The era of musical women that I study hasn't gotten nearly the scholarly attention it deserves. In passing articles, chapters, and short books have not done this material justice, in my opinion. Most scholars look to this era as a fun topic to write some short article-- "look at this phenomenon. how neat. moving back to more 'high' 'scholastic' 'deep' musicological topics."
I vow to bring the scholarship to a new level. I vow to create a tome that can help us better understand gender relationships, depictions, and roles in this era (from perhaps as wide a range as 1840-1940).
I'm tired of finding promising titles and abstracts and then being disappointed by the writing. I'm tired of reading either incredibly philosophical works or incredibly banal texts. I want to write something that is accessible and understandable while applying recent feminine* scholarship (*not necessarily feminist). I want something that will cause people to be inspired- to have "light bulb, aha" moments.
And I will do whatever it takes to get there. To get a book published about this material.
If that means foregoing my Native American studies for a while, making this the focus of my dissertation, I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. I am inspired by and fascinated with this era (especially from around 1880-1930). I am so proud of my master's thesis, and though I'm letting my Etude research "rest" a little bit, I'm dying to dive into this broader topic more. Of Jenny Lind and Cecile Chaminade, Etude's and other musical magazines, the 1893 expo, James Huneker, Charles Dana Gibson, and all the other complicated gender issues that arose in the new industrialized America.
Dear Elissa: I promise one day I will find a way to do justice for these amazing women who are often understood, misrepresented, and forgotten. I promise to read voraciously and become as much of an expert as I possibly can.
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