Sigma Alpha Iota

2015 National Convention St. Louis Voices of Experience, Voices of the Future PAN PIPES • FALL 2015 • sai-national.org 30 A B C D E F G H I J K M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z By Daryle Gardner-Bonneau Editor's Note: is is a summary of a workshop given at the 2015 National Convention. Most of us are aware of the "glass ceiling" that has existed with respect to women in certain musical occupations (e.g., composing, conducting) but nowhere has that ceiling been tougher to crack, especially for American female composers, than scoring for major motion pictures. A search of movie databases reveals that, in terms of living film composers, only a handful of women have received scoring credit for a major motion picture, and these women are, with one exception, all from the United Kingdom or Australia. e most notable of these is probably Rachel Portman (UK), who won an Oscar for her score for Emma, and was Oscar-nominated for her scores to both e Cider House Rules and Chocolat. Anne Dudley (UK) won for the score for e Full Monty and was the producer of its hit song, You Can Leave Your Hat On. Both women won their Oscars, though, during the course of a few anomalous years when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) gave two scoring Oscars—one for comedies/musicals, the other for drama—and both won in the comedy category. Also interesting is the fact that Lisa Gerrard (AUS) co-wrote the music for Gladiator (and sang the mournful, eerie melodies on the soundtrack), but when it came to the Oscars, only her co-composer, Hans Zimmer, was nominated. Both, however, received Grammys for their efforts. But things, they are a-changin'. While the scoring of major motion pictures continues to be a male bastion, more women composers are breaking through in the areas of documentary feature films and scoring for TV series, mini-series, and made-for-TV movies. Debbie Wiseman (UK) has been highly applauded for her score to the UK mini-series Wolf Hall, which recently aired on PBS. Likewise, Anne Dudley is scoring Poldark, another PBS series. Miriam Cutler (US) was recently shortlisted for an Oscar for scoring the documentary film American Promise and has also been elected to membership in the Documentary Branch of AMPAS. In 2014, film composers Linda Karpman, Miriam Cutler, and a number of others formed the Alliance for Women Film Composers (AWFC). Its mission, according to its website ( chandlerpaul.wix.com/awfc), is 1) to increase the visibility of women composers active in scoring media; 2) to advocate for the inclusion of women composers within industry events; 3) to support directors, producers, music supervisors, editors, game developers and studios with their inclusion of women composers; and 4) to educate, mentor, and inspire emerging women composers. As I was putting together my workshop for Convention, I contacted some of the composers mentioned above, and Debbie Wiseman, known widely to be an ambassador for women composers, replied through her agent. When asked what inspired her to pursue a career writing music for movies, she said she learned her cra writing for British television dramas and documentaries, and she was inspired by composers like John Barry and Ennio Morricone. I asked what advice she would give to aspiring film composers, and she said that it was important to listen to every genre of music possible—"be open and interested in everything" —as you never know what kind of music might be called for in a score. Another question concerned what she saw as her major assets as a film composer, to which she replied, "A solid understanding of the orchestra and an appreciation of drama and the powerful impact that music can have over pictures." In summary, though the glass ceiling still exists to some degree, women are shattering it day by day. No doubt this will continue, as organizations like the AWFC spread the word and facilitate women's entry into the world of film composition. One of its members, Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum, recently suggested a rallying cry for the new organization: "Hire a chick to score your flick!" Saturday afternoon was packed with workshops covering a wide spectrum of topics. 1. Emily O'Connor (Minneapolis/ St. Paul Alumnae) led a workshop on preparing a chapter technology plan. 2. Kappa D PO Christine Hall led SAIs through tips on promoting their chapters. Music for Movies – Women Composers Break Through!

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