Women conductors competition is kicked down the road
mainThe first international competition for female conductors has been postponed after jurors were prevented by the virus crisis from reaching Paris this weekend.
Press statement.
In view of the current international situation relating to the spread of COVID-19 which would have prevented several candidates and members of the jury to come to Paris, the Paris Mozart Orchestra and Philharmonie de Paris have made the decision to postpone the inaugural LA MAESTRA International Competition for Women Conductors due to take place at the Philharmonie de Paris between 16-19 March 2020. The inaugural LA MAESTRA Competition will now take place from Tuesday 15 until Friday 18 September 2020 at the Philharmonie de Paris.
I think in the coming months there will be nothing to report here except how things are going in relation to this virus. Everything will be shut down, culturally speaking, for months. There are still great recordings to enjoy, literature (I would recommend avoiding the late works of Tolstoy by the way, especially his Kreutzer Sonata which I have just read), great art and other areas of humanities like history and philosophy. Like the late inimitable Keith Floyd we could still enjoy plenty of wine and good food. The path we should avoid is cowardliness in the face of this pandemic.
Doris Lessing, the English novelist who won the Nobel prize for literature a decade or more ago, was asked what her main impression was from decades as a writer. She replied : how good the old Russians were.
They should cancel it all together, listening to some woman conductor’s recent motto “Don’t lump us all together as women conductors”.
It’s not like the Olympics, where physical differences determine a different ability, or is it?
I totally agree with you. This kind of competitions make a bad name for all female conductors out there. It’s always about equality and diversity, but never about real talent or conducting / musicianship skills.
She already has a competition named after her
https://www.dw.com/de/la-maestra/a-46889186
You mean – the fake “international competition” where female conductors who couldn’t get into real competitions such as the Besançon, Malko and the Mahler competitions (where both female and male conductors are welcome to participate in and are judged according to their skills – NOT their gender) are competing against each other?
Should there be a conducting competition for only male conductors?
Do you mean “men” conductors?
No, bus conductors.
Ridiculous gimmicks such as the La Maestra competition are the unfortunate consequences of the “female conductors” movement initiated by two of today’s most overrated and unqualified female conductors – Marin Alsop and Alondra de la Parra.
It’s so sad that they are now busy making clones of themselves though all sorts of initiatives such as La Maesta, the taki fellowship and the Dallas heart institute for female conductors etc., just so they can feel good with their mediocre skills and pretend they are on top of the pyramid. The worse thing about it however, is that we are now seeing more and more mediocre and unqualified female conductors who are imitating their conducting and think it’s ok to be skilless, but still get opportunities that are so much above their level – only because they are female conductors. How sad…
You can call Marin Alsop overrated but underqualified? Who thinks that?
Yes, Marin Alsop is a good middle-level conductor. OK, not “one-of-the-greats” but absolutely competent for the gigs she gets. I really don’t understand why she gets so much criticsm directed at her.
The less said about Alondra de la Parra the better.
Good. This discriminatory music competition should had never been organized. Fighting historical discrimination with discrimination. Is there anything more stupid?
In the light of how much protesting there has been against discrimination in the music world, it is a wonder that such a competition is ever even mooted these days.
Imagine the public outcry and backlash if there would be a male-only competition