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The Orchestra Repertoire Report from the Institute for Composer Diversity, produced in partnership with the League of American Orchestras, examines the programming by U.S. orchestras, focusing on BIPOC, women, non-binary, and living composers.

The report tracks programming trends from the 2015-16 to 2023-24 seasons. It draws on data provided by 212 League member orchestras from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, including 12 youth orchestras. In total, these orchestras reported on 6,269 total works.

Programming works by living, BIPOC, and women / non-binary composers is essential to the orchestra field’s continued vibrancy, relevance, and sustainability. To assist orchestras in their efforts, the ICD has launched a new tool, the Orchestra Repertoire Search Resource. Visit the resource to search over 15,000 works programmed by U.S. orchestras since the 2021-22 season, by composer, title, duration, performing orchestra, and soloists.

League Insights

Snapshot Comparison: 2015-16 to 2023-24

  • Orchestras have made remarkable strides (from a low starting point) in increasing the representation of living, BIPOC, and women/non-binary composers.
  • By the 2023-24 season, BIPOC, women, and non-binary composers accounted for 22.6% of U.S. orchestras’ programming, up from just 4.5% in the 2015-16 season.
  • The proportion of works by living composers grew from 11.7% to 22.6% over the same period.
  • This progress took place across all orchestra budget groups and in all regions of the United States.
  • Living BIPOC composers (and Black, women, and non-binary composers in particular) saw significant increases in representation, from 1.8% to 10.4% of all programmed works.
  • Living women and non-binary composers of all races also grew significantly in representation—from 1.6% to 7.8% of all programmed works—while remaining substantially under-represented in comparison to living men.
  • Growth was stronger among deceased BIPOC, women, and non-binary composers than in living composers from these groups.
  • Programmed works by BIPOC, women, and non-binary composers were – on average – shorter than those by white, male composers in all years for which data is available.

Year-on-Year Trends

  • The most substantial progress in programming diversification took place between the 2017-18 and 2021-22 seasons.
  • In the following two seasons (2021-22 to 2023-24), existing diversity levels were generally maintained rather than expanded.  
  • During this most recent period:
    • The programming of works by living composers rose slightly overall (from 21.6% to 22.6%).
    • The programming of works by living BIPOC, women, and non-binary composers declined somewhat from 8.7% to 7.8%.
    • Collectively, Group 1 orchestras saw a decrease in diverse programming (from 23.2% to 20.1%) while Group 2 maintained previous levels, and Groups 3 and 4 showed slight increases compared to earlier seasons.

Read the Catalyst Guide Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Artistic Planning for repertoire diversification strategies drawn from stories of orchestras making progress, and visit the League EDI Resource Center for search tools and databases of repertoire by under-represented composers.

Read the full report

Take Part in the Next Repertoire Report

Participating in the Orchestra Repertoire Report is straightforward: there are NO surveys to complete! Simply email your current season program in spreadsheet format to ICD Director, Dr. Rob Deemer at rob@composerdiversity.com. See full details on the ICD website.

All data is confidential and will be reported at the aggregate level only. Questions about the survey? Please contact Rob Deemer: rob@composerdiversity.com.

Questions about these League Insights?

Please contact knowledge@americanorchestras.org.

The League’s partnership with the Institute for Composer Diversity on the 2024 Orchestra Repertoire Report is supported by generous grants from The Aaron Copland Fund for Music and the National Endowment for the Arts.

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