Comments

I can tell male violinists from female, just by listening, about half the time. I don't really know why...one of those ineffable sort of things maybe. I wonder what a gay violinist sounds like... You can't tell me you've never heard a gay violinist, Buri! Haha, Mara, half of the time is no better than guessing:-). Seriously, I believe the difference must be there, but I find exceptions such as Viktoria Mullova and Gil Shaham. I have one openly gay student, and he is great. A combination of talent, willingness to work hard, a sense of adventure, and a generally happy life all contribute to his learning to play well. Gender preference is irrelevant. Buri - an interesting issue concerning female interpretation was raised by some music writer (I do not remember where). During the 20th century, arguably the best pianists for Mozart pieces were female (Kraus, Haebler, Haskil, Landowska, Hess). The writer suggested that there was a feminine aspect to Mozart that the female pianists were best at bringing out. "I can tell male violinists from female, just by listening, about half the time."

Not convinced that's statistically significant. But I agree about uneffable women. They're very frustrating.