Why are there so few women composers of classical music?
While women are perhaps somewhat more free to make their own decisions, live their dreams in some countries, the wheels spin slowly in others. And within communities, the wheels spin slower. You might ask: why are there so few black hockey players? You might ask: why are there so few male child care providers? Convention forces us into our roles in many ways. Women have been somewhat accepted in popular music, but, except as instrumentalists, not in the classical realms. Few conductors accept women assistant conductors and those that do are ostracized within their peer group. Few pieces by the women who DO write for the symphony and chamber are performed outside of radical, outside the convention groups that have no place in the very conservative classical music world. This about.com site almost says it all http://womenshistory.about.com/cs/music/tp/womena
