The long path travelled by female polyphonic singers to reach the folk music stage in Portugal

Abstract

The article discusses three case studies, to highlight the long path travelled by all-women poly- phonic vocal ensembles to reach the traditional music stage in mainland Portugal. The article re- flects on the issues of representativeness and recognition of the creativity of women. The underly- ing reference is Ellen Koskoff ’s (2014) call for the need to study categories such as women, men, or gender transculturally and at the cumulative intersection of many differences and inequalities. The article argues that (1) the members of all-women polyphonic vocal ensembles experienced and still experience difference and inequality at various levels; (2) the intersection of all those differences conditions the ways in which these women are perceived in society, which is further re- flected in their degree of autonomy to undertake representations and exercise creativity. Neverthe- less, the differences and inequalities faced by these female polyphonic singers have progressively been negotiated and transformed over time. In this process, we, the researchers, also have a role to perform.