely artistic and moral reasons to support music that falls into this category - providing it's of good quality, of course. We can leave the politics to others.

Anyway, I don't think we should go down this particular rabbit-hole any further as most of the music concerned actually falls outside our remit.

[Maury]

I'm not in the best of health these days and I don't much care any more. As long as recordings continue to be made in whatever format, I'll be satisfied.

 I'm distressed to hear this. I hope things can be stabilized if not improved for you. I do appreciate this site and your importance to its maintenance.

[Alan Howe]

Very kind of you to say so. I'll do my best!

[Mark Thomas]

In short, while Ilja is right to see the programming of female composers as an opportunity, I think its political motivation precludes a general unsung reappraisal.

Basically, sad to say, I'm with John in his assessment, certainly as far as concert performances are concerned. Special pleading for historical women composers can almost be placed alongside programming of new commissions and the music of living composers as something which concert promoters now have to allow for in their programming to attract arts funding, if not audiences who, I imagine, will remain essentially conservative. That can only further reduce the opportunities for unsung compositions by DWEMs (thanks for the acronym, John!) except where there's a local connection to the composer (Raff in Switzerland for example).

That said, I don't detect any fall off in new recordings of music by DWEM unsungs.

The "political" addition of women composers and composers of colour to the repertoire is most noticeable to me less in new commercial recordings than in broadcasting where BBC Radio 3, for example, quite clearly has a daily quota to fill, and it does so from recordings which, in many cases, have been around for quite a few years and have already formed part of the welcome explosion of "unsung" recordings in the last decade or so. Clara Schumann, Fanny Mendelssohn, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Louise Farrenc and Emilie Mayer are all examples of composers who were being recorded on their merits well before it became politically expedient to give them air or concert hall time. Florence Price is the most glaring example of those who were not.

[eschiss1]

My comment was meant as sarcasm in any case. I'd also agree that there has been no such noticeable falloff.

[Christopher]

There's also the question of what diversity/inclusion means in the context of whatever is being discussed, in this case classical music. I would argue that the classical music of many countries in Europe has historically been ignored (not necessarily deliberately) because those countries were outside the mainstream or even looked down on as backward/provincial/uncivilised. Unfortunately today's drive for inclusion excludes (male) composers from those countries because a composer from (say) Estonia or Ireland is lumped into "DWEM", even though his music never had any kind of look-in in the first place. And so they find themselves, once again, neglected.

[Alan Howe]

Agreed. The only criterion should be whether the music is worth rediscovering (some isn't!), irrespective of who wrote it.