Past Shows

The Daffodil Perspective Needs Your Help

The 1st gender balanced show needs your help to continue. The Daffodil Perspective is the 1st of its kind, championing female composers and diversity in classical music. In the 1st year each show featured 4 times more pieces by women than the BBC and overall twice as much music than all the greatest orchestras in the world combined. Full stats available here

The Daffodil Perspective is a one-woman show. I do in-depth research, script write, curate the content, source recordings, produce and present every episode. This is a lot of work and is done voluntarily.

If you enjoy the show and the site please consider donating today. It will do so much to help champion the huge number of female composers and create more diversity in classical music.

Money raised will be used for setting up the new Daffodil Perspective Awards which will celebrate recordings of marginalised music and musicians. The funds will also go towards a new website and setting up other resources to help others create diversity.

All donations will be much appreciated.

Elizabeth de Brito

Creator and producer of The Daffodil Perspective

DONATE HERE

 

The Daffodil Perspective 1st Year Stats

And the stats are out. 1 year of a gender balanced classical music show, how did it go?

1 year, 42 shows, 55 hours of music.

409 composers including 204 female composers, 155 living composers and 40 BAME composers/composers of colour.

33 hours of music by women composers, 13 hours of music by living women composers, 6.75 hours of music by BAME composers/composers of colour

584 pieces including 339 by female composers.

14 pieces per week on average including 8 by women, 3 by living composers and from May onwards every show had at least 1 piece by a BAME compose/composer of colour.

Most Played Composer: Florence Price (14 times)

Mozart was played twice, Bach twice and Beethoven once.

See the full infographic report here: The Daffodil Perspective 1st Year Analysis

And see the complete tracklist here

 

Elizabeth de Brito

Producer and Presenter

The Daffodil Perspective

Open Letter to Classic FM

Hi Classic FM. 

I just saw your post on 10 quotes from female composers that prove the struggle is real. It’s incredibly disappointing that you write this but you really don’t practise what you preach. How many of these unbelievable composers have you actually played on your station ever? Listening to your station and going through your playlist I can never see any. 

The struggle is real, you are correct. It would be a lot less bad if you, one of the biggest radio stations in the UK, would actually play some music by women composers on a regular basis. And not just relegated to an occasional series like Sounds and Sweet Airs. Female composers need to be played consistently if there is to be lasting change.

I’m appalled that these composers are not played on a daily basis on your station. I’m even more appalled that you keep writing about them, talking about how marginalised they are, yet by not playing them on a daily basis you are continuing to marginalise these composers. You are contributing to the centuries of institutionalised sexism that keep these amazing composers out of the history books.

I’d also like to add that you had a Best of British show a few weeks ago, an entirely all male lineup- failing to play Dame Ethel Smyth or Rebecca Clarke, (whose quotes both appear on the aforementioned article of 10 quotes by female composers), also failing to play the many other amazing and influential women composers from Britain. 

I’m the producer of The Daffodil Perspective, an online classical radio show which is proud to be completely gender equal. I would be more than happy to consult with you on ways to incorporate the hundreds of women composers on your station. I have a wealth of experience and knowledge regarding the centuries of women composers and how they all fit into the current biased version of classical music history. Just last week I showcased the music of the incredible and very important 20th century British composer Ruth Gipps, a student of Gordon Jacob and friend of Malcolm Arnold. 

Again I must reiterate my utter horror that you talk about the struggle of women and do nothing to actually change this. It’s absolutely shameful and hypocritical. As such a large radio station with a huge listenership you have an amazing opportunity here. Integrating women composers on a regular basis would only lead to a more robust and diverse listener base and would lead to greater appreciation of music history. 

I hope you’ll consider what I’ve said here and I look forward to your speedy response.

Elizabeth de Brito

The Daffodil Perspective Producer