Diversifying Your Music Repertoire
A guide for identifying music by marginalized (Black, Indigenous, POC, Women, LGBTQ+) composers.
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Band / Wind Ensemble
- Diverse Composers of Wind Band MusicIncludes tabs for women composers, composers of color, and LGBTQIA+ composers. Compiled by Christian Folk. To add pieces, please email chrisfolk13@gmail.com
- Black Composers: Wind Repertory ProjectWiki list of Black composers of wind band music.
- Wind Repertory ProjectWiki database, searchable by a variety of criteria, including ethnicity and gender.
- Diversity Databases (And We Were Heard)Lists of wind band works by diverse composers in general (same as Folk's list above) and on state band lists.
- New Band Musicsearchable list (largely defunct as of 2017)
Bass
- Composer/Performer Databasefrom Bass Players for Black Composers. Site includes links to scores and media.
- An annotated catalog of works by women composers for the double bassRebeca Tavares Furtado's doctoral document. Annotated catalog begins on page 34.
Bassoon
- Bassoon rep by Black composersSpotlight list from the Institute for Composer Diversity
- Bassoon Music by Transgender, Gender Diverse, and Women Composers and/or Black, Indigenous, and Composers of ColorEdited by Brandon Rumsey, organized by work type (chamber, solo, etudes/studies)
Cello
- Sphinx Catalog of Latin-American Cello Worksfrom site: "It provides information about works [by Latin American composers] where the cello has a prominent role as a solo instrument, soloist with orchestra, in duo with another instrument or electronic media, or in cello ensembles."
- Cello Works by Black ComposersComposer and/or publisher websites provided
Choral Music
- Non-Idiomatic Music of Black ComposersFrom site: "a working list of the non-idiomatic choral music of black composers. In no way is it meant to be an exhaustive list. . . . Non-idiomatic, as it relates to black composers, refers to the original concert music that is not part of the traditional idiomatic canon associated with black musicians. That canon includes spirituals, gospel, jazz, hip-hop, and rap among others. There will be pieces that may be based on spirituals or gospel tunes but are, at their core, original songs similar to ones that use chorale tunes in cantatas and popular songs parodied in Renaissance masses.
- Choral Diversity Database"Choral works of composers from underrepresented groups" compiled by the Institute for Composer Diversity.
- Black and Brown Composers in Baroque Latin America: An Introduction to the RepertoireAn introduction to and survey of repertoire by composers of color and native-born South American composers from Brazil, Peru, Cuba, Mexico, Guatemala, and Bolivia from 1600 to 1800, with an emphasis on villancicos, cantatas, and other works for voices and chamber ensemble.
Clarinet
- 101 Clarinet Compositions by Womenlist compiled by Jenny Maclay
- Clarinet rep by Black composersSpotlight list from the Institute for Composer Diversity
Flute
- MBC: Repertoire for Unaccompanied Solo Flute & PIccoloDirectory compiled by Flute Repertoire Specialist Dr. Jen Kennard and Managing Editor, Head Researcher & Writer Dr. Megan Hill for the RBP Foundation.
- NFA's Selected Flute Repertoire & Studiessearchable by composer identity, content type, level, and instrumentation
- No Broken Links: FluteDirectory of woodwind solo and chamber music by "by composers from communities who continue to face marginalization in the field of classical music and new music." Brandon Rumsey & Thomas Kurtz, editors
- Underrepresented Flute Workscurated by Myah Frank, IC '22; an excel list of works separated by instrumentation
Guitar
- Guitar Music by Black Composers"This spreadsheet will be an ever-updating resource for music written by Black composers for guitar/other plucked instruments, updating both as older works are rediscovered and new works are commissioned."
Horn
- Horn rep by Black composersSpotlight list from the Institute for Composer Diversity
Oboe
- Oboe rep by Black composersSpotlight list from the Institute for Composer Diversity
Orchestra
- Diverse Composers of Orchestral MusicIncludes tabs for women composers and composers of color. Compiled by Christian Folk. To add pieces, please email chrisfolk13@gmail.com
Organ
- Organ Works by Composers from Africa and the African Diasporacompiled by Calvert Johnson in 2013
Percussion
- Breakpoint Database: Unaccompanied Solo Percussion Repertoire by Female Composerscompiled by Lucy Tarantino
- Female Works ListMusic by female identifying composers from around the world, compiled by Claire Edwardes
- Percussion Ensemble Works by Women-Identifying Composers"Compiled/hosted by James Doyle, an open document of percussion ensemble works by women-identifying composers. Detailed instrumentation lists." (PAS)
- Percussion Music by Black Composers (Juilliard)compiled by Daniel Druckman
- Percussion Repertoire by Asian Composers Database"This is a project that was completed as part of an independent study at the Eastman School of Music by Filipino-American Percussionist William Newton. "
Piano
- Solo Piano Works by Composers from Historically Underrepresented Groupslist of works including length and level
Saxophone
- No Broken Links: SaxophoneDirectory of woodwind solo and chamber music by "by composers from communities who continue to face marginalization in the field of classical music and new music." Brandon Rumsey & Thomas Kurtz, editors
- Saxophone works by womenlist compiled by Sarah Hetrick
Trombone
- Brass Music by Black Composers and ArtistsSearchable by instrument. Compiled by Last Row Music
- Brass Music by Women ComposersSearchable by instrument. Compiled by Last Row Music.
- Women Composer DatabaseNatalie Mannix's database of trombone music by women composers
Trumpet
- Catalog of Trumpet Works by Underrepresented Composers"For this project, 'underrepresented' is defined as all gender-marginalized individuals and/or Black, Indigenous, or persons of color."
- Chamber Works by Women featuring the Trumpetfrom Women of Note website
- Contributions of Twentieth Century African American Composers to the Solo Trumpet RepertoireA Discussion and Analysis of Selected works by: Ulysses S. Kay, Adolphus C. Hailstork, Regina Harris Baiocchi, and Charles Lloyd, Jr. Orrin Wilson's 2011 dissertation.
- Trumpet rep by Black composersSpotlight list from the Institute for Composer Diversity
Tuba / Euphonium
- Tuba/Euphonium rep by Black composersSpotlight list from the Institute for Composer Diversity
- COVID-19 Black All-Star Tuba Euphonium Ensemble"Virtual ensemble videos of the some of the best young Black tuba and euphonium players from around the United States."
Viola
- Underrepresented Composer DatabaseAmerican Viola Society's database "explores repertoire by underrepresented composers that involves the viola as a significant voice."
Violin
- Repertoire for Unaccompanied Solo ViolinCompiled by Rachel Barton Pine and Dr. Megan E. Hill for the RBP Foundation
- Repertoire for Violin and Orchestra"Compiled by Rachel Barton Pine and Dr. Megan E. Hill for the RBP Foundation. . . . This list is currently limited to works for acoustic violin and traditional symphony or chamber orchestra."
Voice
- Kassia Database: Art Song by Women ComposersThe database includes songs from the Baroque period through the 21st century, and have been categorized by level, voice type, language, composer, and composer dates. Related information includes range, tessitura, piano accompaniment, vocal line, and links to available scores.
- BIPOC composers writing in the art song mediumlist of 21st century composers and their websites
- The Spirituals Database"searchable access to recorded track information for concert Negro Spiritual settings performed by solo Classical vocalists. The resource contains a selection from a century of historic and contemporary concert spiritual recordings."
- Afrocentric Voices in "Classical" Music"An extensive bibliography of books and other research resources. There is a small–but growing–list of biographies of vocalists and composers. . . . Most of these biographies now have video playlists of these musicians in performance themselves or of others performing their works, as well as photographs, music score examples, and links to resources related to their lives or careers."