Research undertaken by The British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA) has highlighted major issues in the commissioning of works by female and black or minority ethnic (BAME) classical music composers.
The research, conducted by BASCA’s classical co-ordinator Natalie Bleicher, involved analysing data on commissioned works that were submitted to the 2015 British Composer Awards.
Alongside this analysis, BASCA surveyed seven universities and collected data from Sound And Music on participants at their Summer School and applicants to its professional development schemes.
The study found that 6% of commissioned composers are BAME, compared to 14% amongst the UK population. It also found 21% of commissioned composers are female, compared to 51% of the UK population and 36% of all composition students.
“It is something we have long suspected is an issue,” said BASCA CEO Vick Bain. “We are planning a Diversity In Composition day with BBC Radio 3 in October, focusing on BAME composers and there will be more work with the Association Of British Orchestras next year.
We also need to gather more data in these and other areas – social class is a biggie as it’s intrinsically linked to education and culture.”
