Dr. Zaina Shihabi | Independent Researcher (original) (raw)
Papers by Dr. Zaina Shihabi
The Routledge Handbook of Women's Work in Music, 2021
From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupat... more From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupation, women in Egypt have been utilising music as a medium in order to speak out against injustice. This research examines the position of Arab women as composers from a historical and sociological perspective by providing content analysis of online magazine articles, newspaper articles and blogs in both English and Arabic. A literature review identifies a gap in the research, which is the lack of academic scholarship concerning individual Arab women composers and their accomplishments throughout history. Opportunities are identified for further research concerning the history of women in Arabic music over the past century. The article concludes with an argument that women in the Arab world have played a large role in shaping the history of music, and that contemporary Arab women composers continue to utilise music in order to create change.
Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male count... more Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male counterparts since as early as the medieval period, composition has been and still is a male-dominated discipline. Many theories have been made over the years as to why, some say the biological differences between men and women are to blame, others say it is psychological, yet in more recent years, researchers have raised several other concerns with regards to women’s role in this field. Historically, due to societal and cultural restrictions many aspiring women composers had limited education and exposure, and their works were denied publication solely due to their gender. More recently, however, particularly after the Women’s Liberation Movement, things have considerably changed. Although there is definite progress with regards to the recognition of women’s work, their contributions in the past are left out of standard history textbooks, particularly due to the canon of ‘great’ work that some may say defines Western art music. In the 1980s and 90s, the ‘canon wars’ took place, and researchers, academics and many others raised their concerns over the lack of female representation in the canon and standard repertoire of Western art music, particularly in the classroom. After many higher education institutions began including specialist courses in women in music, many were still disappointed to see that the ideology remained. Some expressed their concerns that this ‘female’ canon, one which consisted of women in Western art music, may have by default created a ‘counter-canon,’ therefore further emphasising the idea that women composers are the exception. Some argue that the notion of the ‘male genius,’ is to blame for the idea that composition is still male-dominated, others blame the lack of female representation in Western art music curricula. This dissertation aims to look at the different theories presented over the years, from both a musicological and educational perspective, and will attempt to understand the views of students and educators in the field.
This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that col... more This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that collectively explore key questions concerning how we look at the challenges and trends, and the need for change to react to the recent higher education (HE) climate, through reference to teaching musicians the skills, knowledge and diverse career creativities that are valued in preparing musicians to enter sustained careers. In this article, the National Association for Music in Higher Education (NAMHE) elected committee members explore the emerging issues and agendas within the context of higher education, and the national and international policy shifts that are occurring. The case studies explore: (1) an inclusive curriculum and undergraduate student partner project; (2) employability skills and postgraduate courses; (3) digital creativities; (4) music career creativities and gender; and (5) an integrated student experience.
I am a passionate, positive, and proactive MYP/DP IB educator and DPC who is currently gaining va... more I am a passionate, positive, and proactive MYP/DP IB educator and DPC who is currently gaining valuable experience as an early years center director in Dubai whilst on the search for an opportunity in IB education in the UAE. I am an extremely passionate educator, one who develops strong relationships based on trust with students and who genuinely cares about them. My experiences and educational background allows me to teach English L&L (DP & MYP), English B, TOK, film and history. My undergraduate degree is in mass communications and my MA, PGCE and PhD are in education (policy, history, teaching & learning, and curriculum analysis). I also have experience in higher education in the UK and I am a published researcher. I have several publications under my belt and I am in the process of conducting research within the context of early childhood education in the UAE. I also provide training for my staff across a variety of subjects and I oversee both the operations and education (EYFS Curriculum) of an Early Years Centre with 44 staff members and 230 children.
Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male count... more Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male counterparts since as early as the medieval period, composition has been and still is a male-dominated discipline. Many theories have been made over the years as to why, some say the biological differences between men and women are to blame, others say it is psychological, yet in more recent years, researchers have raised several other concerns with regards to women’s role in this field.
Historically, due to societal and cultural restrictions many aspiring women composers had limited education and exposure, and their works were denied publication solely due to their gender. More recently, however, particularly after the Women’s Liberation Movement, things have considerably changed.
Although there is definite progress with regards to the recognition of women’s work, their contributions in the past are left out of standard history textbooks, particularly due to the canon of ‘great’ work that some may say defines Western art music. In the 1980s and 90s, the ‘canon wars’ took place, and researchers, academics and many others raised their concerns over the lack of female representation in the canon and standard repertoire of Western art music, particularly in the classroom.
After many higher education institutions began including specialist courses in women in music, many were still disappointed to see that the ideology remained. Some expressed their concerns that this ‘female’ canon, one which consisted of women in Western art music, may have by default created a ‘counter-canon,’ therefore further emphasising the idea that women composers are the exception.
Some argue that the notion of the ‘male genius,’ is to blame for the idea that composition is still male-dominated, others blame the lack of female representation in Western art music curricula. This dissertation aims to look at the different theories presented over the years, from both a musicological and educational perspective, and will attempt to understand the views of students and educators in the field.
Conference Presentations by Dr. Zaina Shihabi
Poster created for BIBAC 2016 (Building Interdisciplinary Bridges Across Cultures) conference hel... more Poster created for BIBAC 2016 (Building Interdisciplinary Bridges Across Cultures) conference held at the University of Cambridge.
Book Chapters, Peer Review Articles, Other by Dr. Zaina Shihabi
The Routledge Handbook of Women's Work in Music, 2021
From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupat... more From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupation, women in Egypt have been utilising music as a medium in order to speak out against injustice. This research examines the position of Arab women as composers from a historical and sociological perspective by providing content analysis of online magazine articles, newspaper articles and blogs in both English and Arabic. A literature review identifies a gap in the research, which is the lack of academic scholarship concerning individual Arab women composers and their accomplishments throughout history. Opportunities are identified for further research concerning the history of women in Arabic music over the past century. The article concludes with an argument that women in the Arab world have played a large role in shaping the history of music, and that contemporary Arab women composers continue to utilise music in order to create change.
This is a chapter from the e-book Building Interdisciplinary and Intercultural Bridges: Where Pra... more This is a chapter from the e-book Building Interdisciplinary and Intercultural Bridges: Where Practice Meets Research (edited by Pamela Burnard, Valerie Ross, Helen Julia Minors, Kimberly Powell, Tatjana Dragovic, and Elizabeth Mackinlay). It includes two studies that provide a brief observation of interdisciplinary literature and samples of student voice from two Higher Education institutes in Liverpool over the course of the last two and a half years. The first study provides findings from a 2014 study conducted for a Master’s dissertation which utilises online surveys with aims to gain an understanding of how current Higher Education music students feel about the representation of women in Western art music curricula in the UK, and the second a semi-structured interview-based reflexive study conducted for on-going PhD research that observes the potential influences gender may have had on a music student’s journey leading up to Higher Education. With significant changes occurring in the way we go about teaching music as 2016 marks the first year several female composers and songwriters are included in the A-level music syllabus in one of the UK’s top exam boards, how do students feel about these changes, and do they think they are necessary? The findings presented in this chapter include discussions on how a sample of students feel about the influence of gender, and whether or not they think female composers warrant inclusion in Western art music curricula.
This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that col... more This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that collectively explore key questions concerning how we look at the challenges and trends, and the need for change to react to the recent higher education (HE) climate, through reference to teaching musicians the skills, knowledge and diverse career creativities that are valued in preparing musicians to enter sustained careers. In this article, the National Association for Music in Higher Education (NAMHE) elected committee members explore the emerging issues and agendas within the context of higher education, and the national and international policy shifts that are occurring. The case studies explore: (1) an inclusive curriculum and undergraduate student partner project; (2) employability skills and postgraduate courses;
Thesis Chapters by Dr. Zaina Shihabi
PhD Thesis, 2019
In the summer of 2015 Jessy McCabe, a 17-year old British student, started an online petition tha... more In the summer of 2015 Jessy McCabe, a 17-year old British student, started an online petition that eventually led to the inclusion of five women composers and songwriters in Edexcel’s A Level music specification. Although the recent inclusion of female representation in the syllabus is, indeed, a significant change in the position of women composers and songwriters in music education, through a historical investigation of curricula from three examination boards in England that offer A Level music, this research has shown that the central concerns of feminist musicology which appeared largely in the 1990s have yet to be addressed. I argue that by not including feminist or critical musicology in A Level music syllabi, we have once again succumbed to what Karin Pendle described in 1991 as the ‘add-and-stir’ method, which addresses the ‘what and how many’, but does not address the ‘how and why’.
Through an inter- and transdisciplinary methodology, which includes a qualitative historical and sociological approach underpinned by feminist theory, I conducted multimethod research utilising historical approaches, document analysis, and in-depth interviews. As several methods were utilised, a variety of findings were observed. By conducting historical research into the history of educational policy and music education reforms in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, I gained a deeper understanding of the most significant debates according to leading historians through a historiography of significant texts that addressed the overarching situation of education and music education policy changes in England in recent history. I found that the National Curriculum for Music, which emerged in 1992, was influenced by conservative views of education, and that A Level education, or the ‘gold standard’, celebrates a traditionalist view that values and disseminates the European Western canon through curricula.
Through document analysis, I was able to critically observe the appropriateness of the curriculum documents chosen for the historical examination of the position of women composers and songwriters in A Level music curricula; through this analysis I also identified themes such as gendered language. By use of historical methods and Bourdieusian analysis, I argue that masculine domination, perpetuated by symbolic violence, is exerted through A Level music curricula due to the largely male-focused prescribed works, gendered language of earlier curricula, the continued marginalisation of women creators, and the lack of feminist or critical musicology.
Through the analysis of several in-depth interviews, I found a correlation between current attitudes towards feminism in the UK and the position that although equality is desirable, it is not acceptable to replace ‘great’ male composers with women composers for the sake of inclusion. Finally, I argue that denying students an A Level education that includes the history of feminist musicology can cause a collective historical amnesia of women’s accomplishments in music.
The Routledge Handbook of Women's Work in Music, 2021
From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupat... more From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupation, women in Egypt have been utilising music as a medium in order to speak out against injustice. This research examines the position of Arab women as composers from a historical and sociological perspective by providing content analysis of online magazine articles, newspaper articles and blogs in both English and Arabic. A literature review identifies a gap in the research, which is the lack of academic scholarship concerning individual Arab women composers and their accomplishments throughout history. Opportunities are identified for further research concerning the history of women in Arabic music over the past century. The article concludes with an argument that women in the Arab world have played a large role in shaping the history of music, and that contemporary Arab women composers continue to utilise music in order to create change.
Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male count... more Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male counterparts since as early as the medieval period, composition has been and still is a male-dominated discipline. Many theories have been made over the years as to why, some say the biological differences between men and women are to blame, others say it is psychological, yet in more recent years, researchers have raised several other concerns with regards to women’s role in this field. Historically, due to societal and cultural restrictions many aspiring women composers had limited education and exposure, and their works were denied publication solely due to their gender. More recently, however, particularly after the Women’s Liberation Movement, things have considerably changed. Although there is definite progress with regards to the recognition of women’s work, their contributions in the past are left out of standard history textbooks, particularly due to the canon of ‘great’ work that some may say defines Western art music. In the 1980s and 90s, the ‘canon wars’ took place, and researchers, academics and many others raised their concerns over the lack of female representation in the canon and standard repertoire of Western art music, particularly in the classroom. After many higher education institutions began including specialist courses in women in music, many were still disappointed to see that the ideology remained. Some expressed their concerns that this ‘female’ canon, one which consisted of women in Western art music, may have by default created a ‘counter-canon,’ therefore further emphasising the idea that women composers are the exception. Some argue that the notion of the ‘male genius,’ is to blame for the idea that composition is still male-dominated, others blame the lack of female representation in Western art music curricula. This dissertation aims to look at the different theories presented over the years, from both a musicological and educational perspective, and will attempt to understand the views of students and educators in the field.
This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that col... more This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that collectively explore key questions concerning how we look at the challenges and trends, and the need for change to react to the recent higher education (HE) climate, through reference to teaching musicians the skills, knowledge and diverse career creativities that are valued in preparing musicians to enter sustained careers. In this article, the National Association for Music in Higher Education (NAMHE) elected committee members explore the emerging issues and agendas within the context of higher education, and the national and international policy shifts that are occurring. The case studies explore: (1) an inclusive curriculum and undergraduate student partner project; (2) employability skills and postgraduate courses; (3) digital creativities; (4) music career creativities and gender; and (5) an integrated student experience.
I am a passionate, positive, and proactive MYP/DP IB educator and DPC who is currently gaining va... more I am a passionate, positive, and proactive MYP/DP IB educator and DPC who is currently gaining valuable experience as an early years center director in Dubai whilst on the search for an opportunity in IB education in the UAE. I am an extremely passionate educator, one who develops strong relationships based on trust with students and who genuinely cares about them. My experiences and educational background allows me to teach English L&L (DP & MYP), English B, TOK, film and history. My undergraduate degree is in mass communications and my MA, PGCE and PhD are in education (policy, history, teaching & learning, and curriculum analysis). I also have experience in higher education in the UK and I am a published researcher. I have several publications under my belt and I am in the process of conducting research within the context of early childhood education in the UAE. I also provide training for my staff across a variety of subjects and I oversee both the operations and education (EYFS Curriculum) of an Early Years Centre with 44 staff members and 230 children.
Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male count... more Although female composers have been shaping the history of composition alongside their male counterparts since as early as the medieval period, composition has been and still is a male-dominated discipline. Many theories have been made over the years as to why, some say the biological differences between men and women are to blame, others say it is psychological, yet in more recent years, researchers have raised several other concerns with regards to women’s role in this field.
Historically, due to societal and cultural restrictions many aspiring women composers had limited education and exposure, and their works were denied publication solely due to their gender. More recently, however, particularly after the Women’s Liberation Movement, things have considerably changed.
Although there is definite progress with regards to the recognition of women’s work, their contributions in the past are left out of standard history textbooks, particularly due to the canon of ‘great’ work that some may say defines Western art music. In the 1980s and 90s, the ‘canon wars’ took place, and researchers, academics and many others raised their concerns over the lack of female representation in the canon and standard repertoire of Western art music, particularly in the classroom.
After many higher education institutions began including specialist courses in women in music, many were still disappointed to see that the ideology remained. Some expressed their concerns that this ‘female’ canon, one which consisted of women in Western art music, may have by default created a ‘counter-canon,’ therefore further emphasising the idea that women composers are the exception.
Some argue that the notion of the ‘male genius,’ is to blame for the idea that composition is still male-dominated, others blame the lack of female representation in Western art music curricula. This dissertation aims to look at the different theories presented over the years, from both a musicological and educational perspective, and will attempt to understand the views of students and educators in the field.
Poster created for BIBAC 2016 (Building Interdisciplinary Bridges Across Cultures) conference hel... more Poster created for BIBAC 2016 (Building Interdisciplinary Bridges Across Cultures) conference held at the University of Cambridge.
The Routledge Handbook of Women's Work in Music, 2021
From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupat... more From as far back as the turn of the twentieth century, when Egypt was still under British occupation, women in Egypt have been utilising music as a medium in order to speak out against injustice. This research examines the position of Arab women as composers from a historical and sociological perspective by providing content analysis of online magazine articles, newspaper articles and blogs in both English and Arabic. A literature review identifies a gap in the research, which is the lack of academic scholarship concerning individual Arab women composers and their accomplishments throughout history. Opportunities are identified for further research concerning the history of women in Arabic music over the past century. The article concludes with an argument that women in the Arab world have played a large role in shaping the history of music, and that contemporary Arab women composers continue to utilise music in order to create change.
This is a chapter from the e-book Building Interdisciplinary and Intercultural Bridges: Where Pra... more This is a chapter from the e-book Building Interdisciplinary and Intercultural Bridges: Where Practice Meets Research (edited by Pamela Burnard, Valerie Ross, Helen Julia Minors, Kimberly Powell, Tatjana Dragovic, and Elizabeth Mackinlay). It includes two studies that provide a brief observation of interdisciplinary literature and samples of student voice from two Higher Education institutes in Liverpool over the course of the last two and a half years. The first study provides findings from a 2014 study conducted for a Master’s dissertation which utilises online surveys with aims to gain an understanding of how current Higher Education music students feel about the representation of women in Western art music curricula in the UK, and the second a semi-structured interview-based reflexive study conducted for on-going PhD research that observes the potential influences gender may have had on a music student’s journey leading up to Higher Education. With significant changes occurring in the way we go about teaching music as 2016 marks the first year several female composers and songwriters are included in the A-level music syllabus in one of the UK’s top exam boards, how do students feel about these changes, and do they think they are necessary? The findings presented in this chapter include discussions on how a sample of students feel about the influence of gender, and whether or not they think female composers warrant inclusion in Western art music curricula.
This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that col... more This article presents five case studies from within music in higher education programmes that collectively explore key questions concerning how we look at the challenges and trends, and the need for change to react to the recent higher education (HE) climate, through reference to teaching musicians the skills, knowledge and diverse career creativities that are valued in preparing musicians to enter sustained careers. In this article, the National Association for Music in Higher Education (NAMHE) elected committee members explore the emerging issues and agendas within the context of higher education, and the national and international policy shifts that are occurring. The case studies explore: (1) an inclusive curriculum and undergraduate student partner project; (2) employability skills and postgraduate courses;
PhD Thesis, 2019
In the summer of 2015 Jessy McCabe, a 17-year old British student, started an online petition tha... more In the summer of 2015 Jessy McCabe, a 17-year old British student, started an online petition that eventually led to the inclusion of five women composers and songwriters in Edexcel’s A Level music specification. Although the recent inclusion of female representation in the syllabus is, indeed, a significant change in the position of women composers and songwriters in music education, through a historical investigation of curricula from three examination boards in England that offer A Level music, this research has shown that the central concerns of feminist musicology which appeared largely in the 1990s have yet to be addressed. I argue that by not including feminist or critical musicology in A Level music syllabi, we have once again succumbed to what Karin Pendle described in 1991 as the ‘add-and-stir’ method, which addresses the ‘what and how many’, but does not address the ‘how and why’.
Through an inter- and transdisciplinary methodology, which includes a qualitative historical and sociological approach underpinned by feminist theory, I conducted multimethod research utilising historical approaches, document analysis, and in-depth interviews. As several methods were utilised, a variety of findings were observed. By conducting historical research into the history of educational policy and music education reforms in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, I gained a deeper understanding of the most significant debates according to leading historians through a historiography of significant texts that addressed the overarching situation of education and music education policy changes in England in recent history. I found that the National Curriculum for Music, which emerged in 1992, was influenced by conservative views of education, and that A Level education, or the ‘gold standard’, celebrates a traditionalist view that values and disseminates the European Western canon through curricula.
Through document analysis, I was able to critically observe the appropriateness of the curriculum documents chosen for the historical examination of the position of women composers and songwriters in A Level music curricula; through this analysis I also identified themes such as gendered language. By use of historical methods and Bourdieusian analysis, I argue that masculine domination, perpetuated by symbolic violence, is exerted through A Level music curricula due to the largely male-focused prescribed works, gendered language of earlier curricula, the continued marginalisation of women creators, and the lack of feminist or critical musicology.
Through the analysis of several in-depth interviews, I found a correlation between current attitudes towards feminism in the UK and the position that although equality is desirable, it is not acceptable to replace ‘great’ male composers with women composers for the sake of inclusion. Finally, I argue that denying students an A Level education that includes the history of feminist musicology can cause a collective historical amnesia of women’s accomplishments in music.