Meet Bill Miller

Bill Miller is a straight man in a gay men’s chorus.

While this pairing may seem surprising to some, it’s no big deal to Bill, nor to his fellow chorus members.

The Rochester Gay Men’s Chorus was founded in 1982 by five gay men looking to use music as a way to create an accepting atmosphere and give voice to issues facing the gay community. Our founding was part of a movement of many gay and lesbian choruses forming throughout the country in the 1970s and ’80s. Our name honors that foundation. 

We are proud of our history as one of New York State’s longest-standing LGBTQ+ organizations — and proud to promote inclusivity, not exclusivity. 

If you are not gay, or if you are not a man, you are welcome to join our chorus.

As evidenced by our vision statement, included below, we operate on principles of unity, harmony, family, and pride in who each one of us truly is. 

As Bill says, “The shackles of cultural bigotry and stereotypes you grew up with can limit becoming who you want to be.” 

Bill had attended RGMC concerts for years and always thought, “They look like they’re having so much fun!” He decided he wanted to be a part of that fun and joined in fall 2018 — despite his only singing experience being in the shower and in the car. 

If you’re thinking of joining the chorus, Bill says, “Just come!” Even if — like Bill — you can’t read music, there are plenty of resources to help you along, including recorded tracks to practice with and close assistance from the artistic director and your fellow chorus members. “You’ll come along; don’t worry about it,” says Bill. “You don’t to have to know anything. I didn’t!”

The only technical requirement is that our members can sing in the ranges in which our music is performed: tenor, baritone, or bass.

Approaching his first performance, Bill says he didn’t feel too nervous since he was part of a group. And once the show began, he was struck by the satisfaction of it all coming together. “You’ve gone through all this work, and now here’s this beautiful, fulfilling music that you’re making with your friends,” he says. 

We are a gay men’s chorus because of the history we’re honoring, because of the progress we’re honoring and continuing to build. We are a welcoming space for our members to be their true selves, whatever that may look like. 

We are your chorus, your community’s chorus, and we’d love to have you join us on stage or in the audience.

RGMC Vision Statement:

We the members of the Rochester Gay Men’s Chorus unite proudly to seek a better world for ourselves, our community, and for our nation by sowing the seeds of harmony through the universal language of music.

We sing for ourselves to make glorious music with friends who experience the world as we do and who share our joy in standing together.

We sing for our sisters and brothers in the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community to embody pride, family, and a sense of home.

We sing for our friends and supporters who join with us to overcome ignorance and prejudice.

We sing for those unknown and unseen, awakening to who they are, in closets of oppression, or in search of community, that they may see our faces and hear our joy and know that the night is not forever, and that there are friends and brothers to light their way and to welcome them home.