Women in Music
by Gabriel DuBransky
If given a time period or genre of music, you can probably think of some of the influences that led to the growth of that style. Often, only male artists are the historied influencers of music, but women have been just as prominent. Many types of music are heavily affected by women who have been eclipsed by their male colleagues, and sometimes even collaborators. These artists deserve more recognition, as many women in male dominated fields do.
Hildegard of Bingen was one of the creators of classic European music, born in the late 11th century. She wrote for vocals, and was also a nun and a philosopher. She was a musician before sheet music was even invented, and participated in a lot of religious music. She paved the way for classical music before women were considered to be artists.
During the Renaissance, women were often pushed to the side in not only science, but the arts too. Maddalena Casulana was the first woman to ever publish her musical compositions, defying the male-led tides of the Renaissance. She also taught women to sing, as she wrote for vocals and wanted to help other women succeed.
Guadalupe Olmedo faced multiple layers of oppression as a female Mexican composer. She studied at the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica in Mexico, and was a pianist who wrote mostly classical music. She often felt as though she had to fit into White standards of music, as the odds were already stacked against her. However, her immense talent won her awards, a signal of the success women of color could achieve.
During World War II, female radio DJs started gaining popularity as more men went off to war. GI Jill, or Martha Wilkerson, had a place in music that not only allowed her to support other artists, but make an impact of her own, cheering on troops from her booth. She acted as both a disc jockey and a peppy voice to remind America that they were strong in the face of hardship.
In 2010, Beyoncé won six Grammys, the most ever by a female artist in one night. Now one of the most famous pop stars of our time, she is reinventing not only pop music, but the way that music is performed in general, her concerts being some of the most highly produced in history. She is and continues to be a revolutionary in music and performance.
Often women are not the first person to achieve something in their field, but become the first woman to achieve something, defined by their womanhood as opposition to their male counterparts. However, this does not diminish all the ways that women have innovated and affected the music industry forever.
Sources
https://www.billboard.com/photos/8047014/womens-music-industry-achievements-timeline-75-years/
https://utahsymphony.org/explore/2020/03/10-trailblazing-female-composers-you-need-to-know/