Shoping? Is that from the verb "to shope," meaning to walk with a languorous gait? If so, I agree that women shope better than men.

Amazing how we get this far along in a discussion of gender and piano playing without a mention of Martha Argerich, so here it is: MARTHA ARGERICH. The woman can play circles around most men and push her hair out of her face at the same time. She totally destroyed any idea I ever had about gender and piano playing. She has made it perfectly clear that gender is no barrier to powerful pianism (that sounds kind of nasty, doesn't it

). Seriously, she is phenomenally powerful, and if you've ever seen her play, she has flawless technique, by which I mean she appears totally relaxed and at ease (though always focused and intense) at the keyboard.
If Argerich exists, it's hard to believe there aren't other women like her. Do we not see them because of sexism in the music industry, or could it be the more subtle effect of the way girls are enculturated to be nurturing and social, while boys are taught to be independent and aggressive. The life of a solo pianist requires a drive and will that I think comes more naturally to men than women, given how we are raised. On top of that a soloist's life is, well, solo -- long periods of touring alone. Men, being less social, miss society less and are more likely to be content with their own company. And, I would guess, men are just more self-centered than women, and it takes that kind of ego to be a star soloist.
Argerich finally quit solo performing because it was so lonely and she wanted to have a life that involved other people -- so naturally she has gravitated to chamber music. I wonder if that isn't what happens to many women pianists from the get-go -- they choose ensemble work because it suits their personalities better.
A woman doesn't need power necessarily to be a great pianist. Alicia de la Rocha was about 5 feet tall, couldn't reach an octave, and yet she played almost everything. While she may not be my favorite pianist for many things, she IS my favorite for the repertoire in which she specialized -- Albeniz, Granados, de Falla, Mompou, et al. Never once hearing her play did I think, "See, she's rolling that chord," or "She left out a note in the middle of that chord." I'm sure she did. She was so musical that whatever she did, she made it sound absolutely right. I saw her once doing one of the Mozart concerti, I think it was #20, and it was stunning.
