Abbie Conant

Abbie Conant is an American trombonist and former professor at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik, Trossingen. She was selected in a blind audition as the overwhelming first choice for Principal Trombonist of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra in 1980, but was subject to sexist discrimination once the selection committee learned they had chosen a woman.

Early life and education Conant was raised in New Mexico,

Prior to college, Conant attended the Interlochen Arts Academy, where she earned a diploma in 1973. Conant has drawn attention to the substantial rise in tuition fees needed to attend the Interlochen Arts Academy, which in 2024 stand at $76,500 a year for boarders compared to around $5000 in the late 1960s.

Additionally, Conant acquired an art diploma from the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln, studying with Branimir Slokov. She went to Italy through the "Spoleto Festival Dei due Mondi". Here she studied contemporary music with Vinko Globokar at L'Accademia Chigiana in Siena. Thereafter she became the first trombonist in the orchestra of the Royal Opera, Turin.

Conant became a professor of trombone at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik, Trossingen in 1992 and retired in February, 2023.

Chamber music theatre (The Wasteland Company) Photo from "Miriam". Conant describes: "Women confront... issues because society imposes roles upon them that limit their human potential. Miriam's domestic role forces her to wear "masks," but her buried authenticity fights back. Women in the workplace face similar pressures since they often confront attitudes and prejudice that limit their development." Conant is married to the composer William Osborne, with whom she produces "chamber music-theatre" under the name The Wasteland Company. Some of these works involve feminist themes. The Munich Philharmonic stopped using blind auditions after Conant's success.

Legal trials In 1982, Conant initiated legal proceedings against the City of Munich (the Philharmonic's owner) for discrimination and regained the position of first trombone in 1984. The city lawyers also failed to provide the legally required written warnings. In response to this, Conant went for examinations at the Gautinger Lung Clinic. in order to assess, in the judge's words,whether the Plaintiff--for an orchestra of the quality of the Munich Philharmonic --possesses unconditionally the necessary physical strength, endurance, and durability to play the most difficult passages according to conductors’ instructions for length, intensity, and loudness. Celibidache attended the second trial, but was not invited to give testimony due to lack of substantiated criticism.

The court ruled in favour of Conant on 29 March 1984, citing:“The suit is permissible because the change in work assignments, due to the lack of a substantiated argument, is unjustified.”

“The accused has not justified their demotion with facts, but rather generalized value judgments.”

“Above and beyond that, they do not say when (date) the alleged mistakes happened. They also do not mention when the plaintiff was given a warning.”

“It is therefore not possible for the court to determine what the plaintiff did wrong, or determinable whether she took the alleged warnings to heart, or in other words, whether the mistakes were made again after the warning.” She then successfully sued the orchestra again for back pay when she discovered that, per Celibidache's orders,

Malcolm Gladwell said Conant's story was "my inspiration" for his bestseller, Blink, and it served as the book's concluding chapter. Her story was also told in a 1994 full-length documentary film, Abbie Conant: Alone Among Men by Brenda Parkerson.

Taos studio Conant and her husband Wiliam Osborne own a studio space in Taos, New Mexico. There is a two-bedroom living space and performance space capacity to seat 60. In addition to their own works, the studio has hosted readings, presentations and concerts from local Taoseña women and fellows of the Wurlitzer Foundation.