Female conductor breaks into predominantly male profession

The rapt audience waits in suspense as the orchestra prepares to perform. The instruments are tuned; the musicians are anxiously reviewing the music in their mind. Then, when the moment is right, the conductor signals and the air fills with the passion of the piece. The conductor's waving arms control the sound and coordinate the various sounds into a perfect harmony. The music seems to appear from thin air.

But this seemingly natural sound comes from years of effort. Tania Miller is one of eight students in the University's Orchestral and Opera Conducting Program and one of two students in the doctorate of musical arts program in the School of Music, and she is one of many women now entering the traditionally male field of conducting.

"It's a difficult area for women in that there are not very many female role models in the business and it's a fairly new area for women to be in, so the women who are getting involved in conducting are setting precedents for one another," Miller said about the women entering the field. "I don't think that women need to try to be men. I think that they need to believe in themselves and be leaders themselves."

Miller comes from Saskatchewan, Canada, where she attended the University of Saskatchewan as a music education and piano performance major. She worked as a teacher for four years before deciding to return to school and expand her musical expertise with training in conducting.

"It's difficult (to learn the art of conducting) because a conductor's instrument is an orchestra or an opera production," Miller said.

"It's one thing to just study the music, but the experience of actually physically being there, working with singers, working with musicians, is something you can only do when you have the job. It's an interesting profession because you have to wait until you're in front of a group before you can practice."

She received a Master's in wind conducting, and upon completing her doctorate, she plans to conduct professionally.

Currently, Miller is conducting with Michigan Student Opera Works, a campus student opera production aiming to provide an educational opportunity for a large group of singers in Baroque music.

"It's wonderful to come together and create something, and that's what has really happened in this group," Miller said.

The opera's Baroque style of music is one that not many of the singers had been exposed to prior to the project. The opera, Miller said, has been an educational experience in the Baroque style as well as being the typical performance preparation.

"I want to be able to spend my life learning music and communicating music with others. Teaching is a wonderful way of doing that, I think. But first, I want to gain the experience and the understanding and the personal involvement in music as well," Miller said.

She stressed that the characteristics of a good conductor are the ability to connect to the music and the dedication to make the performance of that music a success.

"I think that no matter who you are, whether male or female, you need to be a leader, be committed to what it is that you do, be committed to music, and to be yourself, to respect the orchestra and trust what you do."

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