Tiffany Kore
20 January 2019
Writing Assignment 1: Marginalized Musical Voices
Overtime, certain characteristics, abilities, and traits have been labeled as either feminine
or masculine. For example, the idea of men being very adventurous, brave and protective and
women being gentle, docile, and ladylike have been ingrained into our society. Although we
ourselves did not choose these labels, it is considered “standard.” Essentially, these labels have
also been infused into the field of music. In the past, women were not able to shine in the music
industry because it wasn’t considered their place. Many composers, artists, and people who study
music have been told that it will be difficult to compete in the music industry among men.
Music, especially classical, has been dominated by men. Looking back at what most students
have learned in school, they mostly learn about very important male composers and not any
female composers.
Throughout history, especially several centuries ago, women were not highly represented
in the field of music. Many classical composers were men who were well known for their works.
In fact, men had the access to play a diverse array of instruments, whereas women had very
limited exposure to specific instruments. Often, females were only allowed to play certain
instruments that did not affect their gracefulness. In other words, they only had access to sources
of music that let them appear very feminine. This was because women were supposed to appear
