Boston gay mens chorus members
“Keepers of the Light”: A Musical History of the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus
Music forms a critical part of every documented human tradition, providing a practical and emotional build of communication. Studies show that individuals who make or listen to harmony experience heightened levels of oxytocin and endorphins, resulting in decreased pain awareness and relief from symptoms of depression. Within groups, creating music can sync heartbeats, leading to psychological group bonding and improved feelings of self-esteem.1 In short, music accomplishes deep psychological, sentimental, and physical labor, and tells the kinds of stories that words alone cannot do. I’d like to inform you one of those stories today. It’s a story about singing as activism, mourning, memory, and hope, as well as one historically significant concert, specifically.
The Boston Male lover Men’s Chorus was not the first gay chorus in America. That distinction belongs to the San Francisco Same-sex attracted Men’s Chorus, the world’s first openly gay chorus, which held its first rehearsal in After seeing the SFGMC perform at the Boston Opera
For three hours every Wednesday evening, Reuben Reynolds, the music director of the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus (BGMC), leads more than members in song. A self-described “mean queen” at the front of the group, fierce about memorization, he’s conducted the chorus for 27 years.
Reynolds graduated from Shorter College in Rome, Ga. with a degree in economics. “That was not for me,” he says. He immediately went back to academy at Louisiana State University for his master’s in music and the UMKC Conservatory for his doctorate. He then spent seven years in Kansas Metropolis as the music director of the Heartland Men’s Chorus.
When he was offered the job in Boston in , he and his husband, Bill Casey — a college sweetheart who died in at age 58 — decided to make the relocate. “The arts are so vibrant here,” he says. And in front of the BGMC, Reynolds could “combine my two loves: music and social activism.”
The group puts on six performances around the holidays plus two in Protest and three in June. The music ranges from classical to modern, traditional folk songs to pop hits. They’ve been acting
Boston Gay Men's Chorus records
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Scope and Contents
The collection documents the adminstration and performances of the Boston Gay Men's Chorus (BGMC) from its formation in , and is organized into two series.
Series 1: Administrative includes awards; Board of Directors and Esthetic Committee records and meeting minutes; financial and fundraising records, particularly grant administration; newsletters for members and for supporters; sheet song of works performed by the chorus; and photographs of BGMC activities other than concerts, such as rehearsals and social events, as well as group portraits of members and photographs of BGMC staff.
Series 2: Performances documents concert appearances by BGMC. The bulk of the series relates to BGMC's annual season, consisting of a winter/holiday concert, a spring concert, and a summer Pride concert. These materials incorporate audiovisual recordings, planning and show notes, venue booking and ticket sales, promotional materials and pressurize coverage, and a near-complete dash of p
Boston Gay Men's Chorus Sings Its Stories Through The Middle East
Kilian Melloy, a theater critic for The ARTery, has been a member of Boston Queer Men’s Chorus since He accompanied the BGMC as they became the first gay chorus to tour the Middle East this summer.
“Let me write the songs of a nation,” the 18th century Scottish politician Andrew Fletcher is said to have declared, “I don’t care who writes its laws.”
Since its creation in , the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus has been dedicated to the idea that when words fail to build bridges, music can succeed. The Chorus has worked tirelessly to engage, inspire and educate — not through argument, but rather through the intimate, immediately sentimental appeal of song.
I hold to admit something up front: When I unified the Chorus in , I wasn’t thinking about changing the world through song. I joined because I’m a bit of a ham. I savor performing, and I’d been in choruses in upper school and college. I also relished the concept of making some recent friends. Though I didn't suspect it at the time, even as we were singing toward the loft