Listening to Passion
(Photo/Ashly Stracener)
The Need for Diversity in an Already Diverse World
by: Ashly Stracener
Booming drums, crashing cymbols and flailing drumsticks flash and crash in loud and boistorous sound and motion as the drummer bangs his head to the beat. This is a typical image that tends to come to mind when thinking of the world of percussion. A few of the women in percussion at Ouachita Baptist University want to change that image.
What all does a percussionist do anyways? They do not just bang their sticks together and attempt to make the loudest noise possible. What most might not realize is how diverse the field of percussion is; it's more than just the drum set. Grace Steiner, a senior psychology major and music minor from Fayetteville, Ark. wishes to change how people perceive percussionists. One aspect that attracted her to this field was the variety it offered.
If you've ever wondered what passion sounds like, listen as Steiner describes her love for the variety percussion offers as she proves percussion is more than its stereotype would have you believe.
Steiner (above) practices on one of her favorite instruments, the marimba. Steiner loves the marimba because it is one of the softer instruments and shows a softer side of the face of percussion. (Photo/Ashly Stracener)
Drumming Out the Stereotype
Not only is there a stereotype of what percussion is, there's also an assumption of gender that follows the field and profession. Steiner says that most tend to stereotype percussion as loud and obnoxious which tends to be directly associated with males.
Historically, percussion has been a male dominated field. Even though the number of collegiate female percussionists has grown slightly since the 70s, the numbers have become stagnant since and are relatively the same.
According to Dr. Meghan Aube, a percussion educator at Matanuska-Susitna College, "In 2010 the author surveyed 163 universities and colleges about the gender ratio of their percussion studios. 2 Female students per studio averaged 17 percent. Of the 284 graduate students from participating schools, 16 percent were female, 18 percent of the 1,868 undergraduate students were female."
"I am a minority," Steiner said.
While Steiner has never felt directly discriminated against, she does often feel marginalized.
"There’s definitely a stigma," said Steiner. "It is a male dominate instrument. There are often times where I’m in a piece and I’m the only girl and everyone else around me is male. Maybe because it’s hardcore and drums are really loud and intense sometimes that people think, oh, it’s for a male"
However, most female percussionists will face direct discrimination in their life or career such as Madison Rawls, a sophomore psychology and music double major from Oklahoma City, Okla., who says the overwhelming disparity of female numbers can be formidable.
"It's very intimidating having mostly males dominate the industry," Rawls said. "I know for me it was always weird to be at auditions, surrounded by guys all giving off the most masculine energy they can. It's hard for me to feel confident in that kind of situation. And because it's assumed that most percussionists are males, you get one of two responses as a female percussionist: either a "that's so cool!" or "Oh.""
"I have experienced some moments of inequality when it came down how well we all knew our music," said Rawls. "Even if I was doing fine, sometimes male drummers feel the need to prove their superiority over you and show off. My co-male percussionists in high school loved using this to their advantage and liked to make me feel not as good as they are."
Steiner smiles as she rehearses on one of her favorite instruments. Steiner is in five different ensembles this semester and is one of about six other women in percussion at OBU. (Photo/Ashly Stracener)
Leading the Way for Change
For female percussionists like Rawls and Steiner, they simply want to update the perception of percussion. For these musicians and others like them, they simply want to be seen as the artists they are, not as female percussionists; they want to be seen just as percussionists.
"For me, percussion just feels natural, like I was always meant to hold a set of mallets," Rawls said. "I use percussion as my outlet for many things. I think it continues to be my passion because it feels so right, like this is what I am meant to be doing. I have so much passion when I play and try to give everything I have, because why would I give any less? So much goes into creating an experience for your listeners, as well as for yourself. You get to use your whole body to create a journey for yourself and others to go on; there's truly nothing like it."
"We can communicate with music because it speaks to everyone," Steiner said. "Experiencing someone else’s music is like experiencing them in a way. I love the fact that you can communicate with music."
For these two women, their passion for music and percussion drives them. Changing the perception of percussion will not only validate them as percussionists but pave the way for other future female artists.
"I really want to be that person for them that when they feel inferior to a male percussionists simply because of gender, that they'll remember confidence goes a long way," said Rawls. "As I'm going through college and getting older I hope to continue to have this influence."
"Luckily now we're in an age of female empowerment, and I think hopefully because of that the imbalance will start to even out," said Rawls.