Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

Women Make Headway in the Realm of Classical Music

Think classical music and Bach, Beethoven and Mozart probably come to mind. Tradition and prejudice have kept the contributions of women in classical music behind the curtain. But author Anne Gray's n

Women Make Headway in the Realm of Classical Music

Tom Fudge: Last week, in the world of classical music, a bit of history took place. Marin Alsop made her concert debut as musical director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra . In doing so, Ms. Alsop became the first woman to be the principal conductor of a major American symphony.

Classical music has long been a man's world. But progress has been made in recent decades, especially for women performing in major symphonies. The New York Times reports that in the violin section of the New York Philharmonic , women outnumber men 20 to 13.

Advertisement

Anne Gray is a scholar of classical music and a San Diego resident who's known for writing The Popular Guide to Classical Music . Now, she's published a comprehensive book about the female contribution to Western music. It's called The World of Women in Classical Music .

Anne Gray will be signing her book The World of Women in Classical Music at Warwick's bookstore in La Jolla on Thurs. Oct. 4 at 7 p.m.

Guest

  • Anne Gray, author of The World of Women in Classical Music , which is a follow-up to her previous book The Popular Guide to Classical Music .