It’s always somewhat humorous to read the exchanges of those who pose their suggestions to answer this question. In the end whatever theory is put forth by the “boys” is refuted by the “girls”. Yet it does seem that more “boys” like or listen to progressive rock than “girls”, and I don’t know why.

Interestingly, my own experience in this area is that my wife can’t abide most progressive rock. Perhaps 75% of my listening involves symphonic prog material and even this, the most melodic of the prog genres causes her anxiety. To her, the music sounds scary, too busy, jarring, dark and too much like heavy metal. On the other hand, my 10-year-old daughter will listen to just about anything and in fact likes any number of prog bands.

I remember going to see IQ and Solstice at the Marquee in London in 1983 and was struck by the mix in the crowd. It was generally a younger group but included a pretty even mix of both sexes. And certainly there were more “girls” present than I expected to see. It was eye opening to say the least.

The feminist agenda aside, there are a growing number of surprising biological differences between men and women. There is more and more biological evidence that men and women process information differently just as we assimilate alcohol differently because of our different fat levels.

Take for example that because of a chromosomal wash that occurs at 28 weeks into a pregnancy, boy babies lose a portion of the connective tissue between the two halves of the brain. This means that women tend to have far greater use of both sides of the brain, while men tend to compensate for this lack of synapse that occurs while both halves are working to process information. This has the effect of causing women to be better at multi-tasking than men. Men on the other hand compensate by focusing on specific tasks.

Then recently there was yet another study with results that pointed to the fact that men tend to “listen” with only half of their brain, and it tends to be the left side which has more to do with words and non-creative issues, whereas women tend to listen with both sides which allows them not only to hear the words but use the more “subjective” right side to deduce more meaning to what was said.

What effect this has towards the enjoyment of progressive rock is anyone’s guess.

A recent article in Psychology Today magazine detailed the raging debate that currently is making the rounds in academic circles regarding the differences in the genders. Simplifying this as much as I can, both sides agree there is a difference, where they disagree is in the origin of those differences. One camp feels it’s genetic and the other feels it’s more conditioning and environment. The first camp says this is the way it’s always been and it’s been this way because the genetic differences dictate it should be so, and in fact there is plenty of scientific evidence to make the point. However, this side is generally espoused by men. So it’s not surprising women are heading up the other camp and saying, wait just a minute, and point out that even if the differences were at some point genetic, we can’t avoid the conditioning that exists to continue to make it so. And then they point out how this forced conditioning can and has changed outcomes in other aspects of life. Therefore they say, we can change the current differences as well, by changing the environment for both genders. It was a fascinating article but led me no closer to an answer to our musical question.

So after looking at this small amount of research, the results are still inconclusive. But it still would appear that if you lined up all the fans of prog you would see more “boys” than “girls”.

Peer pressure may have something to do with this, even into adulthood. If all of your friends generally listen to the more mainstream material you may be influenced to do so as well. It’s no coincidence that fans of jazz generally hang around in packs. Country music fans all go to the same clubs and buy the same genre of music. After 30 years in broadcasting I’ve seen firsthand how peer pressure has a great influence steering people away from the niche musical genres and into the more common mainstream. While my daughter likes certain prog artists, if she hangs around with her friends who are not exposed to the same musical diversity she is, and instead listen only to the mindless litany of “boy-bands” heard on the radio and TV, she may feel compelled to follow that crowd. Obviously the key word is “may”. If she were to start chumming around with even one other prog-fan that could change her approach.

Another thing I have noticed is that children are far more open to more diverse music than either radio or TV will give them credit for. I’m convinced, it is this exposure to different musical styles that sets the foundation for musical appreciation in later years. In fact, I wonder how many of the “girls” who like prog could point to some form of musical diversity heard early in life that may have influenced them. Of course exposing young children to different styles will only happen in families where parents themselves are able to provide this. And it is an ongoing task, because of the incessant mass media influence of the lowest common denominator material.

Which brings up a final point and that is “exposure” and popularity. This ties back to peer pressure somewhat, but musical tastes are established in the early years, and during that time all kids have a burning desire to be popular. No one strives to be an outcast. Hence listening to what is popular becomes an integral aspect of growing up. During the late sixties and seventies there was a tremendous amount of musical diversity that was still shared by individuals. One need only look at the line-up of the major music festivals of the day. The typical lineup would include not only rock, but also folk, blues and ethnic. In school we were all encouraged to be individuals, and not to just follow the pack. We were told to be your own person. Carve out your own identity.

Now compare this to what we hear today. While the same sentiment may be encouraged by the words we use, our actions are just the opposite. Be your own person in Tommy Hilfiger. Carve out your own identity wearing The GAP label. Today we only pay lip-service to individuality. The mass-media has far more to gain from conformity, even if that conformity comes in a variety of styles. This is true in music, clothes, TV viewing etc. I recently saw an interview with Moby who was performing at one of the alternative rock festivals and his big complaint was the similarity and cookie-cutter musical style of all the bands on the main stage. Few of us like to be seen on the outside these days. We all strive to wear our labels on the outside as if to announce to the world…”See I’m part of it.” Nowhere is this more evident than in the musical tastes of young people, where the media tightly controls what is heard or worse yet seen and in their heightened sense of needing to belong the young people follow like sheep. And the corporate giants love it. Less work – more money.

So there you have it. Science is demonstrating there certainly are differences between the “boys” and “girls”, but what impact these differences may have on our musical tastes are far from clear. This debate will undoubtedly go on for some time more.

About the Author:
Jerry Lucky is the author of the book The Progressive Rock Files, now entering its 5th edition. Please feel free to send feedback to Jerry at www.jerrylucky.com.