The article “Bodies of Evidence, Singing Cyborgs and Other Gender Issues in Electrovocal Music” by Bosma (2003) is part of a large-scale study and presents the author’s personal view of issues related to electronic music and its forms of expression, including gender. The main emphasis is on pre-recorded vocals and the discussion of the characteristics and differences between female and male sound production. The study touches upon musical trends of the early 21st century and cites sources on which electro-vocal music was available during that period – live performances and recordings on CDs. In addition, the vocal patterns of singers and cyborgs are compared, and the prospects for the development of electronic music are discussed.
Gender-based musical artifacts represent a wide field of research in question. Bosma (2003) assesses the forms of electro-vocal music existence, the basic structures of such compositions, the aspect of gender from vocalists’ and composers’ perspectives, and specific songs. In addition, the author also studies the distribution of cyborg voices and determines how much the work of real vocalists recording songs in different genres is in demand – pop, opera, film voice acting, and some others (Bosma, 2003). Particular attention is paid to special techniques, for instance, ellipsis, which is typical for female vocals. Bosma (2003) states that certain elements of the vocal style reflect unique social aspects, for example, feminism, as well as the desire of humanity to progress through a combination of human and cyborg voices. All these topics are intended to emphasize the breadth of the analyzed topic and the rich set of assessment tools to discuss how electro-vocal music has found expression in contemporary Western culture.
The gender factor, as the main aspect of the study, is reflected in various forms. One of them is the gender of composers who write electronic music because, as Bosma (2003) remarks, their personal background can tell much about this industry. Voice is another important characteristic to take into account when addressing the gender aspect. The author calls the voice a secondary sexual characteristic, and this criterion largely reflects existing musical trends (Bosma, 2003). One of the main findings suggests that the dominant number of electroacoustic music composers are males, but female vocals are more versatile and often in demand in compositions of different genres. At the same, the distribution of vocals in music releases is roughly equal, with a slight preponderance in favor of males, although in non-Western cultures with specific traditions, a tendency for more frequent use of female vocals may be observed. The analysis of various compositions shows that male vocals are more common in speaking texts, while female vocals are more melodic.
Finally, a gender analysis of cyborg voices has also been conducted to check the ratio. According to Bosma (2003), in contrast to real vocals, the tendency to use a computerized female voice is more prevalent in contemporary Western culture than in males. Although their ratio is approximately equal, most male samples are not modern and borrowed from other non-Western culture cultures. Of the long list of CD releases reviewed, Bosma (2003) singles out female pre-recorded voices as the more common pattern for electro vocal music. As a result, the conclusion is that, despite a large number of male vocal parts, female influences in this genre of music are significant.
References
Bosma, H. (2003). Bodies of evidence, singing cyborgs and other gender issues in electrovocal music.Organized Sound, 8(1), 5-17.