1. Stigma and Storytelling: An Exploration of Feminism and Disability in Music through the Composition of New Works
- Author
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Scott, Georgia Anne Beresford
- Subjects
disability ,composition ,opera ,flute ,women ,orchestra - Abstract
Through the composition of the new music represented in this portfolio, this research explores the roles given to women with disabilities in society. It sets out to question and then positively reimagine these roles and to overturn the stigmatisation of disability, highlighting the unique perspective that living with a disability can bring. This research has been undertaken via the composition of three new works, each written over two stages, the second stage being informed by the feedback from the first. The structure of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music’s Composing Women Program afforded the opportunity to write, workshop and revise each work over the course of the two-year program. This allowed for consultation with performers, the opportunity to research in greater depth (sometimes to revise entirely), and ultimately for the production of works that address the musical aims as effectively as possible. The research was informed by and contextualised through the study of scholarly and scientific texts and relevant musical works. The first work ‘My3LiNAti0nS’, uses the flute to highlight the beauty present within stuttering moments, the second, a chamber opera entitled ‘Her Dark Marauder’, challenges the characterisation of those with a disability on the stage, and the third ‘The Monstrous Birth of the Woman Machine’, for orchestra, subverts 19th century notions about the origins of disability using the birth of the assistive-technology-using ‘cyborg’ as a moment to empower those with disabilities and their families. Through these works I aim to enrich my compositional practice by interrogating the ideas that I find most essential to my artistic voice. I hope this research will allow me to find my place within the disability community and will contribute towards the breakdown of societal barriers and prejudices against women with disabilities.
- Published
- 2020