How is the classical music industry responding to the challenges of #MeToo, Black Lives Matter, and other social justice movements? Is increasing attention to equity and diversity in the classical music profession over recent years leading to systemic change? In this book, scholars, activists and musicians from countries across Europe and North America analyze inequalities in the classical music profession and introduce strategies for making change. Exploring racism, class and gender inequalities, disability representation, "authenticity", changing the canon, and neoliberalism, the book brings together analyses from academics alongside contributions from musicians and industry leaders working in the classical music industry who reflect on issues of diversity and share insights and best practices.Themes of the book include institutional legacies and possibilities for change; racial, classed and gendered inequalities and marginalised voices; and strategies for activism, whether reflective practices, informal networks, or larger organisations leading change. The book also discusses questions such as whether musical change is necessary for social change in classical music, and how activists can acknowledge structural inequalities whilst holding on to the possibility of change. Opening up the interdisciplinary field of "classical music studies," this book lays the groundwork for empirically-founded, theoretically-informed, and practice-based approaches to tackling inequalities in the classical music profession. As such, it will be a significant point of reference for musicians, students, classical music administrators, policy-makers, teachers, and academics -- and anyone else who wants to make classical music more inclusive.

IntroductionAnna Bull and Christina ScharffPART I THE MAKING OF CLASSICAL MUSICIANS1. Class and Gender Inequalities in the Recruitment of Classical Musicians: Reflections on the Case of Italian Music ConservatoiresClementina Casula2. The Role of Music Conservatoires in the Making of Classical Music CareersRainer Prokop and Rosa Reitsamer3. Social Inclusion in Contemporary British Conservatoires: Alumni PerspectivesJennie Joy Porton4. Inside Looking In: Strategies to Counteract Misconduct in Artistic Teaching within Higher Music EducationDavid-Emil Wickstr?mPART II PROBLEMATIZING INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE5. (Un)settling Institutional Hegemony: Challenges of Diversity Strategies in the "Western" Classical Music SectorKristina Kolbe6. "To Share Music with Children": The LA Phil and Neoliberal Philanthropy in InglewoodMina Yang7. A Critical Perspective on Diversity and Inclusion in US Classical Music DiscourseMarianna Ritchey8. Staging a Loose Canon: Scripture, Tradition, and Embedded Exclusion in Opera ProductionCaitlin Vincent9. Disability Representation in OperaCharlotte ArmstrongPART III MARGINALIZED VOICES10. Gender and Class: An Account of a Female Percussionist in the Classical Music IndustryBeth Higham-Edwards11. Making Space for Disability and Music to Interact: An Interview with Composer Oliver VibransOliver Vibrans12. Black on the Podium: An Interview with Conductor Brandon Keith BrownBrandon Keith Brown13. Creolization, Mixing, and Plurality: An Interview with Composer Hannah KendallHannah KendallPART IV RACIAL INEQUALITIES14. The New "Yellow Peril" in "Western" European Symphony OrchestrasMaiko Kawabata15. Irreconcilable Senses of Belonging: Transnational Japanese Artists in the Quest for Authenticity in the World of Classical MusicBeata M. Kowalczyk16. [Re- ]training Classical Musicians Toward Polymusicality and Hybridization: An Interview with Jon SilpayamanantJon Silpayamanant17. Inclusion and Diversity in the Early Music Scene in the US: A Conversation with Patricia Ann NeelyPatricia Ann Neely18. On Leaving Classical Music: An Interview with Anthony GrayAnthony GrayPART V ACTIVISM STARTING WITH THE SELF19. (Dis)orient Yourself!: Disrupting White Ontologies in Classical MusicEleanor Ryan20. Everyday Bridges: A View from the FieldCayenna Ponchione-Bailey21. Illuminating Women's Music: Exploring the Canonic Ethos behind the Illuminate Women's Music Concert SeriesAngela Elizabeth Slater22. Changing Classical Music from the Inside: An Interview with Chi- chi NwanokuChi-chi NwanokuPART VI ACTIVISM: BUILDING NETWORKS FOR CHANGE23. (Un)Silencing Blacktivism in Opera: An Interview with Quodesia Johnson about the Letter to the Opera Field from Black AdministratorsAntonio C. Cuyler24. Reflecting on the Work of Gender Relations in New Music: Institutional Critique and Activist StrategiesBrandon Farnsworth and Rosanna Lovell25. Addressing Inequalities in the Music Industry before, during, and after COVID- 19: The Campaigning Work of the UK's Independent Society of MusiciansDeborah Annetts, Vick Bain, Chris Collins, Vinota Karunasaagarar, and Dr. Kathryn Williams26. "A Community of 30,000 Musicians behind You": An Interview with John Shortell from the UK Musicians' UnionJohn ShortellAfterwordGillian MooreDiscussion Questions for Teachers, Students, Reading Groups, and Industry LeadersReferencesIndex