MORE EQUALITY, FEWER JOBS

The composer William Osborne writes: “That was an interesting comment
about the LA Phil vs. the Vienna Phil. The principle of equality is important and an end in itself, but still, it is only an
abstraction if there are no jobs available to begin with. Even with the higher levels of sexism in
German and Austrian orchestras, women in those countries still have a far, far greater chance of
getting a job than U.S. women do (or men, for that matter).

He continues: “Germany, for example, has one full-time, year-round
orchestra for every 590,000 people, while the United States has one for every 14 million. In other
words, Germany has about 23 times more 52-week-season symphony orchestras per capita than
the U.S. I guess that is why I work on funding issues. What good does the fair treatment of
women in music do if there are no jobs to be had anyway?”