San Antonio Gay Mens Chorus

MenAlive \u2014 Orange County Gay Men's Chorus was founded in September 2001 by Rich Cook with 13 singers. Today, wIth more than 130 members and a support team of 50 plus volunteers, MenAlive has grown into one of Orange County's largest choruses as well as an active and respected partner in Southern California's arts scene.

The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus (SFGMC) is the world's first openly gay chorus, one of the world's largest male choruses[1] and the group most often credited with creating the LGBT choral movement.[2]

San Antonio Gay Mens Chorus

Download Zip

The chorus was founded by gay music pioneer Jon Reed Sims. The group does not require that members identify as gay, bisexual, or male. The eligibility requirements for SFGMC are to be at least 18 years of age, to be able to sing in the Tenor 1, Tenor 2, Baritone or Bass range, and to pass the audition process defined by the Artistic Director. With a membership of over 300, the SFGMC presents a wide range of music and performs for many different kinds of audiences.

The SFGMC came into existence during the gay rights movement, which rose to national prominence after the Stonewall Riots in New York City in 1969. In 1977, openly gay candidate for San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk began traveling around the United States to present what came to be known as the Hope Speech.[3] Speaking as an openly gay elected public official, he urged gay people to come out of the closet to oppose anti-gay efforts such as the Briggs Initiative and Anita Bryant's Save Our Children campaign. Sims responded by forming the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Marching Band and Twirling Corps, the world's first openly gay and lesbian performing arts group, early in 1978 and the SFGMC later that year. The chorus held its first rehearsal on October 30, 1978.

Being an openly gay organization presented certain challenges beyond the reluctance of some gay men to join because of the name.[6] In 1981, the SFGMC lost a controversial court battle when Superior Court Judge Ira Brown ruled that the Jesuits at the University of San Francisco could refuse to allow the chorus to sing at St. Ignatius Church.[7] A civil suit several months later awarded damages to the SFGMC.[8]

In the late 1970s, gay choral music was virtually nonexistent. Because the SFGMC wanted to perform music relevant to its members and audience, the group commissioned many works, slowly building a new repertoire for men's choruses as well as for the LGBT community. In 1979, SFGMC member Tad Dunlap composed what is possibly the first-ever gay-specific choral piece, "I Understood," with lyrics from one of Harvey Milk's inspirational speeches.[13] The SFGMC's 1986 commission, Invocation and Dance by David Conte, was one of the earliest pieces to deal with AIDS, and is now considered a standard of American TTBB choral literature.[14] NakedMan, a song suite by Philip Littell and Robert Seeley commissioned by the SFGMC in 1996, instantly became one of the most important works in gay choral literature and is still widely performed by LGBT choruses.[15] "Never Ever", the final movement of NakedMan, has found its way into the repertoire of high school and college choirs, especially as a graduation piece.[16] Dr. Stan Hill, SFGMC's conductor from 1989 to 2000, was a driving force behind many commissions.[17] In honor of its 30th anniversary in 2008, the chorus commissioned and performed new works by composers David Conte, Eric Lane Barnes, Ilyas Iliya, L. Peter Deutsch, and Steve Schalchlin.

In 2011, Stephen Schwartz created Testimony, a choral work using lyrics taken from submissions to Dan Savage's It Gets Better Project. The Chorus premiered Testimony in March 2012,[18] and it has now been performed by several other gay men's choruses.

In March 2014, the Chorus performed the world premiere of Tyler's Suite, dedicated to the memory of Tyler Clementi, a young gay man who died by suicide in 2010 after experiencing bullying. Co-commissioned with several other gay choruses, it features movements composed by Stephen Schwartz, John Corigliano, Jake Heggie, and Ann Hampton Callaway, all set to poetry by Pamela Stewart. Callaway joined the Chorus on stage as a soloist.

As AIDS took its toll, chorus members used concerts as a way to bring a sense of urgency to the public. The group's music became more somber and began including AIDS requiems. The chorus also became a place for members to talk openly about HIV and AIDS. Men shared tips on how to get into clinical drug trials and serenaded friends through their last breaths. For men who were fighting for their lives, often alone and estranged from parents who had turned their backs on gay children, the chorus became family.

Hill describes the era as "the worst of times", explaining that he spent every Wednesday and Sunday visiting members in hospitals.[22] Members and former members who died of AIDS and other causes became known as the chorus's "Fifth Section".[23]

In addition to commissioning and performing AIDS-related music,[24] the chorus participated in and presented concerts and other events to raise awareness and funds for AIDS health service and research organizations.[25] Although SFGMC lost over 250 members to the disease,[26] the organization survived, grew, and continued to exhibit passion for its mission. In 1998, for example, the chorus made its first international appearances in Sydney, Australia.

In January 2010, in response to the passage of Proposition 8, SFGMC launched its first California Freedom Tour with sold-out performances in Redding and Chico. To commemorate Harvey Milk's birthday in May, 2010, the chorus performed in Bakersfield and Fresno, and ended the 2010 tour with a trip to Vallejo in July. SFGMC chose these cities because they are parts of California that strongly supported Proposition 8.[30] The second California Freedom Tour, with performances in Bakersfield, Fresno, Redding and Vallejo, took place in April through July 2011. In 2012 also SFGMC traveled to Stockton and Sacramento, California, plus Denver, Colorado and Laramie, Wyoming.

A number of chorus members also participate voluntarily in smaller ensembles, each with fewer than 25 singers.[34] These ensembles represent the chorus at outreach events, hold their own concerts, make recordings, and are featured regularly in concerts with the full chorus. Currently, there are three ensembles: The Lollipop Guild, founded in 1979,[35] and best known for its a cappella and Barbershop singing; Vocal Minority, founded in 2003, which specializes in vocal jazz and show choir repertoire; and SWAG, founded in 2013, which features a more urban sound and aesthetic and tight harmonies from the jazz and R&B genres.[36] A larger, ad hoc group called the Ambassadors also represents the chorus at outreach performances.

According to data gathered by the SFGMC Alumni Association, more than 1,800 men have been chorus members since 1978. Two founding members still sing with the group, along with several others who went on the 1981 tour. Auditions for new SFGMC members are held semi-annually, in January and August. In order to be eligible for membership, singers must pass an audition and be at least 18 years old. Identifying as gay is not a requirement, but members are expected to abide by the organization's mission.[37] While the chorus bylaws originally required members to be male, in 2021 the bylaws were re-written such that the "only requirement is the vocal ability to sing within the traditional tenor and bass vocal ranges", opening choir membership to trans, non-binary, and female singers.[38]

The appellation "Fifth Section" is reserved primarily for former members who died from various causes, including AIDS/HIV. Former Air Force Technical Sergeant Leonard Matlovich, who was never a formal member of the chorus but donated $6000 of his discrimination settlement with the Air Force to the Chorus' 1981 national tour, was inducted into the Fifth Section following his 1989 death from AIDS.

In January 2011, with the appointment of new Artistic Director Dr. Tim Seelig, SFGMC has seen a significant increase in its membership ranks, audiences, and non profit size. For the first time in several years, the chorus sold out Davies Symphony Hall for its April 2011 concert: Words. Subsequent 2012 and 2013 concerts at Davies and other venues also saw very strong attendance numbers. In December 2013 the chorus returned to the War Memorial Opera House after a long absence. SFGMC was invited to Los Angeles in the summer of 2014 as guests of the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles for a special joint performance of I Am Harvey Milk at Walt Disney Concert Hall.[55]

1977 - The Gotham Male Chorus formed in December, specializing in Gregorian chant and Renaissance music. In 1979, women joined the chorus for the first time, and the name was changed to Stonewall Chorale, the nation's first lesbian and gay chorus.

1981 - San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus went on tour, visiting 12 cities around the country. The tour inspired the formation of many new lesbian and gay choruses. Representatives of 12 choruses met in Chicago to discuss mutual concerns relevant to their being gay/lesbian choruses. GALA Performing Arts was tentatively formed.

1983 - COAST (Come Out and Sing Together) brought together 1,200 individuals from 12 choruses from around the US for the first National Gay and Lesbian Choral Festival. Composers Libby Larsen and Ned Rorem were among those commissioned to write pieces for the Festival, and Gregg Smith served as guest conductor. The first Leadership Conference followed the Festival. Jay Davidson, San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus, was elected President. GALA Membership included 39 choruses. 2ff7e9595c