Listening to Ladies

Emily Doolittle on transcribing whale songs, crafting faux bird calls, and dealing with the cultural attitude that women can learn from "the great masters" but cannot join their ranks.

Composer Sakari Dixon Vanderveer on composing in middle school, the saxophone as a wild animal, and daring to be visible.

British composer Bobbie-Jane Gardner on music inspired by cooking, Noam Chomsky, and the city of Birmingham.

Andrea Reinkemeyer on the beauty of detail, adventures in linguistic misunderstandings, and choosing your mentors carefully.

Australian composer Nicole Murphy on teaching in the outback, the ambiguity of music, and the benefit of being oblivious.

Elizabeth A. Baker on falling in love from the point of view of a neurotransmitter, making music from bicycle parts, and the legacy of Nina Simone.

Composer Dganit Elyakim on nuclear ducks, the gendered art of bargaining, and composing as a process of writing love songs.

Composer and improviser Lauren Sarah Hayes on making and experiencing sound — in a mausoleum, next to a waterfall, and through specially built furniture.

Composer Marga Richter on how her family rearranged their lives to support her path, what it was like being the only woman composer in her Juilliard class, and where music might come from.

Composer Aftab Darvishi speaks about blending musical traditions, having her work deemed "feminine," and the state of new music in Iran.