During the colonial period women sang in church choirs and taught children in homes. In the nineteenth century, many women published hymns, taught in schoolhouses, and held positions as performers in church. More recently, women have earned college degrees, taught in public school and colleges, and have become involved in national organizations. Howe narrates the story of music teaching in ... Read morethe United States, focusing on women as the educators, chronologically from colonial times until the conclusion of the twentieth century. The author broadly defines 'music education' to include informal settings, such as home, and formalized education, be it public or private. She hopes to rectify the lack of historical records of these women’s educational careers. Howe approaches this in an interdisciplinary fashion, building her research upon several fields of study—the history of American education, musicological studies of women and music, and feminist writings. The review of literature explores several aspects, including the general history of education, musicology, and feminist issues. Each chapter has numerous endnotes, some of which are annotated. The extensive index serves navigation well, and includes persons (male and female), institutions, ensembles, and titles of works or journals relevant to music education.
American Reference Books Annual
Howe’s highly informative and eminently approachable work chronologically examines the different types of music education roles in which women participated. This book is a valuable resource to lay readers and scholars alike who are interested in learning about the various ways women have contributed societally toward Howe’s broadly defined field of 'music education.'
American Music Teacher
Howe gives us a carefully researched and fascinating history of music education . . . This clearly written historiography illuminates stories of some of the unsung individual women and groups of women of all ages who participated in music education. . . .Howe's writing offers the profession of musical education a long needed complementary history of music education in the United States. . . .Everyone interested in music education history should own and read this book for a more completed understanding of music education history in the United States. Sandra Howe has positioned her research as a significant part of the canon.
Journal of Historical Research in Music Education
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