A KEY CHANGE
SAN DIEGO GAY MEN’S CHORUS
by joel martens The LGBT choral movement has been around for a long time, the roots
of which took hold in the ‘70s, following closely behind the larger LGBT rights crusade. We were organizing, coming out of shame’s shadow and learning to be proud of who we were. Music played a vital part in the lives of many gay men; too often the only
refuge from the necessity of hiding who we were. It was only natural, that as we began our migration to large cities, that we continued to come together musically as a way to build community and express that connec- tion, in the way that only music can offer. It was also through those early choral groups, that many first “came out,” standing on stages across the country. Singing our hearts out proudly, publicly and without shame. Courage is borne out of community and one that offers its members a voice, even in song, has great power for change.
RC Haus has made his own particular journey and
music has certainly been a part of that process. He is the newly appointed artistic director for the San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus (SDGMC), the latest stop in his personal evolution… and maybe a part of his survival. As he shared, “Right about the time I came out, I retired from broadcasting because I had a bout with cancer and wasn’t sure I was going to make it
14 RAGE monthly | JULY 2014 RAGE monthly
through. It was coming through that whole process that I kind of reshaped myself. I came out, got a divorce and as a part of that, teaching music became my second career.” Children are a big part of his life, both profession-
ally and personally, he has five of his own, all here in San Diego, ranging in age from 13 to 23. You can hear the pride in his voice when he speaks of them, though
his profession also surrounds him with the children of many others. “I taught for five years at Performing Arts High School here in San Diego, which was an incredible experience. It’s a great place and I worked with phenomenally talented young people, it was so amazing.” As far as SDGMC, his involvement there began
about four years ago, during a time when he was directing different music programs all around San Diego, “I was really ready to be a part of something in music that I wasn’t in charge of. (Laughs) But when I joined SDGMC and they heard about my background, I ended up interviewing for the Assistant Artistic Director’s position. I wasn’t really looking for another job, but I decided to do it anyway. I did it for a year and when I was hired for my current position as the Music Director for Rancho Santa Fe High, I stepped down to take on that new challenge.” He elaborated on his return to the organization
and how the new position came about, “Gary Holt resigned in September. Fortunately, because they had seen my work, I had built up a good rapport with the chorus and they contacted me to see if I would consider filling in as an interim director. I was
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