THE PARADOX OF FEMINISM

Die sessions im November 2011 stehen unter dem Titel THE PARADOX OF FEMINISM. school versucht damit eine eigene Variante eines aktuellen feministischen Begriffs zu entwerfen: der möglicherweise nicht mehr benannt werden muss, aber weiter existiert so lange bis alles gut ist. Frauen und Männer sind willkommen. Beim Lernen und Lehren gibt es möglichst wenig Hierarchien. Und der Begriff verändert sich im Tun.

The first edition of sessions are taking place november 2011 with a focus on THE PARADOX OF FEMINISM. Doing this, school tries to create its very own version of a contemporary feminist definition: a term that maybe will have no need to be pointed at, but will live on until everything’s fine. Of course, women and men are welcome. Learning and teaching, we try to be as non-hierachical as possible. And the term will change while we work.

ONE BAND STAND: Recap Day 3, 4 & 5

Well its Friday night, and we have just rounded out our last and final session before the performance tomorrow, and it was an exhilarating day! These ladies stepped up to the plate and came with their "A-game" of dedication and concentration, putting in the time necessary to reach our deadline. Not only did we focus many hours on the technical stuff, but we also were graced with the fine presence of fashion designer and artist Wally Salner, of Fabrics Interseason.

Ms. Salner is well versed in Feminist theory and practices, and has explored these issues in the context of fashion and art. We spent time together in discussion about a number of subjects including: the paradox of feminism, feminist visual codes in music and performance, the various waves of the feminist movement, as well as, together coming up with a plan for presenting the One Band Stand performance. These discussions were really enriching I think for all of us.

Lectures Days 3, 4 & 5

Wednesday: Rhythm Theory, Warping, Basic Drum Kit

Thursday: Reference Song, Develop Instrumental Parts, Sequencing

Friday: Sequencing, Section Arrangement, Guest Lecture by Wally Salner, Planning Performance

The Guardian asks "Why are there no female DJs on DJ Mag's top 100 list?"

Well that is a hot button question to ask while heading into this first date of One Band Stand, given that our current theme at Sessions On is "The Paradox of Feminism," which in short points to a current wave of uneasiness that a sizable number of independent creative women have affiliating themselves with the term "Feminism."

I think that we chose this as a subject because we wanted to acknowledge this unease that we feel as a real and big issue. There is definitely a fear in declaring ourselves feminist. And what are those reasons? I will speak for myself - I don't want to come off as being a victim of sexism. On one hand, I might be ashamed to acknowledge myself as a kind of victim of any kind, even if in some instances I might have been. So there is shame involved. The second point is that there have been pretty good times where I definitely benefited from being a woman working in a male dominated field (electronic music) as a novelty. I also do have so many cool and open minded male music friends and professional partners who are supportive.

So at this point in my growth, I would say that the positives out-weigh the negatives, of course otherwise I would quit. However, there should not be a conflict between being a "feminist" and having healthy, symbiotic professional/social relationships with males. "Feminist" should not be a dirty word that potentially alienates us from our male counterparts. It should in fact be an acknowledgement of the common experience us females have, good and bad, and suggestions of ways to progress forward as issues arise in regards to gender - whether that be in relationship to each other as females, as well as with males.

Unlike race, which is clearly visible to other people, is not a choice, and yet affects how one is treated publicly, being feminist needs to be declared in order to be visible to others, is socially polarizing and is therefore easy to be "in the closet" about it. So with the "The Paradox of Feminism," not only do I acknowledge myself as a feminist but also I acknowledge that 1.) the feminist closet is real, and there fester uneasy feelings/fear of self-declaring as a feminist 2.) I would like to explore feminist approaches/theories and re-frame my production workshop in these days to incorporate some of these (where applicable). And since "The Paradox of Feminism," as a subject is our work in progress, so is my approach and definition, which I will expand on and touch on throughout this week.

Now back to the Guardian article, well - geez, now this is the kind of question that incites frustration, passionate responses, and finger pointing!!! "Yeah-yeah see, we told you those guys are sooooo sexist!!" But you know what ladies and gents? I am the kind of lady who likes to create my own opportunities. And definitely, I believe that if I build it - someone will come for sure! So first of all, I do not, and neither do any awesome ladies need to be on this DJ Magazine list. Its always nice to be acknowledged, but that is not the main reason why I do what I do. So that is my first reaction. Then my second reaction is ok well who is on the list? From the top 20 I have not seen anyone who I particularly dig creatively, ok?

Thirdly, I think the most interesting thing about this article is the comments section where people are listing cool female djs and producers. Now this is interesting to see who people are naming: Magda, Dinky, Cassy, Maya Jane Coles, Anja Schneider and a few others. A few of them I have never heard of before but am interested in learning more about. Based on the ladies being listed I can see that this audience veers towards minimal techno and house for starters, again interesting.

So my conclusion on the article is, its cool that they bring up this subject, because this is exactly the kind of stuff that is not openly discussed in dance music culture. The more we point out what is not working, the more informed and aware we are to make changes for the better (even if I do not particularly care for the DJ Magazine selection, it is still an important platform). And just because we ladies are now allowed to sit at the table (at least it seems so) that does not mean we are done with our work in bringing about a healthy, gender positive equality to the field that we love - electronic and dance music.

The Guardian Link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/musicblog/2011/oct/28/female-dj-mag-top-100