Classical Music’s Woman Conductor Problem Isn’t A Women’s Issue (It’s About The Culture)

I ask Marin Alsop if the young women she works with are particularly beset by confidence issues. “Confidence is an issue for all young people today,” she says. “But I do find that the challenges for women seem to be projecting strength unapologetically. Society interprets women’s gestures very differently, so that if women are exuding an aura of extreme confidence that can be deemed off-putting, whereas it’s desirous for men.”