SAPPHONIX COLLETIVE

Who is it for?

Sapphonix Collective is primarily for women, femmes, and non-binary identifying people, although allies are welcome. Our concerts cater to a younger and more diverse audience than traditional classical music events.

How did it come about?

Sapphonix came out of a desire to create a space for ourselves in the classical world. Last April we were talking hypothetically about projects that are important to us, and what kind of community we would create IF we had a collective. The more we talked and dreamed, the more excited we became. We made an instagram story announcing that we were starting a queer collective, and after the fact realized we’d just come out publicly as queer. Then we dreamed up a long list of projects and goals, and dove right into making them a reality.

What does your name mean?

Our name comes from a chapter by musicologist Elizabeth Wood, titled “Sapphonics”, in the book “Queering the Pitch”. Wood explains that “sapphonics” is “…a mode of articulation, a way of describing a space of lesbian possibility, for a range of erotic and emotional relationships among women who sing and women who listen.” For our collective, “Sapphonix” refers to the sapphic experience, and reflects that our collaborators are mostly queer-identifying femmes and non-binary people.