THE INSERTION OF WOMEN IN THE FIELD OF MUSIC THROUGH THE PROTAGONISM OF CHIQUINHA GONZAGA

Abstract

This research, of qualitative character and bibliographic foundation, has as its main objective to present a nucleus of reflections on the historical/social, professional and musical process of the composer, conductor and pianist Francisca Edwiges Neves Gonzaga (1847-1935), better known as Chiquinha Gonzaga. The text portrays fragments of the artist's trajectory, considering her insertion in the field of music and protagonism, ratifying the title of this work: "The insertion of women in the field of music through the protagonism of Chiquinha Gonzaga", stressing that this struggle is still necessary in contemporary times, as well as connecting the investigation with the proposal of ANPPOM/2024 (music and people who live music). From the bibliography consulted, it was understood that his actions, breaking numerous paradigms of the current society, address considerations that deserve attention such as: machismo; social imbalance regarding women's rights; professional prejudice based on foundations founded by patriarchal society; inequality in the political field; prejudices in the process of musical creation; ethnic-racial position, expanding the unacceptable condition of not having the right to freedom, autonomy, respect and equality, essential items for the construction of a just and humane society. The reflective content about the aforementioned composer is in continuous dialogue with the present, ratifying that revisiting the past helps in the evaluation and critical position of the present day. The results of this investigation point to the challenging scenario of a woman who explored and faced numerous social, economic and artistic obstacles in the mid-to-late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, verifying her real importance in the social and artistic body, considering that in the twenty-first century such struggles still potentiate great difficulties and contestations.