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General Category => Gustav Mahler and Related Discussions => Topic started by: Roffe on January 12, 2012, 06:46:03 AM
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I watched (parts) of the televised New Year's Concert on new year's day from Vienna with the Vienna Philharmonic and Mariss Jansons, and made an observation that I've never made before, although I've seen the Vienna Philharmonic many times (on TV only): NO women in the orchestra.
I this just a coincidence, or do they not hire women? Anybody who knows?
Roffe
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Is this just a coincidence, or do they not hire women? Anybody who knows?
Prior to 1997, women were not allowed to become full members of the Vienna Philharmonic. A few had played with the orchestra, but they were not full members. Now there are several women playing as regular members. Perhaps all the women had New Years Day off, or perhaps the camera angles employed simply didn't reveal their presence. There were a couple women playing with them when I heard their Bruckner 8 in Carnegie Hall in 2002 (Bernard Haitink led a performance for the ages).
The orchestra has also taken some criticism over the years for not hiring what might be called "visibly ethnic" musicians.
James
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Many American orchestras were guilty of pretty much the same thing until about the 1960's. Some kinescopes I have on DVD of the Chicago Symphony under Reiner show only one woman in the orchestra, a cellist. Didn't Philly employ only men as well at one time? I think pretty much around the world nowadays, you will find women playing in orchestras.
Wade
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Whatever the reason, the VPO likes to present almost entirely white men for their New Year's concerts. Go figure. When I saw them in two concerts (out of three) here in Berkeley, they had a couple of women in the string section. I think that there might have been a woman somewhere in the woodwinds as well. One of their harpists is a woman also. While there are a lot of young players in the VPO, their president is very 'old school'.
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This year's New Year's Concert seemed to have considerably less women than in previous years (at least from those I've watched). I was surprised that so few were there. I always figured it was one event where they would want more women in the orchestra, so as to "prove" that they have more women in the orchestra - since the concert is seen around the world.
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The Scandinavian orchestras in my region seem to have women in more or less every section, violin, cello, double bass, brass, woodwind, etc, no timpanist though. There seem to be something like 30-50% women and still increasing.
Roffe
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Some years ago here in the DC area, there used to be a professional female timpanist, getting numerous gigs, but she hadn't yet climbed to the upper echelon. She seemed to have a promising career until I found out one day in the morning paper that she had died of carbon monoxide poisoning at her home from a malfunctioning furnace. :'(
Wade