What Gabriella Di Laccio has said about Women composers

5 quotes · 1 episode · Oct 2, 2026

Gabriella Di Laccio, Brazilian-born classical soprano and founder of the Donne Foundation, which documents women composers, has been quoted on Women composers 5 times in 1 episode of TED Radio Hour, most recently on October 2, 2026. Each quote below is verbatim and links to the moment it was said.

In their words

  • Di Laccio argues that women composers were first neglected because they lacked equal access to education and were considered inferior.

    “initially women didn't have the same access to education. They were considered to be less than men”

    TED Radio Hour: The women missing from music (Oct 2, 2026) · Listen from 9:33

  • Di Laccio suggests that male authors of history books chose not to preserve women's contributions.

    “who was writing the history books? A lot of men were in charge, I guess, and perhaps they didn't think we should keep this”

    TED Radio Hour: The women missing from music (Oct 2, 2026) · Listen from 9:30

  • Di Laccio argues that this erasure creates an unconscious bias leading people to assume women did not create music.

    “That creates an unconscious bias on all of us because we grow up not knowing and we grow up just accepting like I did”

    TED Radio Hour: The women missing from music (Oct 2, 2026) · Listen from 10:41

  • Di Laccio insists her goal is to expand the canon rather than reduce performances of composers like Mozart.

    “It's not about taking people off the list. Yes. It's putting more people on the list”

    TED Radio Hour: The women missing from music (Oct 2, 2026) · Listen from 25:28

  • Di Laccio argues that audiences love Mozart partly through familiarity, a privilege forgotten women composers lack.

    “We have the chance to have familiarity. These women don't get that privilege anymore. So familiarity is needed”

    TED Radio Hour: The women missing from music (Oct 2, 2026) · Listen from 31:05

Episodes

  • The women missing from music

    TED Radio Hour · Oct 2, 2026 · 50 min

    Manoush Zomorodi talks with soprano Gabriella Di Laccio about forgotten women composers and AI, then airs Nadya Tolokonnikova's TED Talk on Pussy Riot's resistance.

Gabriella Di Laccio on other topics