Very few women applicants to electro-music 2008

[mosc]

A couple of days ago Greg and I reviewed all of the applications for participation for electro-music 2008 to be held this year in Kingsport, TN in mid August. We were struck by the apparent lack of women applicants. We will have some great musicians to be sure, but as far as we can tell, nearly all male.

I'm not exactly sure why this is. We can't very well ask people who didn't apply. We can speculate, but we've already done a bit of that.

I'm thinking next time we should actively recruit people.

[liquidpaper]

Maybe they didn't want to, or didn't know about it? I'm not sure. In any event, I'd focus on putting together the best possible event you can. Then the rest will fall into place. That's only my opinion, but unless you've turned people down specifically because they are female (which it seems you haven't), I wouldn't worry about it.

That is, unless you're concerned about it because you're into girls and want to get lucky . . . but I won't open that can of worms .

[Kassen]

[ramechling]

Probably I'm not the only one who invited "Electro-Ladies" to the Festival ?
1. Ms. Alex Shapiro was delightd to hear of the 'Woodstock of E-M' and sent us her best wishes.
She is busy "spending the Summer putting the finishing touches on ALEXTRONICA". http://www.alexshapiro.org/#News

2. Ms. Laurie Spiegel was thrilled to hear of the Festival and see Cynthia's whopper modular on the e-m.com site...
She was thankful that I intend to bring along her CD, 'OBSOLETE SYSTEMS' and confessed that she was rapidly becoming an obsolete system herself ! http://retiary.org/ls/
Here is a photo she sent of a rusty monster:

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[bbinkovitz]

wow that's an awesome picture.

is it just me, or does the dearth of female electro-musicians seem to be related to the lack of repeat performances by female electro-musicians? for example, everyone loves Amy X but she's not a regular. I recall really liking Margaret Noble's set last year, too, but as far as I know she's not here this year.

an audit of past participants by gender would reveal a more scientific figure. it seems that % of female participants who are repeat participants vs. the % of male participants who are repeat participants is a really low ratio.

i don't really know why this might be. i love this kind of event and arriving at electro-music feels like a sort of homecoming for me. but perhaps the more typical female experience is one of feeling emotionally disconnected from the spirit of the event, even while being musically and technically engaged in it.

[bbinkovitz]

ps. berae (who performed with project ruori last year) and tina (who performed with us two years ago) both wanted to come this year but circumstances prevented it. berae's suggestions and feedback were also a big part of our set this year. so that's two more females who are here in spirit, thought not in body.

[bbinkovitz]

an addendum to my previous post...

perhaps the low attendance of the events by female musicians has something to do with travel expenses? for example, if women have trouble finding other women for musical partnerships, they might be more inclined to be solo artists. travel costs come down much harder on individuals traveling alone than on groups who can split the cost of hotel rooms, etc.

this may be further compounded by the fact that women might be more afraid to accept couchsurfing offers from locals, or to make such offers themselves if they live near the event location. so even if they do attend, they're less likely to share rides/accommodations and therefore they miss out on the bonds of friendship that are formed through those types of cooperation.

i'm lucky enough to have been introduced to this event by my fiance smokris, so obviously i feel comfortable traveling with him. but that means that i am part of this community because of the aggressively encouraging help of a man. when i felt shy or uncomfortable contributing, he more or less forced me to sit down with a sequencer or whatever and get to know it.

[bbinkovitz]

Can we get a list going here of how many female artists attended?

I didn't catch any sets this year that involved women, though I did talk to Earth Girl about her music, and I performed with project ruori, which also involves Steve's sister Ashley. Genevive told me that OVO and Spacecraft both performed with female members as well – if any of you are reading this, it would be great if you could post a little synopsis of your set, your involvement in electro-music, and your role within your group (if applicable).

Also, to expand the focus from just women to other underrepresented groups, I noticed that once again, DJROCK was (I think) the only person of color who went on stage. I encouraged him to start posting more – DJROCK, if you're reading this, it would be sweet if you could weigh in on this topic here or in another thread or something.

[egw]

[egw]

[bbinkovitz]

[Acoustic Interloper]

[Blue Hell]

Didn't have too much time this year unfortunately to hang out on the stream, but did hear a couple of things - Kevin was one one oft the highlights for me (and AI coming in on the chat of course )

[djrock3k]

Howdy all

djrock3k sticking my head thru the door to check in with my perspective.
As this is a forum on diversity and I was one of three persons of color at EM08. If I recall correctly, I was the one of two persons of color at EM06.

My personal opinion is that inclusivity starts with information dispersal. If you don't hear about something, you usually don't attend it. Advertising is the key to varied participation. If you want to go badly enough, you'll find a way. Gotta hear about it first, tho'.

Was EM adequately marketed to a varied populace, or was it preaching to the choir? Sites such as MusicThing and CreateDigitalMusic/Motion are widely read, I don't remember a word about EM on them. Perhaps Hong can put together a clip reel and inform them of the proceedings.

Philly is a great DJ culture town. I almost brought my system to show how a modern DJ is can actually be an electronic musician in performance. There needs to be more interface with the various DJ-related establishments (record stores, equipment stores) to bring in the wider and varied audience we're talking about.

I know how hard it can be, I'm the VP of PSFS, the local science fiction society. You would think that a futuristic group like that would be all over "music from the future" , but alas, no. We have our own problems in marketing, on the contact side. I doing all I can to open up the membership base, but it is a chore. One that pays off, thankfully.

Enough from me. Questions? Advice?

[bbinkovitz]

[genevieve]

Hey all, I'm a very infrequent poster, but, Beth inspires me.
So, there are more electro-women than ever before, but they are the ones that clean the floor! (as well as make amazing music) So, I just wanted to represent and say, that although I handle the non-musical tasks at the event, I am a musician! When Hong and I are there, we are working, but we are repeat electro-women too! And I think sexism exists loud and clear at electro-music, even though I love everyone. So, lets acknowledge it! I will be working hard for E-M 09 in Oakland to be more diverse than ever by advertising in alternative press that reach all the kinds of electro's we have here in the bay. But never stop the discussion!
Peace and Love to All!

[abreaktor]

could you point out some major disadvantages women have in the electro music scene? of course i am a slave to my genes, but since i have a general lack of affection for the populace (might be genetic, too), i see all people as people. might have something to do with education, we germans are over-correct when it comes to those gender-things. i find it sad that people still deem it necessary to vent so much air about things i just see as, well, part of normal everyday life. i really like how things turned out in the last few years, and it is totally correct to treat women as equals (and i mean not only in the positive meaning; in my job, its often the case that i swear at women and they swear back).

if they (people) are good in what they do, i simply dont bother with appearances. time is just too short for that. so i would be glad if somepone could point me out to some experiences you might have had. (the spill is a bad story in that department, i wouldnt have helped anybody with that )

tia gus

[mosc]