Ragazzi Sings

A Founder’s Vision

As a high school teacher, I found that boys – young men – were reluctant to sing.  I heard the same refrain from my colleagues directing school and adult choirs.  At the same time, as assistant conductor for San Francisco Boys Chorus, part of my duties included recruiting elementary school boys by visiting schools and leading singing games.  Contrary to my expectations, I was amazed to see the eagerness of young boys to join in.  I began to wonder what happened to boys between the ages of 10 and 15. Capturing and nurturing that eagerness was central to founding Ragazzi.

After establishing Ragazzi, I also began to explore issues of males’ relationships to each other and to the arts.  I discovered that when they worked together, males supported each other and were able to enjoy artistic expression.  I also discovered that, due to what can only be described as distorted thinking, singing has often been perceived by boys as a “girl” activity.  But in fact, there is a universal, world-wide tradition of male singing and so we decided to educate our Ragazzi boys about that and give them the opportunity to support each other as they explored this side of themselves.

In the early days, boys dropped out after they reached the age of 11.  But as we added more opportunities for changing voices, older boys began to take on the role leaders and mentors.  They felt free to express themselves and they began to see singing as something that belonged to them.  They continued to sing.

I have also discovered that boys really like to sing songs that are beautiful and expressive.  Time and time again, I’m still surprised to hear a boy say that his favorite song is the piece by Palestrina, or a lullaby by Britten, or a piece by Brahms.  Very rarely do loud, rhythmic pop songs hold our boys’ sustained interest.

Now that Ragazzi has grown to over 170 boys, there is a strong line of male leadership from our Young Men’s Ensemble to our alumni who come back as camp counselors and tour chaperones.  They articulate the standards to each other and the younger boys, serve as inspiration and model the chorister and personal standards that Ragazzi expects of its members.  And how they love to sing!

We have been told time and again by older boys and alumni (and their parents) that Ragazzi has been the single most important influence in developing their social and leadership skills.  So, Ragazzi has turned out to be a place where boys feel safe expressing themselves, artistically, and learn ways to work together as a team.  These are the skills that one needs to succeed in life, so the benefits of Ragazzi have extended far beyond the original vision of providing a safe place for boys to sing together.  Ragazzi is building strong citizens who are confident and cooperative and creative - a powerful bequest to society.

Joyce Keil

Artistic Director

Ragazzi Boys Chorus