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French

ID: <

10670/1.9jb75g

>

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When gender springs onstage. Professionnal arrangements in musical booking and gender inequalities among artists in two European capitals

Abstract

International audience This article examines gender inequalities in popular music booking in the venues of Berlin and Paris. There are less women artists on stage than men, but why is this phenomenon more pronounced in the French capital? The article suggests that the inequalities between artists can be grasped by looking at the professional arrangements among intermediaries on the music production side. Overwhelmed by too many gig requests, bookers rely on the recommendations of trusted intermediaries to sort out the proposals they receive and stabilize the definition of musical value. In Paris, the strong professionalization of music and the low turnover amongst bookers reinforces the homogeneity of their professional networks. However, these booking networks remain relatively closed to female artists. In addition, the bookers oppose artistic criteria to taking the artists’ gender into account, considering the latter an illegitimate criterion for music selection. In Berlin, collective booking (several people in a single venue) diversifies the networks used to select artists, lowering the barriers to entry for women artists. The proximity between musical and activist scenes, favoured by the lesser professionalization of music work, also legitimizes gender as a criterion for music selection, including in renowned venues.

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