Gene Arlen Hill

AUSTIN, Texas – Gene Arlen Hill died in Austin, Texas on June 8, 2022.

Gene was born in Janesville, Wis. April 15, 1946. He was the son of Gerald Cushman and Irene May (Lee) Hill.

He attended Milton, Wis. schools. Gene graduated cum laude from Milton College with a B.S. in Music Education. Gene studied vocal performance at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee and later at the Milwaukee Conservatory.

Gene began singing as a boy soprano. Gene sang the role of the boy king in Honegger’s “King David”, performed by the Milton Choral Union. Gene was a soloist at the eagle River Baroque Festival.

In December of 1979, Gene was the alto (countertenor) soloist in the NYC Choral Society’s production of Handel’s Messiah at Carnegie Hall. Gene was the first countertenor that role in New York City. The Handel Society performed Handel’s “Julius Caesar” in January of 1979 at Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. with Gene performing the role of Ptolemy.

Gene sang for various churches in New York City, N.Y. He also worked as a legal secretary in Boston, Mass.; New York City, N.Y.; and Portland.

In 1981, Gene met Ward Alper. They have been a loving couple for 41 years. They were legally married in Falmouth in June of 2013. For 30 years they lived in Portland.

His ashes will be buried at Milton Junction Cemetery (Wisconsin) next to the graves of his parents. There are no plans for services at this time. A celebration of the joy of Gene Hill will be scheduled at a later date in Maine.