For 34 years, I worked with male musicians. I joined International Women in Jazz (IWJ) in New York but the distance to Florida (1,300 miles) is too great to address the status of women in music in Florida. So, in 2007, Women in Jazz South Florida, Inc. was incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that promotes women musicians, globally. To date, we have 225 members with 108 musicians and 117 supporters, including 47 men. As the sole staff member, I meet with board members (5) to determine how we can move the organization forward. My duties include maintaining the website www.wijsf.org, writing grants for concerts of original music by our musical members, hosting a weekly, online radio show at www.blogtalkradio.com/musicwoman, and publishing our online, monthly newsletter, featuring news, CD releases and performance schedules of members. In 2010, 2011, and 2012, we released compilation CDs of 10 fabulous female composers. The music of 27 women are available at www.wijsf.com/compcds.htm. The music is eclectic, that is, not all jazz. The only requirement is that is it original. Members of IWJ referred me to Fondazione Adkins-Chiti: Donne in Musica, resulting in Sarah Ernst Edwards’ interview with me, published in the book Donne in Jazz; our organization is an International Honour Committee Member; and my attendance at the 2013 WIMUST Conference, sponsored by 85+ donors at www.gofundme.com/jc-wimust that raised $5,000 in cash and inkind services for my travel expenses!
In my third year of Doctoral studies in Business/Marketing at Northcentral University online, my dissertation is The
Music Service Provider, Business Responsibilities, and the Inequity of Income Earned by Women Musicians. Research shows that 1.
Music is a $27 Billion industry with $12.5 Billion in the USA
2.
Although women pay 53% of the taxes on Earth, only 1% of public funding in Europe applies to women’s music. Men head 89% of cultural organizations and the 11% headed by women do not support women musicians and composers. In the USA, organizations like Florida State Cultural Division, Broward County Cultural Division, National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), ASCAP, BMI, and the Musician’s Union have few statistics about the number of women musicians.
3.
Jazz Musicians are 85% male, according to Joan Jeffri’s report to the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA).
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