harps are for girls?

[keryx]

This is a niggling thing to pick up on when you consider that you're talking about an organization (the Vienna Philharmonic) that basically doesn't admit women, period, but still. What's with the incessant repetition of the phrase "non-harpist woman"?

Yeah, yeah, massive overreaction to a word in an article about something much worse. Still. I suspect it's yet another level of sexism [What, from a group that won't let women join? I'm shocked!]. I mean, they had to let a woman harpist in, cause otherwise they just wouldn't have one - so she wasn't exactly integration. But real men play real instruments... like the piccolo.

It sounds stupid, but that's exactly the attitude I encountered throughout high school (and hell, come to think of it, middle school) and college from other musicians - including teachers. Playing the harp is something only women do (which it actually isn't), and is consequently (despite involving the same skills as most other instruments, not to mention the whole 40-80lb weight of the thing) beneath notice. Sure, that wasn't explicitly in the article or the Vienna folks' minds, but it's a common and frustrating misconception.

[Thanks, sonicage, I'd almost forgotten how sexist the music world can be.]

Comments

[puzzlement.livejournal.com]

I hate overall the way that something that women do that's startlingly close to related male dominated activites is somehow therefore... beneath notice. The free software developers are the same way about documentation, despite documentation often being a highly skilled activity requiring considerable technical adeptness. Yeah, sucks.

Also, didn't know you were a harpist. I played recorder for some years, and that had a different stigma: it's the $8 instrument every 8 year old can play three notes on, so it must be easy and crappy, right?

[keryx.livejournal.com]

I haven't been a harpist for quite awhile. But I can imagine playing the recorder would get you quite a bit of annoying commentary from other musicians.

The tech world reminds me of being a musician in school, come to think of it. It's another environment where everyone involved is (or at least was in the past) outside of the cool kid mainstream in many ways, and both tend to get sexist along with that.

[geno8827.livejournal.com]

Considering that this is the same Vienna that has the world-renowned Vienna Boys Choir (http://www.singers.com/choral/viennaboys.html), I'm not surprised that the Vienna Philharmonic is an all-male affair.

You must understand that exclusivity is what makes certain groups unique. If ANY person could get in, then wouldn't the group start sounding like every other group? If the Vienna Boys Choir were to get girls, wouldn't it become just the Vienna Choir? Wouldn't they just be like any other choir?

As for harpists, how can you get mad at a natural tendency? Men, yes, have the blatant machismo to shun any form of instrument that doesn't fit in with some other "cool, street cred-giving" instrument (like the Guitar, among others). But realize that they do that to get the womens. Women wouldn't be as impressed with a man who drags his 80-pound harp to plink and plunk to the lady's joy.

And that leads me to my other point: Harps require a delicate touch. Men are not known for a delicate, calculating touch. Which is why a women's touch is generally appreciated.

[chubbyninja.livejournal.com]

dont worry april, i got this one.

wtf, ryan?
have you not read any of what april posts before this moment... there are no guy instruments and girl instruments.
society it the only thing that drives such ideas.
maybe im really good at the harp... that doesnt make me any less manly.
and if april only played some big ass drum, that doesnt make her less feminine.

jesus man, you trying to set the gender back years from all the progress we've made?

*ps- women might like a guy with a delicate touch more*

[keryx.livejournal.com]

Did you guys set this up? This comment thread has a very Martin/Lewis quality to it, somehow.

[chubbyninja.livejournal.com]

nope. sure didnt.
though that would have been rather clever.
i just dont like people stepping on my toes.

we established previously that im usually kidding when i say stupid things, ryan has set no such precedent that i know of.

[puzzlement.livejournal.com]

Women wouldn't be as impressed with a man who drags his 80-pound harp to plink and plunk to the lady's joy.

In fact, I tend to date men who don't play any instrument at all and don't have anything to drag around with them. So really, it logically follows that orchestras should be all female, thus saving would be male musicians from their loveless fate. QED.

[keryx.livejournal.com]

I heart you. It's a shame we can't be together on account of my dragging around that giant harp. ;)