Boys and Singing

In choirs in the U.S., women typically outnumber men, sometimes drastically so. When I was part of a community chorus in Austin, TX, decades ago, our new director told us that she was revamping audition requirements for sopranos and altos, but that tenors were welcome "as long as you have a pulse." When I asked a music teacher friend why so many fewer men than women sing here, she posited that American men still have to live down stereotypes about men in the arts. Or, as one of my male classmates told me in third grade, "Singing is for sissies."

Not so in many other countries, including  Russia and Wales, both of which are famous for their men's choirs. Here is a video of Only Boys Aloud, a Welsh project.