Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

[MetalManiac]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

For Rock and Metal, Its like football..its a male sport. Sometimes we like to see hot chicks scantily clad prance around and play slap tag football, and sometimes they can play very entertaining games of tag, but thats about the extent of it.
That said, a professional classical guitarist, male or female, is a whole 'nother thing, and they are skilled professionals at their craft, and I couldnt begin to even touch them , but that ain't metal and that is what metal guys do.Girls can do it, but not 'hardcore' metal- thats a male domain.
Metal is hardcore male aggression with tons of testosterone. Period.

 

[LLL]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Imagine if record companies had to have equal representation among signed acts, 50% men and 50% women? How would SD work if you guys had to add women to equal the amount of men you endorse?

Haha yeah - can you imagine "gender affirmative action" being forced (via gov't) on record companies and musical gear manufacturers?

Geezum-crow what a mess that would be.

"Yeah sorry, Messrs. Page, Plant, Jones & Bonham... we can't sign you as that would skew our quotas"

"Hey Jimi - we really would love to have you on board, but you're not a woman"

- or alternatively -

"Yeah Bob, I couldn't sign the Wilson sisters because that would've been one female act too many... the gov't is watching, you know"

 

[LLL]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Final comment on this nonsense: many of the forum members who get accused of misogyny by the projecting, vicariously offended crowd cite one pickup builder as one of the all time best and THE go to person with requests and information about tone. Never have I seen those same members discuss the gender of the pickup builder as anything other than an identifying, objective characteristic. Never have I seen these members question the advice given from this winder.

This tone genius is the beloved and highly regarded and respected Maricella Juarez, affectionately known as MJ.



No one cares that MJ happens to be female. We all care that she is a GENIUS at matching the tone in our heads with a specific pickup design.

I have seen NO ONE say "she winds pretty well for a girl."

Touche'.

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

I posted this in another thread.

Way back, if a girl went for an electric guitar she'd get laughed at. " girls can't play electric guitar " .
No encouragement in the slightest. It's a bit different now, chics can shred... which is pretty cool... for a girl.

Back in the day, I wish they had've

To elaborate a little more; back in the 60's and 70's I was surrounded by what I called guitar cowboys.
Women that played guitar were usually acoustic guitar players because of the attitude I expressed above. They were discouraged and not only in regard to guitar. They were discouraged from participating in Rock and Roll music no matter what instrument they played. There were slowly exceptions and towards the end of the 70's there were many participating. Not many playing six string electric. Women playing bass seemed to be the indoor for women electric players which has helped with the emergence of the six string players. Women playing electric since then has expanded but in many ways away from the eyes of the public and media.

It's similar to womens sport here. There's a massive participation in Netball and baketball and not so much, cricket and soccer. The amount of exposure and media interest is minimumal. 90 % or more televised sport is male. Sporting coverage in papers is again minimal for women. In many ways exposure of women in Rock and Rock is limited to their appearances , not their music and is really minimal compared to the male side of the business.

I wonder if there are more women guitarists out there than is realized, reflecting on how many participate in sport here but media wise you'd hardly know it.

 

[Phantasmagoria]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Oh, I see how it is. Nobody digs my suggestion there. ^

What's wrong with guys singing super-high notes that women can hit? Are you sayin' guys shouldn't be allowed to do that?

You obviously don't listen to much power metal :lmao:

 

[GilmourD]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

I call :bsflag:

I live in a fairly conservative community, and even here no teacher is telling students such nonsense.

You're calling BS on something I never said. I never said teachers. I said parents.

 

[elelpe]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

I see this issue as how to open greater possibilities and to create encouraging environment for women to reach guitar than talking nonsense about sharing equal quota. Discouragement for women to play guitar in music industry at large does happen. It's so subtle it has become norm that guitar world is for men. After decades this norm is perceived as natural and the discouragement is perceived as nonexistence or nonsense. During early decades when electric guitars and guitar heroes were born; rock'n'roll and music industry were booming, women around the globe were still struggling with gender role. That's the context. Then for decades music industry has put male guitar players in favor through its massive and sophisticated marketing over and over again. People see male guitar players on almost every stage and most media and start believing this is a male world. Parents would rather see their daughter singing or playing other instruments but guitar, especially electric. Female electric guitar players on stage are seen as unusual, often got remarks on their appearance (and sometimes got overrated recognition because of it, which is actually not supportive for their development as players). It seems the furthest women could go in this praedominantly men world is singing and playing acoustic guitar. The only natural thing I can see is that a man always has his toy. One of them is electric guitar. Just be nice to women that want to play electric guitar. It would be good for business too.

 

[80's_Metal]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Guys play guitar to GET girls..... (Joan Jett maybe a exception of course..)

Girls don't have to do much of anything to GET guys... so they don't need to spend the time and effort to learn it.

 

[GilmourD]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Guys play guitar to GET girls..... (Joan Jett maybe a exception of course..)

Girls don't have to do much of anything to GET guys... so they don't need to spend the time and effort to learn it.

Except maybe if they weren't told that then girls might just want to play guitar.

I never learned to play guitar to get girls. I learned because I was an angry teenager. I discovered that music means more to me than almost anything else besides my son.

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[verbotenco]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Learn from the UFC. It used to be fighting is taboo for women. Not anymore. Now people watch Rondha Rousey breaking arms for the actions, not for skins and meat (even though many of those women resemble men trapped in women's body..too much testosterone and **** but that's a start right?).

 

[DreX]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Guys play guitar to GET girls.....

I took up guitar at 12 or 13 because I was depressed about everything, including not having the confidence to get with girls... and then I got a girl because she saw me playing guitar at a talent show, so... that ended up working out even though that wasn't my intention.

I think one reason guys might use guitars as an outlet is because we're not as good with words at that age and are unwilling to share the words even if we can form them, and the guitar is expressive without words and it can mean something profound to you but just sound like music to everyone else. On the other side, girls probably get the same kind of emotional relief from writing a diary or journal and by chatting with other girls about what's on their mind rather than keeping it bottled up.

 

[JohnnyGuitar]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Evan - why isn't there a Seymour Duncan signature pickup or pedal for a female artist (and please don't make it in pink). More recognition by the industry should probably encourage girls to pick up a guitar...

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Evan - why isn't there a Seymour Duncan signature pickup or pedal for a female artist (and please don't make it in pink). More recognition by the industry should probably encourage girls to pick up a guitar...

Good question. Thanks for asking it. And I agree that more recognition by the industry will encourage more girls to pick up the guitar.

When I ran Artist Relations, we eagerly sought out female endorsees. We did a "This is Seymour Duncan" print ad with Jennifer Batten and we included her on the United By Tone CD. We worked with a lot of female artists: Lita Ford, Kat Dyson, Alice Peacock, Laura Pleasants, Karen Cuda, Ali Handal, Shauna Hall, Janet Robin, Michelle Marie, Leslie Baker, Muriel Anderson, Arielle, and many more. Seymour Duncan sponsors the Women's International Music Network and their She Rocks Awards. We've held "Girl Power" NAMM events like this one.

SD has always been focused on female artists and growing the female market. Not only because it makes good business sense, but SD is a company with a female owner/founder/CEO and it's something we feel is right to do.

Though this is slightly off topic, let me turn your question back towards you and the rest of the forum: is there any woman out there, who, if her name was on an SD product, would make you more likely to purchase it?

 

[LesStrat]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

No. I have never purchased a pickup because someone endorsed it.

I mi wanted to buy a Steve Stevens Hamer once. Not because of his name, but because it was a great guitar at home price.

Sadly I was a poor college student with a family at the time With no disposable income. I didn't even have much income.

 

[LesStrat]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

You're calling BS on something I never said. I never said teachers. I said parents.

And the Yankees claim southerners are backwards.

It's a rare parent here that says such things.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Though this is slightly off topic, let me turn your question back towards you and the rest of the forum: is there any woman out there, who, if her name was on an SD product, would make you more likely to purchase it?

Yes, Aleks Sever and Gretchen Menn. You guys need to talk to them.

 

[GilmourD]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

And the Yankees claim southerners are backwards.

It's a rare parent here that says such things.

I think you need to go back and re-read what I said because your responses don't seem to be connected to what I said.

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[GilmourD]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Yes, Aleks Sever and Gretchen Menn. You guys need to talk to them.

Let me add Juliette Valduriez to that list. She seriously smokes.

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[LLL]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

Though this is slightly off topic, let me turn your question back towards you and the rest of the forum: is there any woman out there, who, if her name was on an SD product, would make you more likely to purchase it?

No, I would never (and have never) purchase(d) something because some artist's name was it (man or woman).

I know there's a market with people like that out there, but I am not part of that market.

Speaking for myself, of course.

 

[LLL]

Re: Why Aren't there More Female Guitar Players, Especially Electric?

You obviously don't listen to much power metal :lmao:

I do dig 80's metal (Maiden, Priest, etc) and love Megadeth. But they don't sing super-duper high.