Dear CLC Members –
We want to take this opportunity to answer a number of questions that have been brought forward regarding the proposed by-law changes we will be discussing and voting on at the upcoming Special Meeting of Members on April 27, 2025, at 1PM EDT.
For Section 1.01 – Definitions:
– the current wording “normally resident in Canada” could be interpreted to exclude Canadian composers living abroad, many of whom are active CLC members. “Canadian citizen or legal resident, living in Canada or abroad” is much more explicit.
– the current wording “…played in public by a musician or musicians recognized in the musical profession.” ignores a number of compositional practices that don’t necessarily involve musicians (electronic/electroacoustic/acousmatic/etc.) Some of these practices are quite widespread in Canada and we want to ensure this is reflected in the by-laws, hence: “…one or more works of music that have been presented publicly.“
For Section 2.01 (a. 1) – Definition of Membership
– this is a language clean-up, removing excess wording that muddled the intent of the text.
For Section 2.01 (a. 2) – Definition of Membership
– the current wording “…professionally-presented…” is ambiguous as we don’t define what exactly that means. Simply limiting it to “public presentation” clears up any ambiguity here. This also opens the door to composers of primarily educational music whose work may not be performed in “professional” contexts.
– replacing “organization” with “organization/venue” is to ensure that sound installations are accounted for.
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We have received some questions about our use of the word compositaire.
As a membership-based organization, and keeping in line with our ongoing commitments to equity as outlined in our equity statement, we believe it is important that the language we use be as inclusive as possible.
Based on this commitment, the board unanimously passed a resolution last year to use gender inclusive language in all of our communications, and one of the the goals of the proposed by-law changes (also approved unanimously by the board) is to ensure that this commitment is reflected in our by-laws – not just with regards to gender identity, but also with regards to aesthetic practice, citizenship status, and place of residency.
In line with this commitment, the CLC and its Assistant General Manager, Gabo Champagne – a queer-Francophone composer from Montreal – has engaged in extensive research on the topic of inclusive language in French. The results of that research can be found in the Guide to Inclusive French on our website.
While there are numerous ways to do gender inclusive language French, we believe that compositaire is a more concise and natural adaptation of the language as it builds on existing norms. The ending “-aire” already exists as the ending for epicene words used for other professions (notaire, commissaire, actuaire, etc.), whereas alternative gender inclusive terms, such as compositeurice or compositeur.rice are mash-ups of masculine and feminine words. Compositaire also has the clear advantage of putting at the forefront what we share as a group: that we compose music, and that composing music does not require specific gendered attributes.
We want to be clear: the CLC is not imposing, or dictating anything with these changes and makes no statement regarding the words people use to describe themselves on an individual level. The proposition is to use an inclusive term to talk about composers as a group, a group which comprises some compositeurs, some compositrices, some compositeurices, etc. The CLC will never judge anyone, or treat them differently with regard to the specific word they use to describe their occupation, art or craft.
We would encourage all of you to attend this meeting, which you can do by filling out this form. If you are unable to attend, you can assign a vote by proxy, or vote by e-mail. To do so, please contact August at generalmanager@composition.org.