Prof. Abbie Conant

We need to see the Big Picture in this case. Boys choirs do not stem from a musical tradition, but from antiquated religious traditions that insist women must remain silent in church. Happily, we no longer follow such outdated religious beliefs:

1 Corinthians 14:4
“Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law.”

The actual musical repertoire can be sung by boys or girls. And the most respected and widely examined studies have documented that even professional musicians cannot reliably hear the difference between a boys and a girls choir singing the same repertoire. Why would an enlightened society such as we have in Germany want to continue this kind of discriminatory tradition? Boys in cute little outfits with sweet, high voices are a pleasure, but so are girls with cute little outfits and sweet, high voices.

Due to the long history of these religious traditions, boys choirs are often more privileged than girls choirs. They often receive far better musical educations, and have far more performance opportunities than girls choirs. At the Musikhochschule where I teach, for example, several of my male professor colleagues were in boys choirs, but I do not know of any of my women colleagues who were in girls choirs.

The boys choirs often receive state funding. I think that would be illegal if girls were excluded from these especially privileged boys groups. Nothing would be taken away from the boys if some girls joined their ranks. The sound of the choir would not change, but girls would finally be allowed the same training and advantages for their future that girls choirs are less likely to offer. We should not continue our separate and unequal tradition that stems from antiquated religious beliefs instead of discernably concrete musical realities. The harm of the discrimination far outweighs the presumed and imperceptible advantages.

Some say we need boys choirs because boys are less likely to join choirs. Shall we disadvantage girls in order to grant special advantages to boys? Or shall we think of more just ways to encourage boys to sing?

It is time to stop kidding ourselves. The boys choir tradition Is based on long-standing religious traditions of hatred and distrust of women and girls. I love the pure high voices of boys and I love the pure high voices of girls.

I have personally experienced what it is like to be discriminated against as a young woman in the Munich Philharmonic. “You know the problem; we need a man for the solo trombone,” declared GMD Sergiu Celibidache when I asked him why he wanted me fired. It wasn’t ever about my playing or my ability to lead a trombone section. It was because I wasn’t a man. I would never want this kind of discrimination to happen to a 9-year-old girl. That reeks of child abuse.

Let’s be fair and rational and do the right thing.

Abbie Conant
Professorin für Posaune
Staatliche Hochschule fuer Musik Trossingen

www.mh-trossingen.de
www.osborne-conant.org
www.positivelybrass.com