Women and Electronic Music: It’s Not Just Dudes
People all-too-commonly imagine that electronic music is dominated entirely by men, when it simply isn’t the case. While the world of electronic music is certainly heavily tilted to the male side, part of the problem is that women too often get less attention, less credit, less PR, and less widespread dissemination of their music — listeners are biased, in other words.
Our friends at Cynthia have a huge list of major female composers and musicians:
Girls on Synth [Cyndustries.com]
And yes, among the various names is Cyndustries’ own Cynthia Webster (pictured) — it all began with a high school purchase of an ARP 2600, she says. Unfortunately, the list isn’t terribly up-to-date; the link to my own composition teacher at Brooklyn College Tania Leon is broken! (More on her here, though most of her work has been for unplugged instruments.) So is the link for NYC’s own Keiko aka o.blaat of Share fame. But, it’s a start, and has some great resources at the bottom. Women in synthesis aren’t just an occasional oddity: you’ll see some of the most important names in the evolution of electronic music. Music using electricity simply wouldn’t be what it is today without its often-unsung female pioneers.
Got some women pioneers you’d like to point out . . . or just a female reader and want to brag about your own work? Drop us a line. Incidentally, for reference, I’d say easily 50% or more of my own colleagues are female in interactive art and electronic music alike . . . and I notice nearly half of the people who register here on CDM. Gender imbalance? Not necessarily. -PK
8 Comments
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eliane radigue was (and is) a huge influence on my approach to sound. in particular, her intense, minimalist drone works “adnos I-III” and “trilogie de la mort”. i love the fact that she has created almost all of her work for the past three decades on a single arp synth. highly recommended.
-j.drouin.
September 14, 2005 @ 4:22 pm
Guest
Wendy Carlos - Bach + Moog = Art
Delia Derbyshire Dr Who Theme! [amongst many others] doo da doo da doo…
Laurie Anderson [Is she really married to Lou Reed? Who would have thunk it!]
September 14, 2005 @ 6:00 pm
admin
Absolutely, on all three counts. And the BBC Radiophonic Workshop was really a hotbed — not only Delia Derbyshire, but Daphne Oram, too.
Good story on Oram at (where else) the BBC.
Another of my teachers, Thea Musgrave, hung around the BBC Radiophonic Workshop regularly. I don’t think she produced much there, though, other than a radio play she did once. She was always fascinated by electronic music production, but was mystified by it — I probably would have been, too, I have to admit, had I grown up decades earlier!
Peter
September 14, 2005 @ 8:18 pm
Guest
Clara Rockmore!
September 15, 2005 @ 4:13 am
Guest
Bebe Baron - she and her husband had one of the early electronic music studios, and did the score for “forbidden planet”
Pauline Oliveros - was and continues to be a pioneering composer of electronic music.
Laurie Speigel - worked on synths in the 70s and explored fractal music.She has some cool software.
Annea Lockwood - another pioneering composer.
September 15, 2005 @ 12:26 pm
Guest
How about the very gothic and enchanting Hypnotique -like Clara Rockmore, also a thereminist?
http://www.hypnotique.net
September 28, 2005 @ 5:30 am
Guest
Suzanne was a sound designer in NYC in the the 80’s and 90’s Her web presence is at http://www.sevwave.com
September 28, 2005 @ 2:58 pm
Sonic Surgery
Johanna M. Beyer 1938!!! First female composer to score for electronic devices!!!
Daphne Oram-Director of the BBC Radio Workshop. Inventor of
Oramics Machine.
Laurie Spegiel-Worked with Max Mathews at Bell Laboratories
Bebe Baron-Co-Composer of the first electronic Film Score
Anne Dudley-Artist, composer, arranger, Film Score Artist, Producer
Diane Thome-First women to get a Ph. D. in Composition from Princeton!
Pioneers All!!!!
Patrice Devincentis
Digital Audio Engineer
Member of the Corp of Female Electronic Artists!!!!
June 29, 2008 @ 11:01 am
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