Sexism in music: how it bias the way some people judge music.

[SampleScience]

Here's a very good article I've stumble upon on Facebook:

http://songofthelarkblog.com/2015/09/16 ... composers/

[BERFAB]

While I enjoyed it, I'm still not clear on the author's point of view regarding many of the salient points she quotes.

Interesting stuff though.

-B

[jancivil]

Really? She is obviously ridiculing the shoddy reasoning and/or absurd assertions of what was written. She does sarcastically or ironically state agreement at times. She starts right in laughing at 'a 17 year old girl forced the Edexcel exam board to change its A-level music syllabus.' Oh well, maybe sarcasm is only clearly such when employed by men.

[D.H. Miltz]

Thanks, OP. Good stuff (worthwhile comments section too).

[Gamma-UT]

While I enjoyed it, I'm still not clear on the author's point of view regarding many of the salient points she quotes.

Interesting stuff though.

-B

Really? I've only had it open for a few minutes and there's already a heavy runoff of sarcasm along the bottom of the screen. 'Scuse me while I fetch a J-cloth.

The Spectator on women as composers? You just know that isn't going to end well right from the start.

[Gamma-UT]

Thanks, OP. Good stuff (worthwhile comments section too).

The comments are, unsurprisingly, very different over at the Spectator. Mostly, "they dun teach kids no good musik in skools these days, it's all X Factor" and "women should know their place" etc etc.

[GeckoYamori]

The article she tears apart seems to be pretty bad judging from the material quoted. Not so much due to sexism, but rather an almost complete lack of substance in musical analysis save for some lip service at the beginning. Music critique in media is pretty worthless and this one is no exception. It's little surprise then that the gender angle becomes an easy target when the author grasps for anything to write about when they have no interest in talking about the actual music.

[fmr]

Yes, the article may be bad, but the blogue answer is not better. She didn't argue anything, she just mocked. What conclusions could we draw from what she wrote? That the women quoted have been misjudged and their work neglected because of their gender? Why? When?

Give me a break. Another precious piece of "fashionable political correctness"

[jancivil]

She savages the points using sarcasm. What she means to say she says precisely in so doing. "fashionable political correctness" - but that's supposed to be an argument?! Kneejerk reactionary much? Very weak. "That the women quoted have been misjudged and their work neglected because of their gender? Why? When?" Actually if you read it you'll have seen it. Clara Wieck is accused of trading on Robert Schumann's name before she married him. So you have a POV and are predisposed against, just as the guy that dismisses a work, knowing in ten seconds flat "we know it’s a dud."

[jancivil]

We find her mocking this particular manner in which Amy Beach is dismissed, notable only by being a woman. What is that? If one wants to make a point against someone's argument, one does so successfully by arguing the points. All I have from you, and this is not news to me, is your POV: you don't want to hear it.

The comments section is interesting. blog: "It's the Patriarchy, Stupid" is linked to. She has chosen a reactionary rag to rail against while this piece calls out the supposed liberals in the musical ivory tower. Then a rather typically unhinged bit by Camille Paglia, gender traitor and crypto-fascist, is on offer and critiqued well and succinctly.

If this kind of stuff is to be summarily dismissed as 'fashionable political correctness', you must believe that there is no such problem. Which means that you have to believe that the real reason there isn't a lot more of female composers to draw from and herald as great music is that the female is inferior; or cf., Paglia, hasn't the right kind of brain for genius in music. To dismiss the argument this quickly is not a sign of a serious consideration of the matter. Do you actually believe that all along there was an equal opportunity, women always had the same shot at it? "Political correctness" is not a good sign. It always comes from the "conservative", ie., reactionary standpoint. Maybe you could stand to read the blog, a man wrote it.

[incubus]

Defensive, paranoid and reminds me of the ____ whining about how things are.

In the meantime, there are people who don't give two rats asses about color or gender. Consider me in that category and the BLURP BLURP in the:



Category.

[Gamma-UT]

Yes, the article may be bad, but the blogue answer is not better. She didn't argue anything, she just mocked. What conclusions could we draw from what she wrote? That the women quoted have been misjudged and their work neglected because of their gender? Why? When?

Give me a break. Another precious piece of "fashionable political correctness"

Hitchens' Razor: "What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence."

[whyterabbyt]

Oh, its a woman, pointing out something is sexist. She must be wrong. There's no such thing as sexism, and only women are stupid enough to claim there is.

[VariKusBrainZ]

How was that a good article, it was a sarcastic rant from start to finish.
The author would be perpetually authoring such rants if she read the Daily Mail (Daily Male!!!)

[whyterabbyt]

How was that a good article

Indeed. She didnt mention anything important at all. Not even a comparison of analogue versus digital, or how many plugins one should have. Clearly knows nothing about music.