Key Findings | Diversity in the Orchestra Field 2023

 

Musicians

• Black or African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and American Indian and Alaska Native representation is significantly lower among orchestra musicians than in the U.S. population overall.
• Continuing a longstanding trend, Black or African American musician representation improved at a slower rate than that of any other racial/ethnic group, increasing only very slightly during the ten-year period.
• The proportion of Asian or Asian American people working as orchestra musicians remains higher than in the overall U.S. population and is higher than that of all other BIPOC groups combined.
• The proportion of Asian or Asian American musicians remains highest in larger budget orchestras, while the representation of Black or African American, Hispanic/Latinx, and Multiracial musicians remains highest in smaller-to-medium budget orchestras.
• Near parity in men’s and women’s representation was maintained throughout the ten-year period, but women musicians were more likely to be working in smaller-to-medium budget orchestras than in larger budget orchestras.

First published at American League of Orchestras, 2023