BODY REPRESENTATION OF PHYSICAL CAPITAL: THE CASE OF YUJA WANG, THE CLASSICAL PIANIST

Abstract

This article focuses on the representation of a body as a form of physical capital which generally appears in working women’s lives, especially a classical pianist.  In the area of classical music, dressing is not only the body protection, but also the value added for performers and attraction for audiences.  Various styles of dressing have been also chosen by many musicians to represent their identities. It is customary for classical musicians to dress following the dress codes.  However, the great musician, Yuja Wang, has become well-known as the piano soloist performing worldwide on stage with her short pencil skirt.  Her image and talent phenomenally has stirred the classical music world.  This article consists of controversies on dressing styles of the classical musicians; dynamic changes in a new body representation which create a conflict with the social norms of classical music from the case of Yuja Wang; and lastly, a reinterpretation of such phenomenon through the frameworks of Pierre Bourdieu’s Body and Physical Capital and Laura Mulvey’s Male Gaze.