Disability First
by Molly Joyce
The Pennsylvania born composer, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist discusses how her artistic practice has evolved to centre her disability and explore it as a creative source
Music first or disability first? This is the question posed by Canadian disabled musicologist Stefan Sunandan Honisch at the start of his article of the same name, ultimately asking: “What is the difference between being a disabled musician and an able musician who happens to be disabled?”
For me, this question and its answer are ever evolving. As a disabled musician, and especially a composer and performer writing music for my physicality and embodiment, the exchange between music and disability continually fluctuates. Sometimes my artistic decisions are driven by a musical direction and sometimes by a disability direction. The ultimate challenge, however, is adequately representing these directions in order to advocate for disability in musical contexts, where it is typically feared, shunned and stigmatised.