{"product_id":"the-sound-of-difference-race-class-and-the-politics-of-diversity-in-classical-music-paperback","title":"The Sound of Difference: Race, Class and the Politics of 'Diversity' in Classical Music - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eKristina Kolbe\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat happens when the elitist space of 'Western' classical music seeks to diversify itself? And what are the social effects worked through diversity discourses in classical music institutions? The sound of difference addresses these concerns by critically examining how diversity work takes shape in a cultural sector so deeply implicated in hierarchies of class, structures of whiteness, and legacies of imperialism. The book draws from ethnographic and interview data to analyse how diversity discourses become constructed in the organisational and creative processes of music production. From rehearsal and performance practices to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the sector's commitment to change, Kolbe reveals the institutional constraints and precarious labour relations that form around diversity work in classical music and skilfully considers what these processes can tell us about the remaking of class, race, and racism today.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDo diversity discourses in classical music reproduce or challenge existing inequalities? How is it that white middle-class domination perseveres despite an increasingly prominent focus on diversity in the classical music sector? This absolutely timely book is a must-read for anybody with an interest in classical music practice. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eChristina Scharff, Reader in Gender, Media and Culture, King's College London \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBased on a unique ethnographic study of a classical music organisation, \u003ci\u003eThe sound of difference \u003c\/i\u003eprovides a rare 'bottom-up' account of how inequalities manifest and persist in the arts. Put simply, it is one of the most sophisticated and nuanced critiques of the operationalisation of 'diversity' in the cultural sector that I have ever read. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAnamik Saha, Professor of Race and Media, University of Leeds \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhat happens when the elitist space of 'Western' classical music seeks to diversify itself? And what are the social effects worked through diversity discourses in classical music institutions? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe sound of difference\u003c\/i\u003e addresses these timely concerns by critically examining how diversity work takes shape in a cultural sector so deeply implicated in hierarchies of class, structures of whiteness, and legacies of imperialism. Against a backdrop of sharpening inequality and upsurging ethnonationalism in Europe, the book explores how diversity discourses are constructed in the organisational and creative processes of music production. From rehearsal and performance practices to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the book unveils the institutional constraints and precarious labour relations that form around diversity work in classical music, and skilfully considers what these processes can tell us about class, race and racism today.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eKristina Kolbe is Assistant Professor in Sociology of Arts and Culture at Erasmus University Rotterdam\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 304\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.63 x 8.5 x 5.5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 23, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67960247615709,"sku":"9781526198105","price":75.82,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0811\/9867\/8237\/files\/nrOwrTcQl59781526198105.webp?v=1790823022","url":"https:\/\/handfulofbooks.com\/products\/the-sound-of-difference-race-class-and-the-politics-of-diversity-in-classical-music-paperback","provider":"Handful of Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}