It is much rarer to hear names like Fanny Mendelssohn, Lili Boulanger and Alma Mahler, as if women aren’t a part of this artistic profession. But this erasure is increasingly being reversed.

That’s the conclusion of the latest annual report from Bachtrack, a magazine that tracks classical music events around the world. Some 27,124 concerts, opera performances and dance shows were listed in order to determine the main trends in the world of classical music.

One of the main trends is improved gender parity. Female composers have often fallen into oblivion over the years, even though some were considered true stars during their lifetime. Their works have often been discredited in favour of those of their male counterparts. This is reflected in Bachtrack’s survey.

And for good reason, Mozart is the most performed composer in concert in 2022, ahead of Beethoven and Bach. The rest of the list is exclusively composed of men, such as Brahms (No. 4), Schubert (No. 5) or Schumann (No. 6).

However, nine women appear in the top 20 most performed contemporary composers. Among them are Russian composer Sofia Goubaïdoulina (#7), English-born Anna Clyne (#8) and Finnish-born Kaija Saariaho (#11). Only one musician appeared in this ranking in 2019, and none in 2013.

Female conductors are also gaining visibility in recent years. Twelve of them feature in Bachtrack’s top 100, including Elim Chan.

This 36-year-old Hong Kong-based conductor has notably distinguished herself by becoming the first woman to win the prestigious Donatella Flick conducting competition in 2014. A first since the launch of the international prize in 1990.

American Karina Canellakis (#35), France’s Nathalie Stutzmann (#38) and Lithuania’s Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla (#51) also appear in the ranking of the 100 most programmed conductors in the world.

But the top spot goes to Andris Nelsons, the music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the US and the Leipzig Gewandhaus in Germany.

While classical music is increasingly giving pride of place to female composers and conductors, it still struggles to highlight female choreographers. This phenomenon is all the more surprising since dance is perceived in the collective imagination as an essentially female activity.

Canadian Crystal Pite is the only choreographer to be credited with more than 50 performances in 2022, which explains why she is the only woman listed in Bachtrack’s top 20 most programmed contemporary choreographers. There are 19 more in the top 100.