Women in Music

A Research and Information Guide

Karin Pendle, Melinda Boyd

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2012
• eBook ISBN: 9781135848132
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Music

Women in Music: A Research and Information Guide is an annotated bibliography emerging from more than twenty-five years of feminist scholarship on music. This book testifies to the great variety of subjects and approaches represented in over two decades of published writings on women, their work, and the important roles that feminist outlooks have played in formerly male-oriented academic scholarship or journalistic musings on women and music.

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Reference Works

1Allison, John, ed. “Mezzo-Sopranos in Opera: Profiles of Fifteen Great Mezzo-Sopranos.” Special issue of Opera (2004): 2–94.

A collection of previously published articles about star mezzo-sopranos of the latter decades of the twentieth century: Irina Arkhipova, Janet Baker, Cecilia Bartoli, Teresa Berganza, Grace Bumbry, Larissa Diadkova, Brigitte Fassbaender, Susan Graham, Marilyn Horne, Christa Ludwig, Ann Murray, Tatiana Troyanos, Josephine Veasey, Shirley Verrett, Frederica von Stade. Some articles are simply biographical, others are more like interviews, and still others are memoirs. Photos.

2——. ed. “Sopranos in Opera: Profiles of Fifteen Great Sopranos.” Special issue of Opera (2001): 2–96.

A collection of previously published articles about star sopranos of the last half of the twentieth century: Kirsten Flagstad, Sena Jurinac, Eva Turner, Maria Callas, Victoria de los Angeles, Joan Hammond, Birgit Nilsson, Régine Crespin, Elisabeth Söderström, Anja Silja, Beverly Sills, Kiri Te Kanawa, Lucia Popp, Karita Mattila, Renée Fleming. Some articles are simply biographical, others are more like interviews, and still others are memoirs. Photos.

3Almquist, Sharon G. Opera Mediagraphy: Video Recordings and Motion Pictures. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1993. xviii, 270 pp. ISBN 0-313-28490-3.

Almquist indexes filmed operas released as motion pictures or on video systems compatible with American technology. The listings include complete casts and locations of significant reviews, running time, date recorded, source of the performance, and language.

4——. Opera Singers in Recital, Concert, and Feature Film: A Mediagraphy. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1999. xiv, 377 pp. ISBN 0-313-29592-1.

Almquist indexes films and videos of concerts, recitals, and nonoperatic feature or educational films in which opera singers participate. Information given includes running time, whether in color or black and white, audio type, date of production, alternate titles, languages, awards, types of reproductions, and significant reviews. There is a good system of cross-references and indexes of conductors, pianists, directors, producers, and production types.

5Bedford, Frances. Harpsichord and Clavichord Music of the Twentieth Century. Berkeley, CA: Fallen Leaf Press, 1993. xiv, 609 pp. ISBN 0-924923-19-0.

An extensive catalogue in which women are well represented. Introductory material appears in English, German, and French. Musical works are sorted according to instrumentation, from solo harpsichord through harpsichord with one or more additional instruments, voice, or electronic media. Listings are compact: composer, dates, nationality, title of piece, level of difficulty, date, length, publisher, movements, premiere date and place, and performers. There are several indexes, including “Women Composers of Harpsichord or Clavichord Music.” Musical examples.

6Bell, Sondra. “Twentieth-Century Trombone Music by Women of the United States and Canada.” DMA thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2003.

7Billock, Rebecca Lynn. “Selected Intermediate Piano Pieces by Seven Women of the Twentieth Century: Marion Bauer, Germaine Tailleferre, Ruth Crawford Seeger, Sofia Gubaidulina, Emma Lou Diemer, Chen Yi, and Karen Tanaka.” DMA thesis, University of Washington, 2003.

8Boenke, Heidi M. Flute Music by Women Composers: An Annotated Catalogue. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1988. xiv, 202 pp. ISBN 0-313-26019-2.

Boenke lists music for flute from over 40 countries and three centuries. Most entries include the composer’s name plus essential information about her (birth and death dates, places of study, etc.), title of the work(s) involving flute and date of completion, instrumentation, playing time, publisher and date of publication, commentary. She may also cite recordings, OCLC number, Library of Congress or National Union Catalogue entry, level of difficulty, and a description of style or outstanding traits. Some entries give only composer’s name and a title of work. Contents are indexed by instrumentation and title. There is a list of publishers with addresses, a list of composers with addresses, and suggestions for further research. Although dated, this is a good starting place for finding music for flute.

9Bowers, Jane. “Current Issues in Feminist Musical Scholarship: Representation and Gender Performance, Identity and Subjectivity, and Telling Stories about Women’s Musical Lives.” IAWM Journal 8 (3) (2002): 1–10.

Bowers discusses scholarship on women and music under the categories Opera, Popular Music, Influence of Judith Butler’s Ideas on Feminist Music Scholarship, Critical Studies of Women’s Art Music Compositions, Musical Gender, Ethnomusicology, and Western Musical Traditions. Dated but still useful.

10——. “Feminist Scholarship in the Field of Musicology.” CMS 29 (1989): 81–92; and 30 (1990): 1–13.

Although rather dated, these articles provide a useful guide to resources that were relatively new ca. 1990 and are still worth consulting. Bowers surveys what has been learned in the preceding decade of feminist scholarship and suggests ways that feminist work in other fields in the humanities can inform a feminist viewpoint for musicologists.

11Bowers, Jane, and Urban Baries, comp. “Bibliography on Music and Gender—Women in Music.” WM 33 (1991): 65–103.

Simple listings, without comments, on ethnomusicology in general and on the subcategories of Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia and Oceania, and Europe.

12Broe, Carolyn Waters. “Viola Music by Women Composers.” AST 57(3) (2007): 68–71.

A basic list of works for viola by women, organized by period. (The twentieth century is subdivided according to type of accompaniment, if used.) Broe provides information on names, dates, and nationalities of composers and titles of works. Most pieces are originally for viola; some are adaptations, and some are for ensembles that include viola (e.g., string quartets).

13Bryan, Carolyn J. “An Annotated Bibliography of Music for Saxophone by Women Composers of the United States.” DM thesis, Indiana University, 1997.

14Butler, Stanley. Guide to the Best in Contemporary Piano Music: An Annotated List of Graded Solo Piano Music Published since 1950. 2 vols. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1973. Vol. I: xii, 13–196 pp.; Vol. II, xiv, 15–172 pp. ISBN 0-8108-0628-2.

Although outdated, this collection is still valuable because of its organization of the pieces according to levels of difficulty: Vol. I, Levels 1–5; Vol. II, Levels 6–8. Although women are in the minority, their works are intelligently annotated. Repertoire is international in scope. An index classifies pieces according to the techniques or musical features they represent, e.g., added-note chords, dotted rhythms, trills, etc.

15Buzzarté, Monique. “Women’s Contributions to the Brass Repertoire: A List of Works.” In MW, vol. 3, pp. 547–651.

Compositions by women for solo brass instruments and brass ensembles: a total of 785 works by 364 women from 33 countries, with an introduction and tabulations. Entries include composer’s name, nationality, date of birth, title of piece, make-up of ensemble, date of composition, duration, and name of publisher. Appendixes provide statistical tabulations, discography, addresses of record companies, publishers, and composers. Buzzarté’s listing of works involving trombone is supplemented by Sondra Bell (see item6).

16Claghorn, Gene [Charles Eugene]. Women Composers and Songwriters: A Concise Biographical Dictionary. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 1996. vii, 247 pp. ISBN 0-8109-3130-9.

This enlarged version of Claghorn’s 1984 Women Composers and Hymnists contains brief biographies of some 950 composers and songwriters, with emphasis on American and British women. Were it not the only readily available source of information on certain obscure composers of hymns, its usefulness would be negligible. The numerous inaccuracies include misspellings of names and omissions or errors in dates of birth or death. At times, the biographies of living composers list nothing they have done within the last decade or two.

17Coffman, Stephanie, “Women of Note: A Compact Discography.” WNQ 2(2) (1994): 11–25.

Listings include composer’s name, year of birth, title(s) of piece(s), title of CD, label and selection number, performer(s), instrumentation.

18Cohen, Aaron I. International Discography of Women Composers. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1984. xxiv, 255 pp. ISBN 0-313-24272-0.

A companion to Cohen’s International Encyclopedia of Women Composers, this book deals with works by women from all periods writing all types of art music. Each entry includes composer’s name, dates, nationality, the title and medium of piece, the performers or performing groups, and the label and stock number. Appendixes include a list of record labels and companies, with addresses if possible, a list of composers by country, performing medium, and musical genres; indexes of titles and of late entry titles. Although rather outdated, this catalogue is useful for identifying recordings that might be available in library collections or from dealers who specialize in cut-out recordings.

19——. International Encyclopedia of Women Composers. 2nd edn. 2 vols. New York: Books and Music, 1987. xxxii, 1,230 pp. in 2 vols. Vol. 1, ISBN 0-9617485-0-8. Vol. 2, 0-9617485-1-6; the set, 0-9617485-2-4.

An early and much-used resource, this set provides information on 6,196 composers from more than 70 countries. Most entries include composers’ full names, birth and death dates, short biographies, and lists of works. They may also contain a list of publications and a bibliography. There are several appendixes: a list of composers on whom there is little information (with the hope that someone who knows will contact the editor), tables of distribution by century and by country, pseudonyms used, operas and operettas by women, and more. Still useful as a starting place for research.

20Cowden, Robert H. Classical Singers of the Opera and Classical Stages: A Bibliography of Biographical Materials. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994. xiv, 509 pp. ISBN 0-313-29332-5.

An expanded, updated version of Cowden’s Concert and Opera Singers: A Bibliography of Biographical Materials of 1985. Cowden divides the work into three parts: Part A, Collective Titles: Books on Singers (157 items); Part B, Collective Titles: Related Books (283 items); and Part C, Books on Individual Singers (1,532 entries). Appendixes include a listing of additional artists (106 items) and an index to singers in the New Grove Dictionary of Opera. To be included a singer has to have appeared in a major reference dictionary or encyclopedia or be the subject of a substantial article in a journal, an autobiography, or a biography.

21——. Instrumental Virtuosi: A Bibliography of Biographical Materials. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1989. xviii, 349 pp. ISBN 0-31326075-3.

Cowden includes figures in both classical and popular music. In order to be included the person had to be cited in at least one standard biographical dictionary or encyclopedia, had to have written an autobiography or other substantial account or to have been the subject of a biography. The book is divided into three main parts: Part A, Collective Works: Books on Virtuosi (165 items); Part B, Collective Works: Related Books (135 items); and Part C, Individual Virtuosi (1,215 persons). Appendixes include reference material, an index to instrumentalists in Baker 7, an index to instrumentalists in the New Grove Dictionary of American Music, and an index of virtuosi by instrument. Although far more men than women are covered and there are some surprising omissions, the book as a whole is a good resource.

22——.Popular Singers of the Twentieth Century: A Bibliography of Biographical Materials. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1999. xv, 497 pp. ISBN 0-313-29333-3.

Cowden defines “popular” broadly to include Broadway and cabaret artists, country stars, and the like. His book is organi...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Half Title
• ROUTLEDGE MUSIC BIBLIOGRAPHIES
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Authors of Annotations
• List of Abbreviations
• 1 Reference Works
• 2 Music Histories of Women
• 3 Collections of Essays
• 4 Feminist Methods and Viewpoints in Music
• 5 Issues of Sexuality
• 6 Music Education and Training
• 7 Careers in Music
• 8 Women's Financial Support of Music and Musicians
• 9 Historical Periods
• 10 Ethnomusicology
• 11 Countries and Geographical Areas
• 12 Music for Stage and Film
• 13 Women in Rock and Pop
• 14 Women in Blues and Jazz
• 15 Women in Country, Folk, and Gospel
• 16 Individuals
• 17 Two or More Individuals
• Index of Names
• Index of Authors, Editors, and Translators
• Index of Subjects