EMAS and Sonic Arts Network (1979–2004): Gender, Governance, Policies, Practice

Abstract

This article is based on an examination of the minutes of the Committee/Board and annual general meetings of the Electro-Acoustic Music Association of Great Britain and its successor organisation, Sonic Arts Network, in the period 1979–2004, as well as other supporting documentation. It looks at the ebb and flow of gender constitution. There was a remarkable year or two in the 1990s when gender balance was almost within sight; but then the conditions fostering this period of potential gender balance seem to have dissipated. I reflect on this history, asking related questions: how was the changing gender balance reflected in the commissioning of works and curation of CDs? How were ‘equal opportunities’ issues addressed by the Board as they became more explicit? And how successfully?