Music and Gender

Music and gender are two concepts that have been intertwined for a very long time from early civilization when only men were allowed to play music to today where certain genres of music have an expectation of what gender their audience is. I have personally seen music and gender interact the most in my early years of being in the marching band. 

This is me and my brother during my first year in marching band

When you start band, usually in middle school, they have you pick out an instrument that you want to try. From here instruments are unintentionally considered masculine and feminine by other students and sometimes directors. For example, woodwind instruments are typically considered more feminine, whereas brass instruments are more masculine. For persecution, the more melodic instruments, like the piano or marimba, are considered more feminine, whereas the more rhythmic instruments, like snare or bass drum, are considered more masculine. With time some instruments in a particular section have become more androgynous like the French horn or saxophone where it doesn’t exactly have as strong an association. One thing I have noticed is that the higher-pitched the instrument the more feminine it's considered whereas the lower-pitched the instrument is the more masculine it’s considered. For example, the majority of our flute players in our ensemble here at Converse University are women and the majority of our low brass players are men. (This comparison may not hold too well as Converse was an all-women's school like 3 years ago but you get the idea)

This video is of The Cavaliers who were an all-male Drum Corp group up until 2019

Although I’m not 100% sure why these associations are what they are I have an idea. I believe that this idea of some instruments belonging to a certain gender is rooted in sexism. Sexism is the “prejudice or discrimination based on sex” (Sexism Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster). The woodwind instruments are more feminine because they are softer, smaller, and more “dainty”  instruments. The brass and some percussive instruments are more masculine because they are loud, large, and “sturdy.” And the instruments that are more androgynous, like the saxophone and French horn, have mixtures of these traditionally feminine and masculine features. When I was in middle school band there was a guy in our class who played the flute, and with my school being in the more southern part of the south, he was made fun of for playing a more feminine instrument. Even in my section where there was an equal amount of female and male players I often fought with some of the guys in my section about who was better. As unfortunate as it is these stereotypes persist into later age due to ignorant comments made that can affect the confidence and passion of others. 

Another pic of me and my beloved sibling

Thankfully in today's society, we are moving past childish notions of who can do what bias of gender or what you look like. There are more women in traditional masculine positions and vice versa. I believe that music shouldn’t be hindered by silly notions/stereotypes and should be embraced and any way shape or form that it comes to us.