Jan 6, 2023 13:37 | Updated: Jan 6, 2023 13:47
(From left) Erorin Warren, Unsuk Chin and Kaija Saariaho.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Getty/Alamy
Nearly half of the world’s top 20 contemporary composers in 2022 will be women, according to a new survey.
In 2022, nine of the top 20 most-performed living composers will be women, according to the Annual Statistical Report for Classical Music.
Female composers in the top 20 include Anna Klein, Kaija Saariaho, Olga Neuwirth, Unsuk Chin, Anna Torvaldsdottir, Missy Mazzoli and Erolin Warren.
The report, conducted by the online classical music magazine Bachtrack, is based on a list of 27,124 performances in 2022.
In the report’s complete list of the 106 most-performed living composers, 12 of the 24 British composers listed were women, and 27 Americans named. 10 of them were women.
Bachtrack’s 2022 stats are very different from previous figures. In 2014, only one woman (Sofia Gubaidulina) was named among the top 20 most-performed living composers, while John’s three (John Williams, John Adams and John Rutter) were named. .
Exactly one year ago, in 2013, there were no women on the top 200 list.
read more: 10 women who changed the world of classical music forever
Russian composer Sofia Gubaidulina presents a rare performance in America.
Photo: Getty
Gubaidulina, now 91, is also in the top 20 list for 2022 (7th best women listed). This is a particularly impressive feat as she struggled to get her music widely played in the 20th century.
Gubaidulina, who lived in Soviet Russia, fell out of favor with the authorities as a member of the group Khrennikov Seven. These seven of her composers were denounced by the Union of Soviet Composers for writing a score written in the words “meaningless… noisy mud instead of true musical innovation”.
However, in a 2013 interview with The Guardian, Gubaidulina said being blacklisted and “not performing very well” gave her “artistic freedom, even if she didn’t make a lot of money.” I explained that I could feel it.
“I was able to write what I wanted to write without compromise”
read more: Only 5% of songs scheduled at today’s classical music concerts are written by women (2021)
There is good news for women in the field of conducting as well. Of the 100 busiest conductors in the world, Bachtrack names 12 of her women. In 2013, she was the only female conductor on the same list (Marin Alsop in No.70).
Elim Chan, 36, is the highest ranked woman at No. 29, followed by Karina Kanelakis, Natalie Stutzmann, Mirga Graznytetila, Marin Alsop, Daria Stasevska, Shang Chan, Gemma New, Simone Young and Joana Marwitz. , Christina Posca, Barbara Hannigan.
read more: Marin Alsop Reveals 10 Things Inside a Conductor’s Brain During a Symphony Concert
Conductors are also getting younger. Principal conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, his 26-year-old Klaus Makella is one of the world’s top 10 busiest maestros, according to Bachtrack.
The Finnish musician ranks fourth on the list and is the youngest conductor to be nominated.
Despite Makela being the youngest, the average age on this list, which includes names like Sir Simon Rattle, Gustavo Dudamel and Andris Nelsons, is still a pretty feisty 46.
In 2010, Bachtrack’s list of the top 10 busiest conductors in the world was 61 years old.
read more: Schools must offer at least ‘one hour of music a week’ – new music education plan revealed
The average age of the 10 busiest conductors is now 46, up from 61 in 2010.
Photo: Backtrack
The past decade has witnessed a meteoric rise to fame for many talented young conductors.
In 2022, one of classical music’s greatest moments was the appointment of 29-year-old Jonathon Hayward as the new Music Director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. This was the position previously held by the pioneering conductor Marin Alsop. Inaugurated in the 2023/24 season, Hayward will make history as the youngest and first African-American orchestral music director.
“As a young conductor at the moment, I think it’s pretty much new to me. A lot of the time it’s with veteran players and veteran orchestras who’ve probably played the piece hundreds of times,” says Hayward South. told Bank. 2021 Sinfonia.
“This is my first time performing in an ensemble, but it feels like we are exploring a blank canvas together, which is a thrill.”
read more: 13 Black Conductors Past And Present Who Inspired Us From The Podium
