Equality and Diversity

in the Classical Music Profession

A research report by Dr Christina Scharff
February 2015

1
 Equality and Diversity
in the Classical Music Profession

Contents

Author and acknowledgements ............................................................................... 03

Introduction: Why focus on issues of equality and diversity? .................................. 04

Executive summary ................................................................................................. 05

Context: The cultural and creative industries ......................................................... 05

Inequalities in the classical music profession ........................................................... 06

1. Classical music education ....................................................................... 06

2. Under-representation .............................................................................. 10

3. Horizontal segregation ............................................................................ 10

4. Vertical segregation ................................................................................. 12

5. Sexualisation of female musicians ............................................................ 15

Making sense of the persistence of inequalities ......................................................... 15

Summary .................................................................................................................. 17

Recommendations .................................................................................................... 18

1. Monitoring through data collection .......................................................... 18

2. Putting inequalities on the agenda ............................................................ 18

3. Structural issues require structural solutions ............................................. 18

Annex: Information on research methods .................................................................. 19

References ................................................................................................................. 20

Equality and Diversity in CM 2

Author and AcknowledgementSs

Dr Christina Scharff is Lecturer in Culture, Media

and Creative Industries at King’s College London.
She is currently conducting in-depth research on
the classical music profession. More information
on the project, research findings as well as related
talks and events can be found at: http://blogs.kcl.
ac.uk/young-female-and-entrepreneurial/.

The research is generously supported by the

Economic and Social Research Council (ES/
K008765/1). Apart from her funders, Christina
would like to thank her collaborators B McClure,
Dr Patrizia Kokot and Dr John Blamey. She would
also like to express her gratitude to colleagues who
read and commented on the report, namely Mi-
chelle Drew, Dr Melissa Nisbett, Anna Bull and
Professor Andy Pratt. Lastly, Christina would like
to thank Laura Schmale for designing the report.

Equality and Diversity in CM 3

Introduction: Why focus on industry as a whole and do not explicitly discuss
issues of equality and diversity? classical music. In addition, there are reported dif-
ficulties in obtaining relevant information on the
This report brings together new and existing re- cultural workforce (Arts Council England, 2014).
search on equality and diversity in the classical As this report will demonstrate, the lack of evi-
music profession. It draws on academic, policy dence is particularly pronounced in relation to
and advocacy reports but also provides new data musicians’ class and ethnic backgrounds. While it
that has been specifically collected for this report. was possible to identify some existing studies and
The aim of the report is to provide a systematic to conduct a limited amount of further research,
overview of issues of equality and diversity in the there is an urgent need to collect and collate more
classical music profession by: data. Such data would document the composition
of the classical music workforce in terms of gender,
1) mapping existing inequalities race and class, but would also include other im-
2) providing explanations for why these portant variables, such as age, disability and sexual
inequalities persist orientation, that remain unaddressed here.
3) offering recommendations for how they
can be addressed Lastly, an informed discussion about issues of
equality and diversity is timely because we live
Inequalities in the arts and cultural sector relate to in a society that puts a lot of emphasis on indivi-
a range of issues, such as access to the arts, which dual achievement and confidence. While a self-
has been discussed widely. However, inequali- confident attitude might be needed to succeed
ties in the cultural sector also relate to the com- in the highly competitive arts and cultural sector,
position of the cultural workforce. This issue has the emphasis on the individual leaves out social
been explored less widely, even though it matters. forces, such as wider inequalities. Gender, ethnic
Who gets to make culture, in its widest sense from and class background do affect musicians’ ability
books to films and music, shapes how we under- to access the sector and to succeed. To be sure,
stand ourselves as a society. If certain groups are there are individual success stories and musicians’
under-represented in the cultural workforce, their backgrounds do not determine their careers. But
views and perspectives may not be seen, heard or the evidence shows that there are wider patterns,
shared. This also means that the arts and culture which for example relate to the under-representa-
may only appeal to a particular segment of society, tion of musicians from working-class, black and
impeding further growth, particularly in terms of minority ethnic backgrounds, and the relative lack
recruiting future audiences and retaining a skilled of women in positions of authority and prestige.
workforce. However, these patterns tend to remain unack-
nowledged. Instead, challenges are often regar-
Although inequalities in the cultural workforce ded as individual problems, adding to the emoti-
matter, there has been relatively little systematic onal difficulties that many musicians experience.
research, particularly on the classical music profes- It’s therefore time to put these inequalities on the
sion. Existing reports, such as the Music Blueprint agenda, to make them visible, and to understand
by Creative Blueprint (2011) focus on the music what we can do to move beyond them.

Equality and Diversity in CM 4

Executive summary risk female musicians’ reputations and credibility
as artists. In a context where sexual harassment is
This report documents issues of equality and di- present, and where ‘good looks’ are defined nar-
versity in music education and training, orchestras, rowly, female musicians have to deal with a set of
teaching staff at conservatoires, conducting, and gender-specific challenges.
composition. Based on a systematic analysis, the
report identifies inequalities that relate to under- In order to make sense of the persistence of the-
representation, vertical and horizontal segregation, se inequalities, the report takes a close look at the
and the sexualisation of female musicians. working conditions in the classical music professi-
on and the wider cultural sector. It shows that cul-
Under-representation tural myths about talent and creativity contribute
Despite making up a high percentage of students to inequalities, as do other, indeed frequently lau-
on relevant degree programmes, women remain ded features of the sector, such as its informality,
under-represented in the classical music professi- flexibility and reliance on networking. By focu-
on. Research equally suggests that musicians from sing on working conditions, the report introduces
working-class or minority ethnic backgrounds a new and important angle to our understanding
encounter barriers to access the sector. Classical and discussion of inequalities in the classical music
music education, for example, has similarities with sector.
middle-class culture, meaning that musicians from
a middle-class background fit more comfortably in The report’s recommendations suggest ways
this world. in which these inequalities could be addressed
through, for example, more sustained research.
Vertical and horizontal segregation This would facilitate a more informed discussion
The classical music profession is marked by verti- about inequalities in the classical music profession
cal segregation; women are under-represented in and would go some way towards helping to address
positions of authority and prestige, and wider re- the concerns raised within this report.
search on the arts and cultural sector suggests that
similar trends apply to ethnic minorities. Horizon-
tal segregation is also present; women are over-re- Context:
presented amongst teachers, but under-represen- The cultural and creative industries
ted amongst composers. Vertical and horizontal
segregation may exacerbate the gender pay gap in The classical music sector is part of the wider cul-
the music industry. tural economy. There are many similarities bet-
ween the working lives of musicians, and those
Sexualisation of female players of other artists and creative workers. It therefore
Women musicians may have to negotiate a range makes sense to explore inequalities in the classical
of contradictory expectations in relation to femi- music profession in the context of the cultural and
ninity, sexuality and appearance. While physical creative industries.
attractiveness may be capitalised upon in certain
contexts (such as marketing), it may also put at

Equality and Diversity in CM 5

We can see the following patterns: tural sector, as well as the prevalence of unpaid
• A higher proportion of women working in the internships and volunteering, contribute to a lack
creative media industries are graduates than men of workforce diversity in terms of socio-economic
(Skillset, 2010). Yet, there has been a decrease background (Arts Council England, 2014).
in the proportion of women working in the arts
and cultural sector between 2008/2009 and
2011/2012, with women currently representing Inequalities in
43% of the cultural workforce in England (Arts the classical music profession
Council England, 20141).
• As a report on the creative media industries has 1. Classical music education
shown, women earn less than men (£29,015 • Reflecting trends in the wider cultural sector,
compared to £34,669, excluding photo imaging women are over-represented in music education.
and publishing). Even when other factors are ad- According to a recent study by the Association of
justed for, such as the lower age profile of women British Orchestras (ABO, 2014), 62% of players
in the workforce, the difference remains signifi- in youth orchestras are female.
cant (Skillset, 2010). • Women are also highly represented on relevant
• In 2011/12, 7% of the creative and cultural degree programmes. As Lucy Green (1997) has
workforce was from a black and minority ethnic shown, most conservatoire students in the UK
background (Arts Council England, 2014). were women by the end of the nineteenth cen-
• The high level of graduate recruitment in the cul- tury.

Table 1 - Percentage of female students at five conservatoires

70%
64.1%

61.3% 61.4%
60.6%
60% 60.4% 57.6%

55.3%
54.5% 54.1% 54.7%
55%
53.9% 53.6%
53.9%
51.2% 50.7%
50% 50.2% 49.1%
48.6%
48.2%
% Female

40%
1995/96 2002/03 2007/08 2012/13

Royal Academy Royal College Royal Coserva- Royal Northern Trinity Laban Conserva-
of Music of Music toire of Scotland College of Music toire of Music and Dance

1
Data cited from the Arts Council England 2014 report refers to England only.

Equality and Diversity in CM 6

• While women currently make up around half of •R
 esearch on class and youth music education in
the student population at five UK conservatoires, England has shown instead that the social scene,
they were over-represented in the mid-nineties the continuity between home and school culture,
(Blamey, Kokot and Scharff, 2014). as well as the type of long-term investment requi-
•A
 recent report on music education shows that red to learn classical music, mean that middle-
children from lower socio-economic groups are class people fit in more comfortably to the world
under-represented. “90%  of children from AB of classical music (Bull, 2014; 2015). The lower
backgrounds will have played an instrument, participation of children from less privileged so-
compared with  80% of children from other so- cio-economic backgrounds is not, therefore, sim-
cial grades. In addition,  74%  of children from ply a matter of access and cost; it is to do with the
AB backgrounds have had instrumental lessons fact that the culture of music education has simi-
compared with only 55% of children from social larities with middle-class culture. For example,
grades C1 and DE” (ABRSM, 2014: 18). The lower middle-class students in Anna Bull’s study
cost of learning to play an instrument is a barrier were more likely to experience bullying by inst-
to participation in music training and education. rumental teachers than their middle-class peers
However, it is not the most significant barrier. and generally felt less comfortable and confident
in the classical music world.

Table 2 - Percentage of students from low participation neighbourhoods at five

conservatoires
% Low Participation Neighbourhood

8%
(Excluding unknowns and n/a)

6%

4%

2%
2002/03 2007/08 2012/13

Royal Academy Royal College Royal Coserva- Royal Northern Trinity Laban Conserva-
of Music of Music toire of Scotland College of Music toire of Music and Dance

Equality and Diversity in CM 7

• The
 middle-class culture of music education is to only 3.2% in 2007/08 and slightly recovered
also visible if we look at the class background to 3.9% in 2012/13 (Blamey, Kokot and Scharff,
of conservatoire students. Excluding unknowns 2014). In 2011-2012, the overall proportion of
and not applicable entries, 5.2% of students ac- students from low participation neighbourhoods
ross five conservatoires came from a ‘low parti- in higher education was above 10% (Universities
cipation neighbourhood’ in 2002/03, which fell UK, 2013).

Table 3 - Percentage of privately schooled students at five conservatoires

50%

40%

30%
% Private Schools

20%

10%

0%

2002/03 2007/08 2012/13

Royal Academy Royal College Royal Coserva- Royal Northern Trinity Laban Conserva-
of Music of Music toire of Scotland College of Music toire of Music and Dance

[Note: no data for Royal Northern College in 2002/03]

•A
 high proportion of conservatoire students atten- • The
 middle-class culture of music education may
ded a private school (Blamey, Kokot and Scharff, explain why classical music continues to appeal
2014). Excluding unknowns and not applicable to middle-class audiences. A survey on cultural
entries, 24.4% of students across five conser- tastes in the UK has shown that classical music
vatoires in 2012/2013 had attended a private remains a disproportionately middle-class taste:
school. graduates are six times more likely to appreciate
it than those who have no qualifications (Bennett
et al, 2009).

Equality and Diversity in CM 8

Table 4 – Percentage of black and minority ethnic students i) at five conservatoires and ii)
doing a music degree across all universities
% BAME (excluding data from non-
UK domiciles and not knowns) 12%

9%

6%

3%

0%
2002/03 2007/08 2012/13
Total (5 Conservatoires) Total (all Universities)

•S
 tudents from black and minority ethnic back- By contrast, the representation of black and mi-
grounds are also under-represented in classical mu- nority ethnic students at five conservatoires, whe-
sic education. Amongst UK music students who re data was available, was 8% in 2012/2013 (Bla-
disclosed their ethnicity, 10% were from a black mey, Kokot and Scharff, 2014).
and minority ethnic background in 2012/2013.

Table 5 – Percentage of black and minority ethnic students at five conservatoires

13.2%
12% 11.8%
% BAME (excluding data from non-

9.9%
9.5%
UK domiciles and not knowns)

9.4%
9%
9.0%

6.4%
6% 5.7% 5.0% 5.2%
5.2%
4.6%

3%
2.0%
1.1%
1.3%

0%
2002/03 2007/08 2012/13

Royal Academy Royal College Royal Coserva- Royal Northern Trinity Laban Conserva-
of Music of Music toire of Scotland College of Music toire of Music and Dance

Equality and Diversity in CM 9

2. Under-representation •A
 ccording to the Music Blueprint (Creative Blue-
•W
 hile women currently make up around half of print, 2011), which includes data on the entire
the student population at the five UK conserva- music sector in the UK, 93% of the industry is
toires (Blamey, Kokot and Scharff, 2014), they white.
remain under-represented in the profession. •C
 rucially, black and minority ethnic groups are
•T  he gender profile of the artistic staff across the culturally and socially diverse. According to Mari
Arts Council England’s 2012-2015 National Port- Yoshihara’s (2007) research on Asian and Asian-
folio Organisations is 38.5 % female and 61.5 % American musicians in the US, East Asians cons-
male in music (Arts Council England, 2014). In titute a considerable presence in the world of clas-
comparison to other sectors, music has the lowest sical music in which other non-European groups
representation of women, with the grand total of remain largely invisible. Further research is nee-
all sectors being 53.1% men and 46.9 % women. ded to determine whether similar trends apply to
•A  2010 survey of the rosters of twenty British or- the UK.
chestras found that women represented 38.89% •T
 here seems to be an absence of statistical data
of the orchestral workforce (Osborne and Conant, on the socio-economic background of musicians.
2010). Historical data shows that the numbers of A report by the Musicians’ Union (Musicians’
women in orchestras is increasing, albeit slowly. In Union, 2012) has shown that 56% of surveyed
1990, the representation of women in British or- musicians earn less than £20,000 a year (see also
chestras was 30% (Allmendinger and Hackman, Creative Blueprint, 2011). This information does
1995). Our 2014 study2 of the membership of Bri- not, however, tell us something about the class
tish orchestras suggests that women now make up background of musicians. The available informa-
43.2% per cent of players (McClure, Kokot and tion on music education (ABRSM, 2014), which
Scharff, 2014). highlighted the lower representation of children
•A  s shown by the Arts Council England report on from less privileged socio-economic backgrounds,
equality and diversity within the arts and cultu- suggests that musicians from working-class/lower
ral sector (Arts Council England, 2014), there middle-class backgrounds are under-represented
was an absence of data on the ethnic background in the profession.
of almost a quarter of staff surveyed, equating to
nearly 19,000 people. Data on the ethnic back- 3. Horizontal segregation
ground of the cultural workforce, including music, Horizontal segregation refers to the concentration of
is extremely limited. particular groups in specific sectors of economic activi-
• I n our study of the membership of British orches- ty ( for example, women tend to be over-represented in
tras (McClure, Kokot and Scharff, 2014), it was caring professions and men in financial services).
possible to collect data on the ethnic backgrounds
of the members of 17 orchestras. Of 629 orchest- •F
 emale and male musicians tend to be concentra-
ra players, only 11 (1.7%) could be identified to ted in particular fields of the profession, such as
be from a black and minority ethnic background, instrument groups.
which suggests that the number of non-white mu-
sicians across this industry is low.

2
Please see the Annex for a detailed discussion of the study‘s methodology.

Equality and Diversity in CM 10

Table 6 – Gender breakdown by instrument amongst members of British orchestras
100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Violin

Viola

Cello

Double Bass

Harp

Flute

Oboe

Clarinet

Bassoon

French Horn

Trumpet

Trombone

Tuba

Timp/Perc.

Total
Women Men

•S
 ome instruments and instrumental groups are and percussion (male) (McClure, Kokot and
gendered, particularly harp (female), brass (male) Scharff, 2014).

Table 7 - Gender breakdown by instrument taught by conservatoire staff

100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Bassoon

Cello

Clarinet

Compos/Prod/Tech

Conducting

Double Bass

Flute

French Horn

Guitar

Harp

Oboe

Percussion

Piano/Keys/Organ

Recorder

Saxophone

Trombone

Trumpet

Tuba

Viola

Violin

Vocal and Operatic

Grand Total

Women Men

Equality and Diversity in CM 11

•H
 orizontal segregation also exists amongst percentage of female composers had increased to
teaching staff at conservatoires. Women are parti- 6.45% (8 out of 124). In addition, female com-
cularly over-represented amongst staff who teach posers are significantly less successful in terms of
flute and harp, and significantly under-represen- the number of recordings on which they feature
ted in conducting, percussion and brass (McClu- (McAndrew and Everett, 2015).
re, Kokot and Scharff, 2014). •B
 y contrast, women are over-represented in
•G  endered trends in instrument choice do not teaching. Currently, 71% of music teachers are
seem to have changed significantly. According to female, 28% are male, and one per cent prefer-
the ABRSM (2014), boys continue to learn per- red not to say (ABRSM, 2014). However, music
cussion, whereas girls tend to play the recorder, teaching is often considered a less prestigious form
violin or flute. of music making (Bennett, 2008; Mills, 2005).
• I n the profession, men are overwhelmingly repre-
sented in composition. The female membership of 4. Vertical segregation
the Performing Rights Society For Music is cur- Vertical segregation refers to the over or under-repre-
rently 14% (PRS for Music Foundation, 2014). sentation of particular groups in positions of power
Women in Music (2014) has surveyed women’s and prestige. More colloquially, this is often referred to
participation in the BBC Proms, arguably the as the ‘glass ceiling’.
world’s most significant classical music festival.
According to this survey, 1 out of 103 (0.97%) •M
 en are over-represented at conservatoires, which
composers were female in 1992; in 2014, the is regarded a more prestigious form of teaching.

Table 8 – Gender profile of conservatoire teaching staff

234

164 172
143
126 132
118
Gender: Conservatoire Staff

93 91
83
57 56 64 62 56

10
Birminham Conservatoire

Leeds College of Music

Royal Academy of Music

Royal College of Music

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

Royal Northern College of Music

Royal Welsh College of Music

Trinity Laban Concervatoire of Music

Women Men

Equality and Diversity in CM 12

• I n 2014, around 70% of conservatoire teachers Out of 1787 staff, we could identify the gender of
were male (McClure, Kokot and Scharff, 2014). 1,661. 516 were female and 1,145 were male.

Table 9 - Ethnic background of conservatoire teaching staff

Conservatoire BAME WHITE GRAND TOTAL

Birminham Conservatoire 4 114 118
Leeds College of Music 1 62 63
Royal Academy of Music 10 321 331
Royal College of Music 1 198 199
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland 4 95 99
Royal Northern College of Music 3 204 207
Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama 3 172 175
Trinity Laban Concervatoire of Music and Dance 2 151 153
Grand Total 28 1317 1345

•O
 ur research shows that the representation of •R
 eflecting the lack of women in positions of au-
black and minority ethnic staff is also low at con- thority, few conductors are female (Bartleet,
servatoires (McClure, Kokot and Scharff, 2014). 2008; Bennett, 2008), and this seems to be chan-
Out of 1787 staff, we could identify the ethnic ging slowly. According to data collected by Wo-
background of 1345. 28 staff, or around 2%, were men in Music (2014), 1 out of 50 conductors was
from a black and minority ethnic background. a woman (2%) at the 1992 BBC Proms. In 2014,
• I n the arts and cultural sector at large, less than 4 out of 62 were female (6. 45%).
one in ten managers are from a black and mino- •O
 rchestras are also marked by vertical segregati-
rity ethnic background (Arts Council England, on.
2014).

Table 10 - Total number and percentage of women conductors and artistic directors in
orchestras

Position Total % women

Conductor 72 1.4
Artistic/Musical Director 35 2.9

Equality and Diversity in CM 13

•W
 omen are under-represented amongst conduc- made up 1.4% of conductors and 2.9% of artistic/
tors, artistic leaders and principals (McClure, musical directors.
Kokot and Scharff, 2014). In 2014, women only

Table 11 - Total number and percentage of women in orchestras for (i) all players,
(ii) sub-principals, and (iii) principals; by instrument

ALL PLAYERS SUB-PRINCIPALS PRINCIPALS

Instrument Total % women Total % women Total % women
Violin 729 60.4 65 61.5 87 41.4
Viola 244 51.2 16 43.8 33 36.4
Cello 238 51.7 18 38.9 38 28.9
Double Bass 151 25.8 10 10.0 34 17.6
Harp 25 84.0 2 100.0 12 83.3
Flute 94 60.6 5 80.0 44 50
Oboe 85 51.8 4 75.0 37 32.4
Clarinet 93 24.7 4 25.0 49 18.4
Bassoon 89 37.1 6 33.3 36 30.6
French Horn 144 13.9 8 25.0 42 14.3
Trumpet 92 9.8 8 0.0 36 5.6
Trombone 84 13.1 3 0.0 36 16.7
Tuba 22 0.0 0 0.0 13 0.0
Timp/Perc. 124 9.7 9 0.0 55 9.1
Total 2214 43.2 158 43.7 552 26.8

•W
 hile women represented 43.2% of players in • W
 omen are poorly represented at board level. In
orchestras in 2014, only 26.8% were principals the music sector, 65.3% of board members are
(McClure, Kokot and Scharff, 2014). male, and 34.7% are female. The grand total for
• I n addition, women tend to be under-represented board membership in the arts and cultural sector
in prestigious orchestras, and this has been the is 56.5% (male) and 43.5% (female) (Arts Coun-
case historically (Allmendinger and Heckman, cil England, 2014).
1995). While women currently make up 43.2% •P
 robably related to horizontal and vertical segre-
in British orchestras, they only represent around gation, statistics on the UK music sector demonst-
30% in the London Symphony Orchestra (Mc- rate there is a gender pay gap. Men earn £7.92 per
Clure, Kokot and Scharff, 2014), which is often hour while women’s hourly pay is £6.92 (Creative
regarded as prestigious (Gramophone, 2008). and Cultural Skills, 2010).

Equality and Diversity in CM 14

5. Sexualisation of female musicians put it: “I do not want to be a product; I want to
•W
 omen musicians encounter particular challen- be an artist […] It really cheapens you when they
ges in relation to appearance, femininity and se- are trying to sell it, your art, through the way you
xuality. look […]. I do not want to be portrayed as one of
•R  esearch on media representations of female and those girls who just look good and cannot do it,
male musicians in the US, Germany, France and because that is not why I work so hard” (Scharff,
the Netherlands between 1955 and 2005 has de- 2015: 106).
monstrated: “Female musicians receive less media •T
 he situation is compounded by the fact that
attention than their male counterparts and, when female musicians may face sexual harassment
they do receive recognition, their physical appea- (Lamb, 1993), which has been described as “mu-
rance and their family lives often garner as much sic education’s ‘dirty little secret’” (Gould, 2009:
or more attention than their music” (Schmutz, 66). Quoting again from the research conducted
2009: 301). with early-career, female musicians, 10 out of 64
•T  he marketing and promotion of female musicians research participants reported relevant incidents,
differs from that of male musicians. As Mari Yos- including sexual harassment by teachers or by
hihara (2007) has shown in relation to represen- colleagues in orchestras and ensembles (Scharff,
tations of Asian and Asian American musicians 2015).
in the United States, the visual marketing of male •T
 his evidence calls into question commonly made
Asian musicians is much more subtle and less ex- claims that it is an advantage to be a female mu-
plicitly gendered or sexualised than for their fema- sician because it may be easier to get work on the
le counterparts. According to Yoshihara, images of basis of good looks (Scharff, 2015). As outlined
female Asian musicians generally fall into one of above, an emphasis on femininity and sexuali-
three categories: the innocent and somewhat alien ty may reduce the seriousness with which a fe-
child prodigy; the young, sensuous, sexy Asian; male musician’s music-making is taken and may
and the mature, slightly exotic woman. negatively affect her reputation and credibility.
•T  he visual representation of female musicians is The claim that being a woman is an advantage is
not a trivial matter. As Lucy Green demonstrated further misplaced in a setting where sexual harass-
several years ago, an emphasis on “femininity risks ment is present.
reducing the seriousness with which women’s in-
strumental music-making is taken” (Green, 1997:
65). This means that sexualized marketing can Making sense of the persistence
affect the reputation and credibility of female mu- of inequalities
sicians.
• I n-depth interviews with over sixty, early-career There are various ways of making sense of the per-
female musicians (Scharff, 2015) have shown sistence of inequalities in the classical music pro-
that female musicians have to strike a careful ba- fession. A historical analysis would, for example,
lance. For marketing and performance purposes, examine some of the processes that have led to the
they are expected to emphasize their femininity. inequalities that characterise the sector today, show-
At the same time, doing so might jeopardize their ing how classical music institutions helped create
credibility as artists. As one research participant and reproduce hierarchies of social class, gender,

Equality and Diversity in CM 15

race and ethnicity (see for example: Green, 1997; res, tends to be key to finding employment. As
Johnson-Hill, 2014; Roe-Min Kok, 2006). Instead, Siobhan McAndrew and Martin Everett (2015)
this report focuses on the working conditions that have shown, network connections are critical for
characterise the classical music profession and, in- achieving great success in having works perfor-
deed, the cultural sector at large. A better under- med at the annual BBC Proms because they act as
standing of the ways in which work in the cultural pathways whereby ‘raw talent’ is converted into
industries is organised provides some explanations success. The reliance on networks, however, tends
for why inequalities persist. to disadvantage women, as well as working-class
and black and minority ethnic workers. Research
•W
 ork in the cultural sector is flexible. Often, this is on the UK film industry has demonstrated why.
represented as a strength, particularly in terms of The research showed that white, male, middle-
allowing parents to combine having a career with class research participants were more likely to en-
caring responsibilities. Research has demonst- joy networks which could provide access to qua-
rated, however, that flexible work routines may lity work. Many working-class, women and black
make it more difficult to carve out the time and and minority ethnic informants possessed strong
space to work whilst negotiating domestic and networks but these were less well linked to high-
caring issues (Pohlman, 1996; Rafnsdottir and quality work (Grugulis and Stoyanova, 2012).
Heijstra, 2013). Alison Bain (2004) has shown • I nformal work cultures also mean that artists and
that women artists working from home struggle to creative workers have to promote themselves ac-
have an uninterrupted and undisturbed space to tively in order to obtain work, which poses par-
work. ticular challenges to women (Moss-Racusin and
• I ndeed, it is frequently argued that women are Rudman, 2010). Women who self-promote risk
underrepresented in the cultural sector because of violating gendered prescriptions to be modest
difficulty reconciling managing a career with rai- (Rudman, 1998; Scharff, 2015). Indeed, women
sing a family (Skillset, 2010). While it is true that from a minority-ethnic background may be speci-
it is difficult to combine parenting with the flexi- fically disadvantaged because of additional cultu-
ble, long and irregular hours in the cultural indus- ral expectations to be modest and not to stand out
tries, Rosalind Gill (2014) has cautioned against (Williams et al, 2012). However, self-promotion
positing ‘mothering’ as the sole explanation for seems to be key to obtaining opportunities for ca-
gender inequalities in the cultural sector. These reer advancement.
arguments overlook the fact that men as well as •A  further stumbling block for female artists relates
women are parents, and presume that women are to prevailing notions of creativity, which are gen-
the primary caregivers. Instead of accepting mot- dered. “In contemporary Western mythology, the
hering as the only issue, we also have to look at the artist is understood to be male” (Bain, 2004: 172).
nature of work in the cultural industries to under- This myth risks marginalising women from crea-
stand why inequalities persist. tive processes (Proctor-Thomson, 2013). It may
•A  part from allowing for a high degree of flexibi- also explain why female artists tend to be over-
lity, work in the cultural sector is informal, which represented in supportive roles (such as teaching),
further contributes to its inequalities. Networ- while men inhabit roles that are considered more
king, rather than formal recruitment procedu- creative (such as composition).

Equality and Diversity in CM 16

•D
 espite their prevalence, inequalities in the cultu- ductors, principals, artistic directors and board
ral sector often remain ‘unspeakable’ (Gill, 2014). members are female. Given the low number of
The term ‘unspeakable’ means that inequalities are managers who are from a black and minority eth-
not discussed. While musicians provide a range of nic background, similar trends seem to apply to
reasons for the under-representation of particular black and minority ethnic players. Horizontal and
groups, inequalities are not usually mentioned as vertical segregation might also explain the gender
a possible explanation (Scharff, 2015). This has pay gap in the music sector.
to do with a wider, individualist culture where •F
 or women musicians, sexualised marketing and
success and failure tend to be attributed to indi- self-presentation is common and often expected,
viduals alone, and where there seems to be little but may negatively affect their credibility as ar-
open discussion of wider social forces that shape tists. In a context where sexual harassment is pre-
artists’ working lives and careers. Indeed, success sent, and where women are more readily judged
is often said to derive from self-application, ta- on their appearance than men, female musicians
lent and merit, and is not linked to privilege and face particular, gender-specific challenges.
status. The unspeakability of inequalities makes •A
 nalysis of the working conditions in the classical
it more difficult to detect, contest and challenge music profession and the cultural sector at large
them; indeed, unspeakability may contribute to provides a new and important angle to our under-
the perpetuation of inequalities. standing of inequalities. The informality and fle-
xibility of the sector, the reliance on networking
and self-promotion, gendered constructions of
Summary creativity as well as the unspeakability of issues
around diversity and equality contribute to the
This report has documented a range of inequalities persistence of inequalities.
in the classical music sector, relating to: •T
 he research highlights that limited evidence is
available in relation to musicians’ racial and class
•T
 he under-representation of children from lower background, and the way gender, race and class
socio-economic backgrounds in music education, intersect with each other in the classical music
suggesting that musicians from middle-class back- profession. Apart from exploring gender, race
grounds are over-represented in the industry. and class, further research is needed to document
•T
 he under-representation of women and musici- equality issues in relation to sexual orientation,
ans from a black and minority ethnic background. age and disability.
In relation to gender, under-representation in the
profession is particularly pronounced because wo-
men make up a high proportion of students on re-
levant degree programmes.
•H
 orizontal and vertical segregation: Women tend
to work in particular fields of the profession that,
in the case of teaching, tend to be considered less
prestigious. Women are also under-represented
in positions of authority and prestige; few con-

Equality and Diversity in CM 17

Recommendations 3) Structural issues require
structural solutions
1) Monitoring through data collection Inequalities are a structural issue. They reflect wider
There is an urgent need to collect more data on the de- social patterns and cannot, therefore, be addressed on
mographic background of the cultural workforce, in- an individual level. Research has demonstrated that
cluding musicians who work in classical music. formal arrangements work well to address inequali-
•A vailable and accessible data provides an infor- ties: the switch to blind auditions in US orchestras can
med understanding of the demographic makeup possibly explain 25% of the increase in the percentage
of the cultural sector workforce and highlights of female players in the orchestras from 1970s to 1996.
good practice as well as areas for improvement (Goldin and Rouse, 2000).
and intervention. •D ue to the informality of large segments of the
•S uch data would make visible existing inequali- classical music sector, it is not feasible to introdu-
ties and, over time, generate an evidence base for ce blind auditions in all contexts. The available
longitudinal research to identify changes and con- evidence does however suggest that they can suc-
tinuities. cessfully be implemented in institutionalised set-
•E xisting initiatives, such as the various studies ci- tings (such as conservatoires and orchestras).
ted in this report, have done important work to •T he introduction of quotas also helps to increase
document inequalities in the classical music sec- the representation of minority groups. Quotas can
tor. Indeed, cultural sector organisations could be applied to a range of contexts, including, but
collect data on the demographic background of not limited to: commissions, prizes, scholarships,
the workforce themselves, and do so routinely and concert programming, conductors and compo-
voluntarily. sers.
•T hese more formal measures (blind auditions;
2) Putting inequalities on the agenda quotas) would work in tandem with more infor-
Inequalities have to be discussed openly. mal ways to address inequalities, such as mento-
• I nequalities are a key issue because they shape ring schemes or professional development cour-
the very thing we call ‘culture’. An informed and ses aimed at under-represented groups, as well as
open discussion of inequalities in the classical mu- campaigns that critique the sexualisation of female
sic sector, and the cultural sector at large, will lead musicians and focus on attitude change. Informal
to greater understanding of why they matter. interventions should not, however, replace more
•B  ringing inequalities out into the open is impor- formal ones, such as blind auditions and quotas.
tant in light of their wider unspeakability. Debates
about inequalities will challenge prevalent myths
of individual success, talent and meritocracy by
fostering an understanding that some obstacles
and opportunities are not down to the individual.
• I ncreased awareness of the wider social forces that
shape working lives may help musicians and the
wider cultural sector workforce to cope with the
high demands of their profession.

Equality and Diversity in CM 18

Annex: 3) McClure, Kokot and Scharff (2014)
Information on research methods Data on the British orchestral landscape/conser-
vatoire staff is based on a study conducted by B
1) Existing research McClure, Dr Patrizia Kokot, and Dr Christina
This report is based on a review of existing re- Scharff. This study documented publicly availab-
search on inequalities in the classical music profes- le information on the demographic background of
sion and the cultural sector. This research is pub- orchestral musicians and conservatoire staff.
lished in cultural sector reports (such as the recent
report by the Arts Council (Arts Council England, The data set for the conservatoires includes the 8
2014)), academic books and articles, as well as conservatoires listed by the Conservatoires UK Ad-
publicly available web-resources such as the Wo- mission Service (see http://www.cukas.ac.uk/).
men in Music statistics on the BBC Proms. For B McClure used staff listings by department (e.g.
more information on the methods underpinning strings, woodwind, brass, percussion, keyboard
the existing research, please refer to the original etc.) to document the demographic background of
studies (full citations are available in the reference the teaching staff. ‘Vocal studies, opera and mu-
section). sical theatre’, as well as ‘Composition, production
and music technology’ were combined due to
2) Blamey, Kokot and Scharff (2014) overlap of staff roles and job titles.
Apart from drawing on existing research, the re-
port is informed by data purchased from the High- The data set for the orchestras includes the 61 or-
er Education Statistics Agency (HESA). This data chestras listed as full members of the Association
included all students doing an undergraduate or of British Orchestras (see http://www.abo.org.uk/
postgraduate music degree in the UK in 1995/1996, members/directory.aspx). Where available (in 43
2002/2003, 2007/2008 and 2012/2013. The data out of 61 orchestras), demographic data was coll-
contained information on the demographic back- ected in relation to orchestral members’ gender,
ground of the students, including gender, ethnici- ethnic background, instrument, instrument group,
ty, nationality, and class background (as composed and position, including conductors and artistic di-
of the fields ‘state school marker’, ‘socio-economic rectors.
classification’ and ‘low participation neighbour-
hood marker’). Gender
Where the gender was not obvious through pho-
Dr John Blamey and Dr Patrizia Kokot analysed tograph and/or name, a brief Google search was
this data, looking in particular at the demographic conducted. This method does, however, contain a
background of students at five conservatoires and margin of error.
how this compares to music students in the UK as
a whole. The data cannot be shared with the wi- Ethnicity
der public, but further questions can be directed In the interests of collecting as detailed informati-
to: christina.scharff@kcl.ac.uk. on as possible, and to enable analysis of potential
correlations between ethnicity and gender, as well
as ethnicity and leadership positions, the project

Equality and Diversity in CM 19

aimed to record the ethnicity of every individual More, the Better? A Four-Nation Study of the In-
orchestral player/member of staff at the eight con- clusion of Women in Symphony Orchestras. Social
servatoires. Where photographs and/or biographi- Forces 74(2): 423-460.
cal details were provided on the ensemble/con-
servatoire website, an assessment of ethnicity was Arts Council England (2014). Equality and diver-
made, based on the photograph, name and birth- sity within the arts and cultural sector in England.
place. In cases where only a few photographs were At: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/media/up-
missing, a Google search was conducted. Again, loads/Equality_and_diversity_within_the_arts_
this method does contain a margin of error and is and_cultural_sector_in_England.pdf.
problematic because it bases ethnicity on a nar-
rowly defined set of characteristics, and relies on Association of British Orchestras (2014). Youth
visual clues. In the absence of data on the demo- Ensembles Survey Report. At: http://www.abo.org.
graphic makeup of the classical music profession, uk/media/33505/ABO-Youth-Ensemble-Survey-
this rather crude method was employed to provi- Report-App.pdf.
de a starting point for analysis and to highlight the
need for further systematic research. Bain, A. (2004). Female artistic identity in place:
the studio. Social & Cultural Geography 5(2):
Many ensembles did not include photographs or 171-193.
biographical details, which explains why ethnic
background has only been identified in relation to Bartleet, B.-L. (2008). Women Conductors
17 orchestras (629 orchestra members) and 1345 on the Orchestral Podium: Pedagogical and
out of 1787 conservatoire staff. Professional Implications. At: http://sym-
The Arts Council and other cultural organisations posium.music.org /index.php?option=com_
use the two categories ‚White‘ and ‚BAME‘ and k2&view=item&id=2246:women-conductors-
these categories have been used here for compa- on-the-orchestral-podium-pedagogical-and-pro-
rability. fessional-implications.

Dr Patrizia Kokot analysed the data that B Mc- Bennett, D. (2008). Understanding the Classical
Clure collected. The study was conducted under Music Profession. The past, the Present and Strate-
the direction of Dr Christina Scharff. gies for the Future. Farnham: Ashgate.

Bennett, T., Savage, M., Silva, E., Warde, A.,

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