RE: (TV) woman-with-guitar sightings { > random thoughts}

[robin dunn <rdunnrn@yahoo.com>]

i once watched chrissie hynde being interviewed by
sandra bernhardt.  bernhardt was trying to be very
equality-minded and was complaining that "girls don't
become great guitarists because no one encourages
them!"  

chrissie objected.  she wouldn't name any woman she
considered a "great guitarist."  she half-conceded
when bernhardt brought up nancy wilson.  and she
thoroughly disagreed with the contention that it's
because "no one encourages girls."  she pointed out
that no one encourages boys to become obsessed with
guitar, either; giving the example that no one
"encouraged" jeff beck to "spend hours and hours in
his room with his guitar."

of course, while it is true that, most likely, parents
and teachers do not encourage this, the greater (pop)
culture may.  in other words, boys have great rewards
placed in front of them for becoming guitar heroes
(girls!  money!  girls!).  a guy with a guitar is
cool.  whereas girls who obsess about guitar are
probably just considered weird.  and there is such
disincentive to be weird!  we'll typically do anything
to avoid it, especially as kids.

some of it is bound to be physiological / cognitive as
well as cultural.  dave rawlings -- a most amazing
acoustic guitarist, just amazing -- was a math whiz
before taking up guitar, and has said that the two
abilities worked together for him.  

on the subject of nancy wilson, who really did master
the guitar (but still refrained from playing much
electric lead in her band, and played mostly rhythm)
-- she was that obsessed-kid-with-guitar, sleeping
with the thing in her arms and such, and was an early
star.  fulfilled the geek thing (and still incredibly
sexy!).  

i have a patient, a middle-aged black woman with
schizophrenia, aids, hx of prison and crack and heroin
and all sorts of stuff.  anyway, she is quite cool,
very sweet, and i love her.  she is a guitarist, and
inspired me to pick it up last year.  she's played in
various bands and traveled around doing so, and has
mostly hung with musicians in her life.  when i asked
her why so few women play guitar, why it's so
male-dominated, she answered plainly -- "that's
simple.  it's because guitar is a *lead* instrument." 
she's talked to me about making an effort to stay in
the background so as not to bug the men she's playing
with; give them the leads.

scattered thoughts here.  i'm a woman working in a
profession that is 96% female, but where men make more
money for the same work, and move up more quickly in
management.  plus a music geek.  so it's something i
think about a lot.

r





--- Howard Webb <howard@howardwebb.com> wrote:
> Speaking as a drunk guy and half-hearted musician
> (not sure what a "chronic
> musician" is) I think the answer is that most women
> are not nerdy enough. To
> master a musical instrument usually involves years
> of solitary practise
> alone in one's bedroom. This may result in musical
> proficiency, but it will
> also likely result in social inadequacy.
> 
> -Howard



		
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