Women have been indispensable to the evolution of Chinese pipa culture as performers, composers, and pedagogues, yet their contributions have been persistently reframed through gendered lenses that reduce them to entertainers rather than artists. This paper examines how the legacy of imperial-era courtesan culture—which conflated female musical skill with sexual availability—continues to shape perceptions of women’s pipa artistry, from 3rd-century BCE historical records to 21st-century social media platforms like TikTok and YouTube. Despite shifts in cultural transmission—oral tradition, imperial patronage, mass media, and algorithmic platforms—patriarchal structures regulating women’s participation in pipa traditions remain largely intact. Drawing on feminist musicology and scholarship on Chinese courtesan musicians, this study identifies three enduring patterns: the commodification of femininity, where female pipa artists’ technical mastery is overshadowed by emphasis on physical appearance, youth, and perceived eroticism; the denial of authorship, in which women’s compositions and improvisations are often attributed to male mentors or anonymized as “folk tradition”; and the containment of innovation, wherein women’s stylistic experimentation is dismissed as “inauthentic” compared to male performers’ “scholarly” interpretations. Methodologically, this study employs historical textual analysis of premodern sources (Book of Han, Tang poetry, Ming-Qing courtesan anthologies) alongside digital ethnography, including qualitative coding of 500+ social media comments on performances by contemporary influencers such as @Shi Xian Guo Chao Pipa (1.2M TikTok followers). While acknowledging cases where women challenge these structures, I argue that digital platforms replicate imperial-era power dynamics by privileging virality over artistic depth, perpetuating the courtesan system’s market-driven spectacle.

This paper examines the female-led US band Sabiá’s efforts to forge greater connections between the US-Central America Solidarity and Feminist/Women’s Movements in the Reagan years. Throughout the 1980s, many progressive musicians dedicated their energies to fostering these social movements, but relatively few focused on linking them. In the first part of this paper, I document how Sabiá’s musical activities, fundraising ventures, and choice of record labels (especially Holly Near’s Redwood Records) enabled the group to effectively reach supporters of both movements. This section also discusses Sabiá’s stylistic grounding in Chilean nueva canción (New Song), and provides an overview of the US-Central America Solidarity Movement—which strongly opposed the Reagan administration’s role in fueling the armed conflicts in El Salvador and Nicaragua. The second part of the paper illuminates how Sabiá’s female-themed repertoire articulated with the members’ political goals. I give special attention to their signature song “Mujer Sandinista” (“Sandinista Woman”; i.e., Nicaraguan woman who supports the leftist Sandinista administration), which I argue encapsulates the ensemble’s overall approach to linking the US-Central America Solidarity and Feminist/Women’s Movements. Based on interviews with the bandmembers and extensive archival research, this paper explores several topics overlooked in ethnomusicological scholarship, such as the trajectories and political activism of US-based nueva canción groups, and the musical dimensions of the US-Central America Solidarity Movement. More broadly, it contributes to scholarship exploring the challenges that progressive musicians often encounter when they attempt to indexically connect contemporaneous social movements with the goal of expanding their respective bases of support.

Chinese coal mining communities have traditionally been viewed as male-dominated, with musical works primarily celebrating male labor, while the roles and contributions of women have been marginalized. Rooted in the Chinses traditional gender norms of “men working outside, women managing the home” has historically positioned women on the periphery of musical expression. However, in recent years, driven by both social transformation and the revitalization of community culture, the musical landscape of these communities has undergone a notable transformation. New songs have emerged that highlight women’s active involvement in production and celebrate the empowerment of women in the workforce. This shift signifies a significant change in women’s social identity, marking the transition from “silent dependents” to “productive subjects”.

This study examines the role of women in five coal mining communities within China’s Yan Coal Group, investigating how their musical practices serve as a medium for the negotiation and reconfiguration of gender discourses and community culture. It explores how women redefine their identities and cultural expressions by adapting traditional labor songs, composing music, and engaging in public performances. Drawing on a seven-month ethnographic fieldwork, aiming to reveal the dynamic interplay of labor, gender, and music in the context of industrialization. The findings demonstrate how women challenge gender biases, foster self-expression, and promote gender awareness through musical practices. This study offers a new perspective on the musical and cultural transformation of industrial communities and provides a significant Chinese case for gender-focused music research in the broader context of global industrial communities.