Wales (besides being the birthplace of our Director!) is a nation sometimes referred to as “Gwlad y Gân”, the “land of song”. Wales has a strong and distinctive tradition of folk music, and is most commonly associated with Male Voice Choirs. (Musical historians trace these beginnings back to the men laboring in the Welsh mines: While walking home to their village after a hard day of work, one of the men would start to sing… Soon, all the men would be singing along, quite often in full four-part harmonies. They would sing church hymns, folk songs, songs of religious comfort, as well as songs of longing & unrequited love…)


Chris Roberts first established this rich musical tradition here on Cape Cod when he brought together a Male Voice Choir for a concert with the Chatham Chorale in 2002. This initial effort was then followed in April of 2004 by Chris when he led thirty-nine members of the Cape Cod Chorale on a trip to England and Wales for concerts with the Oxford Welsh Male Voice Choir in Abingdon, and with Choral Variations in Coedpoeth, Wales.


In March of 2008, the Cape Cod Chorale held “Celtic Celebration” concerts, where Chris again assembled a “Male Voice Choir” from the tenors and basses (along with a few volunteers from other singing groups to help provide the balance and volume needed for this genre) to sing several Welsh selections. The gentlemen involved enjoyed these concerts so much that we all decided to establish ourselves as an entirely new group, “We Are The Men, MVC”, to continue sharing this wonderful music together. (By the bye, “MVC” stands for “Male Voice Choir”. You know, just in case this little detail was bothering you…)


Still singing together since 2008, our Choir reached an incredible milestone in October of 2018: We were invited by the London Welsh Male Voice Choir to perform in a joint concert of 16 male voice choirs from around the world at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England. With over 800 singers, soloists, and the Band of the Royal Welsh Guard to accompany us, we joined our voices with choirs from England, Wales, Australia, Norway, and Sweden in a truly “once in a lifetime” experience.

Director and Accompanist

Choir Director Chris Roberts
Accompanist Cathy Bonnett

Chris Roberts is a native of Coedpoeth, North Wales. He has been involved in vocal and instrumental music since the age of seven, singing in Church as well as in local “eisteddfodau” (music competitions). He has been a High School music teacher since 1978 (where he founded the Wrexham Music School in 1986), and is currently a music teacher in the Monomoy Regional School District. He has also directed various choral groups on the Cape, including his previous leadership of the Cape Cod Chorale. Chris is involved in many musical activities on Cape Cod, and served for four years as the President of the Cape Cod & Islands Music Educators Association.

Chris has a Bachelor’s Degree in Music from the University of London, a Master of Music degree from UMass Amherst, and Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies form Boston University.

Concertgoers and vocal performers alike have treasured Cathy Bonnett’s outstanding talent and musical versatility. Cathy has had a lifelong musical career: For twenty-two years she was the Musical Director of the US Coast Guard Base Chapel, she has been involved in musical theatre activities for over twenty-five years, and she is currently the Minister of Music for the Mashpee Congregational UCC Church. In addition, Cathy feels “that it is one of my life’s joys and privileges, week after week, to be able to sit in the midst of men’s voices singing in such beautiful harmony!”

Cymru! Gwlad beirdd a chantorion, enwogion o fri!

watmmvc@gmail.com
We Are The Men MVC, Inc, 130 Brentwood Drive, Yarmouthport, MA 02675-163