In the music industry, the trend of "opening the classics" and "excavating" female composers is not an isolated cultural phenomenon, but a branch of various political movements in the late 20th century. It is a struggle for women who have long been marginalized to fight for their gender. components of the right to equality. The “discovery” of women is an important cultural phenomenon in the 20th century. It has brought marginalized women into the historical framework. It has now penetrated into many fields of humanities and social sciences and affects our lives to varying degrees. Thanks to the creative research and teaching of women's studies in North American universities, the new generation of historians is very familiar with gender theory in the humanities and social sciences. They not only regard women as important research subjects, but also develop A new research model. As far as music research is concerned, the initial focus of gender studies is on the study of female musicians in various periods of music history, including tracing the creative process of musicians, collecting works, creating a chronology of creation, exploring musical styles, etc. Although it is difficult for scholars to reach consensus on many specific issues, their common goal is to challenge the traditional classics monopolized by men and accommodate more neglected female composers. This was, of course, a long process, as it required not only the discovery, editing and publication of women's work, but also a reassessment of traditional values.
1. "Opening the Classics"
Canon (canon) was originally a religious term, referring to the "canon of scriptures". In the field of literature, classics refer to those important works that are well-known and recognized by scholars, teachers and readers. They have reached common knowledge after a long period of accumulation and are popularized and continued through school education. Classics are "exemplary" and "authoritative", expressing to a certain extent the social norms and values ??generally recognized by the society at that time, and some even become symbols of the national or national spirit. From the perspective of feminism, the standards of Western literary classics are mostly based on male-centeredness and are affected by race, class and gender factors. They generally reflect the values ????of European middle- and upper-class white men, women and the disadvantaged. Ethnic works cannot be included in the ranks of classics. Since the 1970s, under the influence of feminist literary criticism, American academic circles have launched extensive discussions around the selection and definition of literary classics, and have exposed the patriarchal thinking in literary classics and "open the canon." ) is one of them.
Discussions about "opening up the classics" in the literary world mostly revolve around factors such as power and gender. They criticize the power oppression that permeates the process of establishing, selecting and interpreting classics, hoping to construct a A more egalitarian classical system. After the 1970s, many universities or research institutions expanded or revised existing course content and research fields, and a large number of works by women and ethnic minorities were discovered or re-evaluated. The establishment of a music classic system is also inseparable from social constraints. In the field of music, white male musicians have an absolute advantage. Women have far fewer opportunities to engage in professional music studies than men, and only a small number can engage in composition careers. Before the emergence of professional female composers in the second half of the 20th century, women mostly composed popular genres such as art songs and piano pieces that satisfied women’s self-entertainment. They rarely paid attention to operas, symphonies, etc., which require more education and practice before they can get involved. fields, and their creative activities are not widely recognized. For feminist researchers, the judgment of music classics cannot be determined by purely aesthetic factors, social and cultural factors should also be taken into consideration. They use the knowledge and methods accumulated in the fields of history, sociology, philosophy, cultural studies and other fields to explore female musicians living in male norms and taboos, and the history of female music that was previously regarded as insignificant has been sorted out and rectified.
2. Research on the history of women’s music
Before feminism influenced music research, the Western music tradition paid little attention to women. In 1903, Arthur Elson’s The publication of "Women's Musical Works"① became one of the very few works at that time that paid attention to female musicians, especially female composers. The research subjects covered many female musicians in European and American society from ancient Greece to modern times. From a modern academic perspective, this work still has some regrets. For example, the information cited is not clear enough, the social status and living style of female musicians are not explored deeply enough, and some views are slightly outdated.
However, at the beginning of the 20th century when this book was published, many concepts of the nascent Western feminist movement were not generally recognized, and women had not yet gained a say in the academic field. Against this background, this book is particularly precious.
In 1948 Sophie Drinker (1888-1967) published the book "Women and Music"②. Sophie Drinker was born into a wealthy and respectable family in Philadelphia, USA, and received a good music education since she was a child. She pointed out in the book that it is not that women cannot create great music, but that our social structure denies women, preventing them from having the same status as men. The book did not receive much attention at the time and was not well-known. It was not until the 1990s that people began to re-recognize this book when Ruth Solie's article "The History of Sophie Drinker"③ reviewed women's history, questioned traditional historiography and re-evaluated it. The issue raised by Solly in the article involves the problem that traditional historical research focuses too much on "great figures" and "great works". He believes that historians focus on the novelty of music and its impact on later generations, as well as the ability to incorporate them into the classic repertoire. . This has also resulted in the neglect of women’s works in historical research. Today, Sophie Drinker herself is regarded as a pioneer in women's musicology and gender studies, and Women and Music is also regarded as an important work in the study of early women's music.
Under the influence of the feminist movement, the status of women has been greatly improved. Some universities have established women's research centers, and performance institutions, record companies, etc. are paying more and more attention to female musicians. Commentaries and monographs emerge one after another. In the process of trying to rewrite or rewrite the history of music after the 1980s, several categories of women first came into the view of researchers: professional female composers, performers (singers), music patrons, and those related to famous male musicians. Relevant women. "Women's Musical Works" edited by James R. Briscoe in 1987④ traces the origin and evolution of European women's creations in chronological order, and introduces the works of European female composers with musical examples. , reflecting the diversity of female creations in both space and time. "Women Composers: Music Across History" edited by Sylvia Glickman and Martha Furman Schleifer⑤ both in terms of length and selection of data content Everything is much richer. "Women and Music History" edited by Karin Pendle⑥ analyzes the situation of female musicians and patrons in Europe from ancient Greece to the present day. In addition, there are several chapters exploring the United States in the 19th and 20th centuries. Female musician. As a textbook suitable for undergraduates, the editors intentionally broadened the scope of the study and included special chapters on American popular music, art patrons, and professional composers in non-European countries such as Australia and New Zealand.
Musicologist Judith Tick’s main research field is American music. Since the 1970s, she has realized that there are so many important (male) composers in academic and teaching fields. Home cannot represent all of American music culture. Thiek's monograph "American Women Composers Before 1870" published in 1979 and revised based on her doctoral thesis established her academic status in the field of gender studies. In this book, the author gives a detailed explanation of the creative background, experience, and major works of American female composers from social and cultural aspects from a feminist perspective. Similar to Tieke, the academic research of American musicologist Jane Bowers is also centered on the study of female music history, paying particular attention to how female musicians create music and achieve success in male-dominated fields. In 1987, Thiek and Powers co-edited "Women Making Music: Western Art Tradition, 1150-1950" (8), which conducted a thematic study of female musicians in the field of European and American art music from the 12th to the 20th century. The topics covered include Medieval female musicians, 15th-century Italian female singers and songs, 16th-century professional female musicians, the American Women's Symphony Orchestra, and some representative female composers.
Although this work adopts traditional feminist research methods and "adds" neglected female musicians to the history of music, this work that is "female-centered" and focuses on the unique experiences of women is both broad and deep. They all go beyond the "added music history" which is mainly based on data, and present a new look.
The case study of female musicians is the highlight of women's studies. Among female musicians before the 20th century, the most influential was probably Clara Schumann (1819-1896). This pianist and composer who occupies an important position in the history of music has long been known as the wife of Robert Schumann. Clara Schumann is a hot figure in women's studies, and Nancy B. Reich's biography "Clara Schumann: The Artist and the Woman"⑨ is one of the more important studies. Through the analysis of a large number of original materials such as her letters, diaries, concert programs, family notebooks and musical score manuscripts, this biography focuses on key issues in Clara Schumann's life: her close relationship with her father, her The mother's relationship, her education and career development, the choices she was forced to make to balance family and career, how she assumed motherhood and her attitude towards her husband's illness, suicide attempt and hospitalization. This book is divided into two parts. The first part is described in chronological order, but in the second part, the author extracts Clara's life based on her relationship with her friends, music creation, stage performance and teaching career. Some of his experiences are highlighted to discuss his glorious and legendary life. The advantage of this approach is that without disrupting the trajectory of Clara's life, it fully discusses content that is not often valued by biographers but is very important, such as the situation of Clara's eight children, her colleagues and contemporaries. The musician, her musical compositions, teaching methods, publishing history, performances and, of course, her relationship with her husband and Brahms. In addition, the author can see from letters and diaries Clara's contradictory attitude towards her father and mother. She uses rich picture materials and a complete performance catalog to show Clara's efforts to balance the contradiction between family and career. The multi-faceted in-depth description makes We learn more about the many facets of Clara’s character, and a more realistic, if conflicted, Clara. In this respect, Ritchie's account is vivid and personal.
In the 20th century, with the vigorous development of the women's liberation movement and the improvement of women's status, women continue to break the gender roles assigned by traditional society and display their talents in the public sector. However, even very talented women , often choose to give up their careers when faced with the dilemma between career and family. The modern music works created by early American avant-garde composer Ruth Crawford Seeger (1901-1953) in the 1920s and 1930s show her outstanding creative talent. Crawford's works are not many, and they all come from his early years. In the late 1920s, he fell in love with the American musicologist, composer, critic, and conductor Charles Seeger while studying with him, and they married in 1932. After her marriage, Crawford devoted herself fully to family life and her husband's music career, especially his work collecting and editing American folk music. Crawford raised four children in one marriage. Amid the dilemmas of being a wife, a mother, and a composer, she basically gave up her music creation until shortly before her death from cancer. Crawford's experience has made many people sigh. In 1997, Judith Thiecker's biography "Ruth Crawford Seeger: A Composer's Collecting of American Music" ⑩ more comprehensively explored the musician's life and his legacy in the United States For contributions to music collection and research.
In addition to female composers, female performers, singers, female patrons, etc. are also within the scope of gender studies. For example, in 1980, " The Uncelebrated: A History of American Women in Music? Roller? Edit? From the aspects of keyboard instrumentalists, string players, composers, women's symphony orchestras, opera composers, conductors, modern music composers and music teachers, it provides a relatively comprehensive analysis of female music in the field of American art music since the 17th century. The author's creations and performances are introduced and evaluated. In the 2001 reprint, two chapters on ragtime and jazz were added.
1997's "Remarkable Women Supporting Music" by Mona Mender? Roller? Rein? The book "The Ladies of the Great Salons," "The Elegant Patronesses of the Old World," "Wives and Lovers," "Inspiring Teachers," "American Patronesses," "Creative Administrators," "Famous Mothers and Eight sections including "Sisters" and "Dancers and Their Contributions" introduce outstanding women who have contributed to the careers of music and dance. 2001, Beth Abelson Macleod's Women Performing Music: The Emergence of American Classical Instrumentalists and Women Conductors? Roller? Xin? This book introduces female performers and conductors in the American classical music world. These female musicians broke the taboo of women performing in public fields in American society in the 19th century and became concert performers, symphony orchestra musicians, and conductors. etc., played a more important public role.
As modern society becomes more open, the phenomenon of women participating in music activities has become more popular. Female performers, female teachers, female composers, etc. have become the norm. Women are active in certain fields (such as teachers, singing, and performing). )’s participation and achievements have exceeded those of men. From the 1970s to the present, topics related to women have been widely discussed. Research on the history of female music, female composers, female performers, female patrons, etc. has become very popular. There are numerous related dissertations, monographs, and journal articles. However, for many scholars, similar historical research is still a matter of "checking and filling in the gaps" to include women within the established framework of music history. Although some high-quality historical works have been produced, in the male-dominated academic field, publicity is still a problem. A history of women's music, looking for some "unpopular" female composers, proves that the practice of women having history cannot fundamentally change the understanding of female musicians, nor does it change the development rules of music history and the established disciplinary framework. , in the entire field of Western music history, women are still in a relatively marginalized position (this situation is roughly the same in various textbooks and course syllabuses).
3. Criticism of Women’s Music
The investigation of the history of women’s music not only expands the research scope of musicology, but also brings great vitality to the academic world. The problem is that the construction of music classics is indeed influenced by ideology, but the value judgment of works still needs to have a certain standard, no matter to what extent the existing classics have been affected by race, class and gender factors in the formation process. influence, but it does represent the essence of Western cultural and artistic achievements. For this reason, many scholars who are skeptical about the value of women's studies believe that although women's contributions have been recognized in the modern academic field, some works by female composers have been performed or published, and have appeared in various academic conferences, papers and books. There are many issues related to women, but most of them have come to the forefront of history simply because of their gender, and the actual value of their musical works or musical activities is not great. Therefore, after female musical works have been fully explored and sorted out, the issue of aesthetic evaluation of female musical works has become a focus.
From the perspective of feminism, power and gender temperament are interdependent, and people of different genders, classes and races are endowed with different gender temperaments. The essentialist gender thinking model of binary opposition believes that there are many completely different oppositions between men and women. Being a biological woman must have female gender characteristics, which are negatively related to physical, emotional, tenderness, dependence, etc. Values ??are associated with each other, and men are associated with positive values ??such as bravery, rationality, and independence. In order to get rid of the troubles caused by gender, many female composers insist on not letting gender identity become an issue and strive to create music that is "the same" as men to prove that they can write music, not "women's music." However, while not letting their creations and performances "sound too weak", some female musicians also try to avoid being too "strong" and losing their femininity. Marcia J. Citron in Gender and the Musical Canon (1993)? Roller? 輲? This book studies female composers from different historical periods and regions. Through the study of biographies, notes, diaries or correspondence records, it explores the similarities in their life experiences, emotional experiences, ways of thinking and career paths, and proposes that Western art music How the "classical" canon affects female composers and their creations. To this end, the author explores the requirements for music "classics" by performance institutions, academic criticism, music publishing and recording industries, and also evaluates the shaping of female roles by social gender.
However, the author also believes that "female composer" is a broad concept. As independent individuals, we must not only consider the overall construction of power and knowledge for women, but also cannot ignore the unique personal experience of female composers.
Unlike the relatively unified musical language of tonal music, the music of the post-tonal period is more personalized. Perhaps as some critics say, modern music is too "masculine", and there is not much discussion of modern music by feminism. Ellie Hisama in "Gendered Musical Modernism: Exposed Music by Silk Crawford, Marion Ball, Miriam Gidd"? Roller? converge? This book is the first to raise the issue of modernism in music from a feminist perspective. In the first chapter of the book, "Cultural Analysis and Posttonal Music", the research methods and research strategies are introduced, and the third chapter of "String Quartet" (1931) by the American modernist female composer Ruth Crawford is analyzed. 3. The fourth movement, the melody characteristics of the art song "Chinaman, Laundryman" (1932), the other four articles discuss Marion Bauer and Miriam Gide Gideon's 4 works. Five of the seven works analyzed in this book are purely instrumental works. In the specific narrative, Black Sama combines the works and life experiences of these composers, using the composer's public records, private letters, diaries, and the creation process. One piece uses the recollections of friends to demonstrate the nuances of gender. Black Sama analyzes the common narrative themes in the creations of the three composers around "feminism-modernism", hoping to build a bridge between modernism and feminism, which is complex but also interesting.
"Feminist Musical Aesthetics"? Roller? 贴? This is a monograph that focuses on the aesthetic issues of women's musical works. The author, Sally Macarthur, hopes to use "feminist music aesthetics" to reshape the evaluation standards of women's music. As one of the few monographs that provides an aesthetic interpretation of female composers and their musical works from a feminist perspective, the author questions the practice of evaluating female music based on the male model's "ideal standards" and compares the differences between works of the same content created by male and female composers. Differences, specifically demonstrating the connotation and legitimacy of "feminist aesthetics". For example, in Chapter 4, the author analyzes the works of British composers Rebecca Clarke (1886-1970) and Elisabeth Lutyens (1906-1983), analyzing Clarke's "Piano Trio" Trio, 1921), arguing that Clark subverted traditional ideas of the sonata form despite using a genre considered masculine. In addition, the author also analyzes the symbolic meaning between the (female) body and the musical work in Australian composer Anne Boyd's "Cycle of Love" (1981); Elena Kats-Chernin's piano piece "Tast-en" considered postmodern is explored in terms of its postmodern and feminist parallels; from Moya Henderson Henderson's two very different works: Stubble (1975), a student drama, and Sacred Site (1983), written for large organ and tape, analyzing national identity and environment. Factors, race, religion influence on composers.
Conclusion
Gender is the most important difference in human society. Social relationships established with the help of biological sex differences are the earliest and most common classification standards in every social form. It has affected all aspects of family, society, culture, religion and musical life. Western music history has focused on famous, creative male musical geniuses while leaving less famous musicians unknown and unheralded. Women's music research pays special attention to "little-known" women's musical activities, and excavates, collects and analyzes their musical works.
Over the past few decades, influenced by semiotics, psychoanalysis, cultural studies, poststructuralism, postcolonialism, gay theory, and "queer" studies, gender studies have continued to deepen and expand, and the research focus is no longer limited to simple A study of women's musical history. Not only that, with changes in the social environment and historical context, the social, economic and political status of women has been greatly improved. Female musicians can receive more complete music training and can create more freely. Those who are the best ’s female composers have successfully challenged centuries of stereotypes, proving that women can create top-notch music, even when competing with the greatest men in the field. As the starting point of gender studies, the value of "women's studies" still exists. Many scholars are far more interested in women's social status, role and identity issues than in pure feminist music criticism theory. They use the new gender theory to study female musicians in the new era and explore the female identity and unique personality that are constantly adapting to the new social context. This is also an inexhaustible topic in women's studies.
① [US] "Women in the Musical World" by Arthur Elson, translated by Xu Lei, Shandong University Press
2014 edition.
② Sophie Drinker. Music and Women: The Story of Women in Their Relation to Music. New York: Coward-McCann, 1948.
③ Ruth Solie, "Sophie Drinkers History" . In Disciplining Music: Musicology and Its Canons, edited by Katherine Bergeron and Philip V. Bohlman. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1992, pp23-43.
④ James R. Briscoe ed. Historical Anthology of Music by Women. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1987.
⑤ Sylvia Glickman and Martha Furman Schleifer eds. Women Composers:
Music Through the Ages. New York: G. K. Hall ﹠CO, 1996.
⑥ Karin Pendle. Women and Music: A History. Bloomington: Indiana
University Press, 1991.
⑦ Judith Tick. American Women Composers Before 1870. New York:
University of Rochester Press, 1979.
⑧ Jane Bowers and Judith Tick eds. Women Making Music: The Western
Art Tradition, 1150-1950. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1987.
⑨ [US] Nancy Reich, "Clara Schumann: The Greatest Female Pianist of the Nineteenth Century" (Vol. 2
edition), translated by Chen Qiuping and You Shufeng, Taipei Yigao Culture 2003 edition.
⑩ Judith Tick. Ruth Crawford Seeger: A Composers Search for American Music. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.