ABSTRACT
This introductory chapter provides a frame for the collection of chapters by illuminating some overarching contemporary gender issues from a Scandinavian perspective, highlighting concepts linked to gender and equality in general, and in the sphere of music education in particular. The chapter further describes characteristics of the Scandinavian countries, how music education is organized on different levels and how gender issues have been situated in educational settings since the feminist liberation movement in the 1960s and 1970s. Values and ideologies concerning gender equality, childhood, and schooling in Scandinavia during recent decades are crucial to understand how gender issues are relevant for music education in this particular part of the world. By the end of the chapter, the authors point at paths that can direct music education practices beyond gender stereotypes and towards a greater variety of gender performativity.
