oaklandgmc

Voices from Our Chorus Andre Sean Gary-Mack on Feeling at Home in Harmony

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 21:03:50 GMT

Voices from our Chorus

Andre Sean Gary-Mack on Feeling at Home in Harmony

By June Kamerling

I had the pleasure of interviewing and getting to know about one of our very unique and talented upper baritone members in honor of Black History Month, Andre Sean Gary-Mack.

I always ask first, “How did you find the chorus?”

“After singing with Silicon Valley GMC I wanted something closer to where I live, and I didn’t want to sing with SFGMC whom I’d sung with before. I live in SF, in the Mission.

I loved singing with SFGMC. It was an amazing experience, and I learned a lot, but singing with 300 singers is a lot. I wanted something smaller and more intimate.

I wanted more opportunity to be involved, and I couldn’t have that with SFGMC, and the commute to San Jose was too far.

I checked out Golden Gate singers in SF. It just didn’t feel right for me. I went to Queer Chorus of SF, which was great for being a mixed chorus, but then I came to a rehearsal at Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus. This may sound corny, but it felt like “LOVE”. It was inviting. Everyone made me feel so welcome and warm ,and it made me want to audition.

I’ve been with the chorus for a full year now. I started right when Bruce started.

This is not my first GALA chorus. I knew that there were other GALA choruses in the area”.

You’ve been to GALA? I asked.

“Yes, I’ve been to GALA 4 times. It's a very empowering experience… Emotionally in all the best ways.
For the last GALA, I was with Silicon Valley GMC. I loved seeing a lot of people I knew from other choruses I had been in. It had been 8 years since the last GALA, due to the pandemic cancelling the 2020 GALA”.

I heard that you’ve been in several other chorus e s. Tell me more.
”Oh yes…I’ve sung with NYC GMC, Boston, DC, Atlanta, a chorus in Des Moines, and a GALA chorus still newish in South Dakota. I travelled around a lot. I’ve been in a total of 13 choruses”.

How did you happen to be moving to so many places?
“Mostly work-related. I was in retail for a long time, then practiced law, and now I’m retired… my shorter story. — I wanted to focus on my family and my 3 kids, and I wanted to relax!”

What’s your music background?

“I grew up singing in church, theater in school, and I played instruments.

My Dad is a drummer. My Stepmom sings and was the choir director.
I grew up in a family that was musically inclined, and I followed that path.
I learned to speak French before I could speak English, and I learned to read music before I could read books”.

Which instruments do you play?

“I play piano. I don’t advertise this (oops…word’s out) because I’ve been asked to lead sectionals. I also play viola”.

Do you perform, or just for fun?

“I play for fun. I have stepped in to accompany for my younger daughter’s recital, and I played viola for Sioux Falls GMC for their holiday show. But mostly I play for my own enjoyment”.

Where did you grow up?
“I grew up in NYC- in Brooklyn Heights, on the East River just across from Manhattan. I could see the Twin Towers from my bedroom. My mother has now passed. My dad and stepmom now live in North Carolina. I haven’t been back to NY in 4 years”.

How are you finding the chorus?
“I love it. The OaklandGMC vibe feels similar to AtlantaGMC and SFGMC, but the feeling in OaklandGMC is stronger and feels more like family than Atlanta and SF.

In OaklandGMC, I get to be involved in a way that feels like I’m making a difference in the chorus”.

You’re being featured in our newsletter for Black History Month. Is there something you’d like to say about being a black man in the chorus?
“Oakland does a really good job of welcoming members of color without it feeling forced.

In Atlanta and DC, I expected to see more singers who looked like me, and that wasn’t the case. That was a little disappointing.

What I love about OaklandGMC and being black is that I’m not just a black member.

I’m a member first who happens to be black, and that’s how I was welcomed.

OaklandGMC acknowledged that I was a black man in the chorus, but not in a way that seemed forceful or like they were checking off a list of “this is how many black members we need for diversity.

Being in such a welcoming group has been refreshing and reassuring.

So many times I’ve been asked to sit on a panel, or focus group, or be part of conversations because I’m black.

With OaklandGMC, they want me to be a part of the conversation because I’m a member of the chorus. My voice matters, not my skin color”.

You really jumped in to be involved. You said earlier that you wanted to make a difference. You’re now Chair of HR and joining the Membership Committee. As I used to say to my kids “Good Job!!”

“I get to engage with the chorus in a different way through a different lens. I love the direction OaklandGMC is taking with engagement with the members. I’ve been in choruses that go both ways. OaklandGMC is doing a great job of figuring out what engagement looks like with different members and letting their voices be heard. It’s great to be a part of that process and having an impact on it”.

Anything else you’d like to say?

“This will be my first concert where I get to be a dancer, so I’m really excited”.

Holding the Light, Together Finding strength, joy, and connection as we prepare for spring

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 20:55:38 GMT

Holding the Light, Together

Finding strength, joy, and connection as we prepare for spring

By Ryan Justus, Baritone

As we moved quickly through January, we found ourselves back in the room together. Back to warmups, laughter between notes, and the quiet focus before a downbeat. Back to the simple and powerful act of breathing and singing side by side.

This season asks a lot of us. The world feels loud, uncertain, and heavy in ways that can be hard to name. And yet, what brings us back to rehearsal week after week is not avoidance. It is renewal.

Our spring concert theme, Inextinguishable Light , feels less like a title and more like a practice right now. Light does not mean pretending things are easy. It means choosing to show up anyway. It means reaching for one another. It means trusting that our voices, raised together, still matter.

Community has always been at the heart of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus. We build it through friendship and trust, by affirming one another’s individuality, and by creating a space where joy is real and courage is shared. In this room, we are reminded that we can do more together than we ever could alone.

Joy here is not frivolous. It is fuel.
Courage here is not loud. It is steady.

Every rehearsal is an act of care. Every chord we shape together is a reminder that connection is something we actively create. As we prepare for the spring concert, we are not just learning music. We are tending something brighter, something bolder, something meant to be shared.

Thank you for being part of what sustains this chorus and its work. Our light grows brighter because it is shared. Every voice that sings, every heart that supports, and every person who shows up in community helps make this work possible. As we move toward spring, may we continue to lift one another, listen deeply, and let the music we share be a source of strength and connection far beyond the room where it begins.

The light is not fragile.
And together, it is truly inextinguishable.

Voices from our Chorus Meet Joseph, Jonathan, and Ryan: The Three Choreographers

Fri, 28 Nov 2025 20:51:08 GMT

Voices from our Chorus
Meet Joseph, Jonathan, and Ryan: The Three Choreographers

By June Kamerling

For this holiday issue of NOTES , we wanted to shine a light on a part of OaklandGMC that has transformed our performances in recent seasons, our movement. From crisp choralography to full-out featured dance numbers, our visual storytelling is now shaped by three creative, wildly different, and wonderfully collaborative choreographers: Jonathan Leavy, Ryan Justus, and our newest addition, Joseph Bahlman.

Each arrived at OaklandGMC through a unique path. Each brings a lifetime of training and experience in dance, music, and performance. And each has helped build the exciting movement culture our chorus now enjoys. I sat down with all three to learn how they got here and what inspires them.

Joseph Bahlman: Motion, Music, and a Scientist’s Eye

“I love to study motion. So it’s no surprise that I moved into dance with such passion.”

When Joseph moved from Sacramento back to his East Bay roots, he searched for a musical community, something creative to balance his work as a science professor. A veteran of several choruses, he discovered OaklandGMC online and auditioned soon after settling into his new teaching job.

Joseph’s artistic life began in a bustling world of school bands, where he played flute, saxophone, and trombone before serving as drum major and designing marching-band field shows. That early love of creating large-scale moving patterns now shapes his choralography: “Different rows and groups moving at different times… it looks great from a distance.”

His dance training came later through Latin dance in Costa Rica, years of ballroom, then deeper artistry when he joined the Vancouver Gay Men’s Chorus. That experience led him to choreograph for large ensembles, blending singing, movement, costuming, and theatricality.

After choreographing for Sacramento GMC, Joseph arrived at OaklandGMC ready to help if needed. “Near the end of my first season, Jonathan and Ryan asked me to help choreograph the next show. It’s been a great collaboration—our different styles show off different sides of the chorus.”

Joseph’s academic background? A PhD in Biomechanics and Locomotion. “Physics of movement, engineering principles, mechanical design of motion—it all ties into dance,” he says. Birds, bats, robots, dancers… for Joseph, it’s all motion at its most expressive. .

Jonathan Leavy: A Life in Music, Movement, and Heart

“I’m a heart-centered, high-feeling person. The energy of this chorus is so powerful.”

Jonathan’s OaklandGMC story begins with a spring concert in 2023. a collaborative performance with New Voices Bay Area TIGQ Chorus that moved both him and his husband. When auditions opened, they joined immediately. That joyful impulse led Jonathan back to a lifetime steeped in music, dance, and performance.

Raised in a musical household, he played piano, joined choirs, performed in bands, and found his theatrical home in show choir. Dance entered early (with a brief detour into gymnastics) and ultimately carried him through college, where he majored in voice and spent summers dancing parades at Walt Disney World. “I got to dress up, dance, and make people happy. I kept going back every summer and winter break.”

Professional summer stock followed, then full-time entertainment at Epcot. Eventually, he moved to New York City, carrying decades of performance experience with him.

Jonathan’s path to OaklandGMC choreography began simply; at his first concert, he auditioned to be a featured dancer. Soon after, choreographer Joe Rosenmayer and Artistic Committee Chair Brian Tognotti invited him to choreograph two holiday numbers, including the now-legendary reindeer dance.

Today, Jonathan is energized by the collaboration between the three choreographers. “Our movement adds theatricality and surprise. It lifts us up.” He also champions inclusivity in movement. Inspired by a GALA Festival workshop, he and Ryan developed the three-tier system of movement levels, ensuring that everyone can dance, not just featured dancers.

Jonathan’s heart shines brightest when he describes the musical journey of each season: “Those ‘WOW’ moments of harmony and connection… I never want the concert cycle to end.” His dream? Bringing OaklandGMC’s music to more audiences…schools, senior homes, and community spaces.

Ryan Justus: Dance, Community, and Creativity for the Joy of It

“The whole point of me joining the chorus was just for fun… I wouldn’t do the choreography if it wasn’t fun.”

Ryan first encountered OaklandGMC on social media. Though he had never seen a concert, something about the community felt right. When auditions were posted, he showed up and immediately found his artistic home.

His musical journey began in high school through a musical theater class that morphed into a pseudo-show choir. Dance, however, started even earlier. “My sister took dance classes, so I joined her. I just kept dancing and dancing, and it became a thing.” Dance training, competitions, and teaching carried him all the way into adulthood.

After spending nearly twenty-five years teaching and serving as the operations manager for the dance studio he grew up dancing with, the opportunity to take over the business and continue the legacy of the previous owner has set him on the path of small business ownership and education in the arts.

His OaklandGMC choreography started innocently enough: Brian asked him to tap dance in a Santa suit for his first holiday show. “It snowballed from there,” Ryan laughs. He and Jonathan quickly connected, supporting one another as the chorus expanded its movement vocabulary.

Ryan’s choreography philosophy is grounded in accessibility, joy, and audience experience: “We’re not putting on a Broadway show. My goal is for everyone to have fun. I try to create movement that looks good, feels doable, and enhances what our audience sees.”

He loves the variety that comes from having multiple choreographers. “We all have different styles, so the movement and the look of the chorus stays varied. Featured dancers versus full-chorus choralography are very different processes; it takes work, but it’s all about having fun!”

Three Artists, One Vision

Though Jonathan, Ryan, and Joseph each bring unique training and perspectives, Disney parades, biomechanics research, ballroom, musical theater, and studio ownership, they share a remarkable synergy.

Together, they have:

Expanded movement across the chorus
Developed multi-level choreography to include everyone
Enhanced the theatricality of each concert
Fostered a joyful, collaborative environment
Helped shape OaklandGMC’s evolving visual identity

Their combined talents help make OaklandGMC’s performances not just heard, but seen.

We are deeply grateful for their artistry, humor, generosity, and the passion they bring to every rehearsal. Their work creates magic…one step, one ripple, one moment of connection at a time.

In Concert LGBTQ+ History Month

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 20:40:06 GMT

In Concert

LGBTQ+ History Month

By Ryan Justus

October in the East Bay never quite decides what outfit it wants to wear. Days can be breezy and sun-filled, while evenings call for a quick change—brisk, with a teasing of fog on the horizon. Sometimes feeling both familiar and jarring at the same time. It reminds us that even in change, there’s beauty in showing up, in gathering, and in being in concert with one another.

In this edition of Notes, we honor LGBTQ+ History Month, explore ways to support OaklandGMC through year-end giving, and share opportunities to get involved through Playbill Advertising and volunteering. However you choose to participate, know that your presence helps our chorus thrive and keeps the harmony alive all season long.

Honoring Our Legacy: October Is LGBTQ+ History Month

Each October, communities across the United States celebrate LGBTQ+ History Month, a time to honor the people, milestones, and movements that have shaped our collective story.

First established in 1994 by Missouri teacher Rodney Wilson, this month invites us to reflect not only on struggle and resilience but also on the courage it takes to live authentically. It also includes National Coming Out Day on October 11, a time to celebrate visibility and self-acceptance.

Here in the East Bay, that legacy is close to home. Oakland was once the creative base of filmmaker Marlon Riggs (Tongues Untied, Black Is… Black Ain’t), whose groundbreaking work gave voice to the intersections of race, sexuality, and identity. His art and activism remind us that stories from our own community have helped shape national conversations on equality and representation.

That spirit continues today through organizations like the Oakland LGBTQ Community Center, co-founded by Joe Hawkins and Jeff Myers. Their leadership ensures that Oakland remains a place where queer voices are heard, celebrated, and supported.

For the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus, this observance is more than a calendar event; it’s woven into the fabric of who we are. Each song we sing and each concert we share carries forward the legacy of those who came before us. Through music, we remember, we celebrate, and we create a future filled with harmony and hope.

As we mark this month, we’re reminded that progress grows through connection, creativity, and courage. When we lift our voices together, we do more than make harmony; we make history. Whether your connection to Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is as a singer, volunteer, audience member, or donor, you are part of our ongoing history.

We invite you to take a moment to learn about the heroes who paved the way, reflect on your own journey, and celebrate the chorus of voices that continue to shape our future. Learn more at lgbthistorymonth.com

In Harmony Honoring Hispanic Heritage Month Through Music, Memory, and Community

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 20:31:21 GMT

In Harmony

Honoring Hispanic Heritage Month Through Music, Memory, and Community

By Ryan Justus

Celebrating the diverse histories, cultures, and contributions of all communities throughout the year is essential. Hispanic Heritage Month calls us to shine a special light on Hispanic and Latinx communities. Now more than ever, these celebrations matter. For the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus, it is also a reminder of the power of music to honor heritage, tell stories, and ensure voices from many traditions are heard.

A Tapestry of Musical Roots

The music of Hispanic cultures is not born from a single source. It reflects centuries of exchange among Indigenous peoples of the Americas, African diasporas, and European influences. In colonial Mexico and South America, Spanish and Portuguese sacred forms blended with Indigenous rhythms, languages, and instruments, while African traditions brought by enslaved peoples gave rise to powerful percussive and dance elements. The result was an entirely new musical landscape: joyful, layered, and resilient.

One composer from this era, Juan García de Zéspedes (ca. 1619–1678), represents this confluence. Active in Puebla, Mexico, his works include sacred music and villancicos (popular songs with folk elements). His Convidando Está la Noche, which OaklandGMC will perform this holiday season, alternates between formal European polyphony and dance-like sections that pulse with local flavor. It is music that embodies both colonial structures and the vibrant communities that shaped them.

Diaspora and Memory

Another thread of Hispanic heritage is found in Ladino music, the Judeo-Spanish tradition preserved by Sephardic Jewish communities after their expulsion from Spain in 1492. Ladino songs traveled across the Mediterranean and beyond, carrying with them stories of longing, celebration, and identity.

When OaklandGMC performs Ocho Kandelikas, a lively Ladino song celebrating Hanukkah, we acknowledge both its roots in the Spanish language and its unique place in Sephardic culture. Although Ladino does not always neatly fit into Hispanic Heritage Month, it reminds us of how histories are intertwined and how shared languages and diasporas create enduring cultural legacies.

From Past to Present

While these historical traditions are foundational, Hispanic and Latinx music encompasses more than just the past. Today, composers like Berkeley native Gabriela Lena Frank and ensembles across the Americas continue to expand classical repertoire with works rooted in their heritage. At the same time, popular genres like mariachi, salsa, reggaetón, and banda thrive as global forces of joy, identity, and resistance. To honor Hispanic Heritage Month is to see this music as living, evolving, and essential to the cultural fabric of today.

Why This Matters at OaklandGMC

Historically, Hispanic and Latinx composers have often been overlooked in mainstream choral programming. At Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus, we are committed to helping change that. Each season, our Artistic Director expands our songbook to include music from a range of cultures and traditions, giving our singers the opportunity to grow musically and to connect with voices beyond the familiar canon.

By including works like Convidando Está la Noche and Ocho Kandelikas in our upcoming holiday concert, we honor the rich musical contributions of Hispanic and Latinx heritage while staying true to our mission: giving voice through song to a community where everyone matters. This commitment is rooted in our belief in the power of community, where music fosters connection, belonging, and shared celebration.

This Hispanic Heritage Month, Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus invites you to celebrate with us, to listen with open hearts, and to reflect on how music, past and present, continues to shape our shared story.

Voices from our Chorus David Guerra on Sewing Costumes, Singing Truths, and Finding Family

Mon, 07 Jul 2025 04:43:59 GMT

Voices from our Chorus

David Guerra on Sewing Costumes, Singing Truths, and Finding Family

By June Kamerling

I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing our dear Tenor 1 member, David Guerra, for this issue. I hope all of you readers will enjoy getting to know David and their amazing talents, as I did during this interview. Read on:

I always ask first, How did you find the chorus and when?

“I first saw the chorus onstage in 2014 at the Oakland Pride Festival. I didn’t know anything about them at the time, but I was impressed.”“Later, I discovered that Rev. Laurie Manning at Skyline Community Church, where I attended, had a relationship with OGMC (at that time, Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus). The chorus had been coming to sing at the church’s Easter Sunrise Service for several years.”

“I went that Easter and heard the chorus perform “I Sing Out”. It touched me deeply. I’d been struggling with family issues related to my identity, and the power of that song had me sobbing in the front row.”

“The June 2016 shooting at the Pulse Nightclub horrified me. Pastor Laurie planned a vigil, and I helped with that. We invited members of OGMC. I talked to Lawrence Turner, who was president of the OGMC board at the time. He and I worked together to sing “I Sing Out” as a duet. It was amazing!!”

“After the service, Lawrence called to me, ‘David! You need to join our chorus!’ ”

“I wasn’t totally sure about being a part of the chorus, but my husband said, ‘Do it. Audition.’ I did, and in the Fall of 2016, I was part of the chorus. Billy (Dr. William Sutherland) was the Artistic Director at the time. Billy was so lovely, supportive, and sweet. I learned so much under his direction.”

“Though I’d sung in other choruses over the years, being with this chorus was a community I’d never experienced before. Being in a male space was really important to me. It allowed me to grow and feel more comfortable in my own skin.”

“All these guys were my brothers and part of my chosen family. The camaraderie, hugs, and support are awesome. They understand what it’s like to be alone and to choose a family that is not your blood family. Knowing that others understand means everything.”

“I occasionally brought my daughter, Al (Alegra), to the rehearsals. As a skilled artist, she would sit and sketch the chorus during rehearsal. The guys loved it, and some used their portraits as their social media avatars. She’s now OGMC’s graphic artist for all of the marketing art.”

“In the fall of 2017, my husband, Claude, was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer. When I announced to the chorus how bad things were and how we were struggling financially, members donated to a Meal Train fund to help us out. The chorus raised about $1200, which touched my heart.”

“As a costumer, I volunteered for the first time to help make costumes for our holiday concert. But in the summer of 2018, we did a Disney show based on the songs of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman. Belle, from Beauty and the Beast, had a solo. Al auditioned for Belle, got the part, and became an OGMC member.”“This was her first concert, and she opened the show with her solo! I made her a Belle costume, and she looked SO darling. She killed it, and I was behind the curtain “kvelling” (a Yiddish term for bursting with pride).”

“I made a dress with a rat corsage for Dave Woemmel’s performance of ‘That’s How You Know’, from the Disney show Enchanted. I created a trench coat with pockets filled with fake books for Fred Rogers, who played the librarian in Beauty and the Beast. I made other props and costumes and loved every second. I also made the drag costume for Shawn Simon as Ursula, the Sea Witch from The Little Mermaid. It was stunning!”“For our show A Prairie Homo Companion, I wrote a couple of skits. I worked with Fred on a skit along the same vein as ‘Who’s on First?’ but with music-themed drinks and bars in Oakland.”

“A year later, I made cheese costumes for the song ‘Carmina Ricotta’ by Eric Lane Barnes. I worked with Dennis Whitaker, who was in charge of costumes at the time. A bunch of the guys came over to help sew and put props and costumes together. Fred Rogers, Steve Smith, Peter Nye… everyone helped make this happen.”“During the pandemic, Al and I participated in the virtual chorus performance of Wally B’s ‘Love is All That Matters’. There were no rehearsals during the pandemic, and even when the chorus started up again, Al and I had to stay isolated to protect Claude. I was caregiving 24/7, and I missed the community and creative outlet OGMC offered.”

“After my husband passed in 2023, I came back to the chorus. Being among my friends and singing again helped me deal with the loss and grief. I was able to perform in two concert seasons before I had to deal with my own cancer diagnosis and treatment. The support and love from the chorus members during that time has been phenomenal.

I SOOOO want to come back again, and I will. I’m out for a few seasons, but NEED to be connected to my chorus family. It’s fulfilling to me to be able to sing and to create. And it’s my gift to the chorus”.

My next question to David was: How has the chorus changed? You missed a chunk of time… do you notice any big differences pre-pandemic to now?

“We had a lot more people pre-pandemic, but we are growing again. Women were coming in, and that was new, as long as they could sing tenor or lower. We are called a “Gay Men’s Chorus”, but we are not all gay, and we are not all men. The chorus has become much more diverse: lesbians, non-binary, trans, and straight. When I came in, it was all guys, both gay and straight. Then Al joined. After that, things became more inclusive.

Now the Tenor 1’s have a handful of women, and there are a few Tenor 2 women.

The higher voices add to our sound and our richness. We’ve got all the ranges of orientations. It’s a great variety.”

“This is who I am: I’m a singer who loves this community. I love to share the gift of music. I love to use my talents to benefit the organization. This is my family, and I sing out! ” /

Voices from our Chorus Fred Rogers Reflects on His OaklandGMC Journey

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 20:21:39 GMT

Voices from our Chorus

Fred Rogers Reflects on His OaklandGMC Journey

By June Kamerling

I had the huge pleasure of chatting with chorus member Fred Rogers, who has had an extremely vibrant and colorful life, as you will soon see.

First question I asked Fred: “How did you find OaklandGMC?”

“I had been observing the chorus online for years when I moved to the East Bay. I always thought ‘That’s something I’d like to do’, but never made that move.”

“My sister said, ‘You’re the only one in the family who can carry a tune. Why are you not singing?’ And I asked myself that same question. Sadly, my sister was succumbing to Alzheimer's, and most of my time was taken up as her caregiver. I needed a break from taking care of her…. This would be the right time.”

“I responded to an online ‘we have auditions tonight’ invitation. That’s how I joined. That same month, my sister passed away. She never got to come to a concert, but her spirit got me in the door. That was 2016. Billy Sauerland was just starting as our director then. It was also the year of GALA in Denver.”

“So, I joined the chorus in February, and by July, I was in Denver singing at GALA. I had not sung since freshman year of college at Boston University.”

“It has been a great time and learning experience. I have a great ear, and with the rehearsal tracks I can easily learn the music”.

Excitedly, I said, “Fred, tell me about your colorful background. ”

“That is probably the most interesting part of my existence. There are so many parallels between that time and this time of my life. I took the bold move of opening a bar/restaurant on 18th and Castro in San Francisco.”

“I was the proprietor of “Elephant Walk” opening in November 1974. I was 27! It was an eye-opening experience. I had the business for 11 years. All were welcome. We were intentionally inclusive. We had local families, gay and straight patrons, and employees. It was a welcoming meeting place for the local community.”

“That was a time of great chaos and upheaval, as well as a bringing together of the gay community in the Castro. We had the Harvey Milk assassination, the Dan White verdict, which brought about riots and police brutality, the Briggs initiative, Anita Bryant in Florida, lots of homophobia, and the AIDS epidemic…so many things we fought back then are rearing their ugly heads now.”

“One of my employees was one of the first AIDS victims in the 80’s. I didn’t own the building where Elephant Walk was located. The AIDS epidemic put a damper on my business. The writing on the wall was saying it was time to close my business, after 11 years”.

J- “What did you do after you sold the bar?”

“My partner, at the time, opened his own marketing consulting firm in our house, and I became office manager. I did interviews for him about chip manufacturing–which I knew nothing about. I was his gopher, rushing marketing materials around San Francisco. It was interesting, but I was in the house all the time…I was not used to that. I felt cut off from the world.”

“I went back to hotel management. I was born to be in customer service. Before I knew it, we moved to Atlanta, and we were there for 8 years. It was a culture shock, to say the least. I’m originally from Philadelphia. Interestingly, Steve Smith [fellow Baritone] and I grew up 10 miles from each other, and we’d never met till OaklandGMC”.

J-“ What happened when you came back from Atlanta?”

“I sold my house in SF. Neil, my partner at the time, and I decided to resettle in the East Bay. It was way more affordable, had less traffic, and better proximity to my sister in Oakland Hills. Then it took another 20 years to join the chorus.”Lawrence Turner was my buddy and mentor as well as President of the OaklandGMC Board of Directors (called Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus at that time). I remember him saying, ‘Don’t be nervous, it’s a love bubble’ as we walked out onto the big stage in Denver at 2016 GALA.”

J- ”How have you seen the chorus change over the years?”

“I asked Denis Whitaker, ‘What can I do to be involved?’ He laughed…‘Would you be interested in running for the board?’ So I found myself very quickly head of production and on the board.”

“I was retired at the time, so I had time to learn the ropes. I’ve seen it grow so beautifully organizationally. The board is so much more cohesive. We’re following a strategic plan. We have a part-time Executive Director. We’re financially able to do all of that. We’re in a much better space….in a period of like 8 years. Now that I’ve stepped down from the board and production committee, I’m finding other things I can do using my past experience.” (Note: Since the completion of this interview, Fred has rejoined the Board of Directors.)

J- ”What direction would you like to see us take from here?”

“I think our outreach is so important. We tend to stay in our comfort zone, but I think we need to broaden our outreach in the community. It’s great we have our Executive Director, John Stevens, with us now to help us grow and reach out further. I’d like to see us branch out and go to the North Bay, Santa Rosa, not just stay in the immediate Bay area. I see us as a growing community. We have such a loyal fan base. I see the same names in ticket sales season after season.”

J- ”Anything else you want to tell me?”

“I’m astounded by the musicality of many of my peers. I wish I could go back in time and practice my music lessons. In a future life, I’d love to be a jazz singer. I love all the oldies…the female jazz singers, Ella, Sara, Peggy Lee, etcetera, and Old Frank….I love that music. We sang with a big band once….It was so much fun.”

J- ”Do you want to see more diversity in the kind of music we sing?”

“Yes, sure, but that’s totally up to the Artistic Director. We’re on stable ground to be growing. It’s about the unit…the group.”

J- “One last question…What is your music background?”

“Just singing in chorus and acting/drama club. I don’t play any instruments. I wish I could sit down at the piano, but….not this life? My sister majored in modern dance at Sarah Lawrence. Mother was an amateur painter and a tap dancer. Dad was an engineer. My ‘Auntie Mame’ was our musical accompanist at family gatherings on

our upright piano.”

J- For a full account of Elephant Walk and it’s community click on the link below.

https://thecastro.net/fred-rogers-firsthand-account/

Conducting Change: A Chat with Bruce Southard, D.M.A.

Fri, 13 Dec 2024 19:40:41 GMT

Conducting Change:

A Chat with Bruce Southard, D.M.A.

Interview with Bruce Southard, D.M.A

By June Kamerling OaklandGMC Member

It is our great honor to introduce Dr. Bruce Southard, D.M.A., as Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus’s new Artistic Director. Known to friends and colleagues simply as Bruce, he brings a wealth of experience, passion, and a fresh perspective to OaklandGMC.

We sat down with Bruce for an engaging conversation about his background, vision, and plans for the chorus. Read on to learn more about the inspiring leader guiding OaklandGMC into its 26th season and beyond.

June Kamerling (JK): Welcome to OaklandGMC, Bruce! Can you tell us a bit about yourself? Where are you from, and can you share some of your personal and professional experiences that led to this role?

Bruce Southard (BS): I’m a California native. I grew up in Sonoma County and later moved to the valley, where I attended high school and college. After earning my master’s degree in Kentucky, I spent 25 years in the northern U.S. Eventually, I returned to the Bay Area to care for my mom and ended up directing the Stockton Chorale. Coming out later in life, I sought community—and this role with OaklandGMC combines my passion for community building with the joy of leading a chorus.

JK: What drew you to OaklandGMC? What resonates most with the chorus’s mission, and what excites you about stepping into this role?

BS: OaklandGMC embodies everything I love about choral work—connecting people through music, fostering camaraderie, and reaching audiences who might not otherwise experience this art form. I’m especially excited by the chorus’s inclusivity and its mix of musical genres. Conducting a TTBB (tenor 1, tenor 2, baritone, bass) chorus again feels like coming home.

JK: As Artistic Director, what is your vision for OaklandGMC? How do you plan to build on its legacy while adding your own touch?

BS: My vision centers on helping everyone find their voice, refining vocal technique, and crafting meaningful performances. OaklandGMC has a strong foundation, and I want to honor that by listening and learning before making significant changes. Collaboration with other arts organizations is also key. I see this as an opportunity to expand our reach while celebrating Oakland’s diversity.

JK: Can you share a memorable moment that shaped you as an Artistic Director? How do you balance being a leader, artist, and advocate?

BS: One of my most moving experiences was performing Messiah during my master’s program. The emotional power of that final "Amen" left every performer in tears—proof of what we can achieve together. Balancing leadership, artistry, and advocacy is about collaboration and authenticity. I strive to create a space where all voices are heard while ensuring the chorus remains focused and connected.

JK: What are you most looking forward to as OaklandGMC embarks on this new chapter?

BS: I’m excited to build community through music. This role feels like a two-way street—where I give my best but also gain so much in return. It’s a joy to create not just great music but a shared experience where everyone feels uplifted and valued.

Bruce’s passion for music and community shines brightly, and we’re thrilled to welcome him to OaklandGMC. Stay tuned for an exciting 26th season as we begin this new chapter together!

Pride Giving Month

oaklandgmc@gmail.com (Oakland GMC) — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 20:00:00 GMT

Support the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus this Pride Month!

Join us in celebrating Pride Month with the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus! This June, we are proud to present our "Pride Through Song" campaign, a month-long celebration of unity, diversity, and the power of music.

For over 25 years, the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus has been giving voice to a community where everyone matters. Through our performances, we spread messages of love, acceptance, and hope. But we can't do it alone – we need your support!

By donating to our "Pride Through Song" campaign, you help us continue our mission to create a space where everyone feels included and valued. Your generous contributions will support our concerts, outreach programs, and efforts to uplift and empower the LGBTQ+ community.

Let's make this Pride Month unforgettable. Together, we can harmonize for a brighter future. Visit our website to donate and learn more about how you can make a difference.

Donate today and be a part of something truly special. Together, we can create a symphony of pride and love.

A Celebration with the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus

oaklandgmc@gmail.com (Oakland GMC) — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 19:45:00 GMT

By Seth Frost (He/Him), Board Secretary, Baritone.

As we welcome Pride Month, it's a time to reflect, celebrate, and honor the journey of the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus (OGMC). Our chorus was established in 1999, and since joining in 2018, I have been proud to be part of this vibrant community. From my very first interaction, I felt a warm embrace, an invitation to be part of something bigger than myself. For many, like myself, OGMC has been a core connection to the queer community, especially for those who came out later in life. Performing shows is more than a passion; it's our way of enriching the broader community in Oakland and the SF Bay Area, showcasing the joy found in queer life.

At the heart of OGMC is our mission statement: "The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus gives voice through song to a community where everyone matters." This guiding principle shapes everything we do. Being in a chorus means standing bravely in public, singing, supporting each other, and creating something more beautiful than any of us could achieve alone.

This Pride Month, we're particularly excited about our 25th Anniversary Season, featuring "You Can’t Stop The Beat." This show is a showcase of our talents, with small ensemble and solo pieces prepared by our members. It's also a preview of the music we'll be taking to the national GALA festival in Minneapolis later this summer. Songs like "True Colors" are on the lineup, and I can't wait to see my friends shine.

Celebrating Pride in Oakland and at the GALA Festival is especially significant this year. Our recent commission from Marques L. A. Garrett, requested by popular demand, highlights the collaborative spirit of our members. This show, filled with solos and special performances, is a true celebration of our talented membership.

What does Pride mean to you?

Seth Frost (He/Him), Board Secretary, Baritone.

Pride is a call to step forward and assert that we matter, that our voices deserve to be heard. Pride events counteract hate and help heal the shame within ourselves. Singing loudly and proudly, we offer comfort and a beacon to those who can't yet express themselves authentically. Our year-round performances often end with the chorus spreading out around the audience, fostering a sense of community, welcome, and safety for all.

June Kamerling (She/Her), Tenor 1

Pride is a celebration of the LGBTQ community and all it stands for. By participating in events like Oakland Pride and Alameda Pride, we give back to the community and practice visibility and inclusion. The impact of our events is profound, creating a supportive community where everyone feels they belong.

Shawn Simon (He/Him), Board Vice President, Base

Pride means being able to love ourselves unconditionally and seeing others empowered to live authentically. It's important to celebrate Pride to remind ourselves of our worth, connect with our community, and honor our history. Organizing events like our concerts has been profoundly impactful, creating an inclusive community and supporting local organizations.

Si, Se Puede!

Sun, 24 Mar 2024 23:51:13 GMT

By Melvin Terry

March 31st was declared Cesar Chavez Day in 2014 by President Barack Obama. Cesar Chavez (March 31, 1927 – April 23, 1993) founded along with Delores Huerta the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), which later merged with the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC) to become the United Farm Workers (UFW) labor union .

International Women’s Day was first celebrated in the early 20th century and became a mainstream global holiday in 1977. It helps to focus attention on women and concerns such as gender equality, equal wages, and violence and abuse against women. Another important issue is the lack of attention paid to the substantial contributions of women.

Although Cesar Chavez has been celebrated with a holiday and much has been publicized about him, Delores Huerta was an equal partner. Despite the hindrance of gender bias and sexism, she was critical in organizing the 1965 Delano strike of 5,000 grape workers and was the lead negotiator in the workers’ contract that followed. Huerta organized workers, negotiated contracts, advocated for safer working conditions including the elimination of harmful pesticides. She also fought for unemployment and healthcare benefits for agricultural workers. She came to prominence in the nationwide table grape boycotts in the late 1960s that led to a successful union contract by 1970.

Dolores Huerta is a living civil rights icon. She was born Dolores Clara Fernandez, on April 10, 1930 in Dawson, a small mining town in the mountains of northern New Mexico. Her father Juan Fernández, a farm worker and miner by trade, was a union activist who ran for political office and won a seat in the New Mexico legislature in 1938. Following her parents’ divorce, her mother struggled working as a waitress and cannery worker saving money, which she used to buy a small hotel and restaurant. She was also a community activist which further instilled a vision for service in Dolores.

Unfortunately, discrimination also helped shape Huerta. Imagine, a schoolteacher, prejudiced against Hispanics, accused Huerta of stealing another student’s work, because her papers were too well-written.

During World War II in Los Angeles, American servicemen and white Angelenos attacked and stripped children, teenagers, and youths who wore zoot suits, ostensibly because they considered the outfits, which were made from large amounts of fabric, to be unpatriotic. In 1945 at the end of World War II, white men brutally beat her brother for wearing a Zoot-Suit.

New PaIn 1955 Huerta began her career as an activist when she co-founded the Stockton chapter of the Community Service Organization (CSO), which led voter registration drives and fought for economic improvements for Hispanics. That year she married fellow activist Ventura Huerta.

At age 58 Dolores suffered a life-threatening assault during a peaceful and lawful protest against the policies of then presidential candidate George Bush in San Francisco. A baton-wielding officer broke four ribs and shattered her spleen. Public outrage resulted in the San Francisco Police Department changing its policies regarding crowd control and police discipline and Dolores was awarded an out of court settlement.

Dolores partnered up with Gloria Steinem in the 1960’s in an alliance that consciously incorporated feminism into her fight for workers' rights, positively impacting how female workers were treated. Additionally, Steinem used her influence in the feminist movement to include issues surrounding race and feminism to show it was no longer a movement just for white women. The Feminist Movement with Dolores Huerta, Gloria Steinem, and Angela Davis

The recipient of many honors, Huerta received the Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Award in 1998 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012. As of 2015, she was a board member of the Feminist Majority Foundation, the Secretary-Treasurer Emeritus of the United Farm Workers of America, and the President of the Dolores Huerta Foundation. Did you know that In 2018, Governor Jerry Brown designated April 10th as Dolores Huerta Day in California?

Despite all her accomplishments and accolades, her role in the farm workers movement has long been overshadowed by that of Cesar Chavez; that's true even when it comes to credit for coining the movement's famous slogan, Sí se puede!

This cry to battle has long been credited to Cesar Chaves but here’s the rest of the story:

Back in the 60’s when Dolores and Cesar met with local leaders in the farm worker’s movement, the leaders lamented that the grower lobby that dominated state politics, the legislature and governor was too powerful, and couldn’t be beaten. Cesar and Dolores listened while they explained why fasting and other efforts by farm workers would be fruitless.

“No, no se puede!” (“No, no it can’t be done”), they kept repeating in Spanish. Then Dolores responded, “Si, si se puede!” (“Yes, yes, it can be done”).

Dolores made the slogan the rallying cry for the farm workers’ campaign in Arizona.

President Barack Obama adopted the English version "Yes, we can!" first during the Democratic Party of Illinois primaries leading up to 2004 Illinois elections to the US Senate. Obama acknowledged Huerta as the source of that phrase when he awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.

Amazingly at 93, Dolores Huerta continues to engage in good trouble, establishing a lasting legacy by developing the next generation of leaders while advocating for the working poor, women, and children. As founder and president of the Dolores Huerta Foundation, she travels across the country engaging in campaigns and influencing legislation that supports equality and defends civil rights.

African American Library, a Little History of Oakland

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 02:28:44 GMT

By Melvin Terry

Oakland is a diverse vibrant community with a goldilocks climate and an assortment of parks and trails with opportunities for exercise, socializing, and stunning visuals. It also has the benefits and drawbacks that come with a large city.

But did you know about the history of Black migration to Oakland in the 1940’s and the rich culture that flourished in West Oakland back then?

7th Street, now the home of West Oakland BART and the sprawling main post office, was the hub of the community. There were many Black owned businesses and music venues. It was bustling and the place to be.

The arrival of the railroad porters employed by the Pullman Palace Car Company as early as 1867, was the catalyst that transformed the area into a true community. The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters Union became the first African American- led union to sign a contract with a large American company.

During World War II many African Americans moved to Oakland because of the job opportunities. The Black population grew from 3 % in 1940 to 15% by 1950; the vast majority living in West Oakland. Doctors, lawyers, and other professionals joined high skilled blue-collar workers to make up the city’s black middle class.

The heart and soul of 7th Street were the music venues, jazz and blues clubs; there were 15 clubs along 7th Street in the 40’s. A new style of music was developed called West Coast Blues influenced by the music the southerners brought along with them. Can you imagine walking down 7th Street while the night is filled with all sorts of vibrations: jazz, bebop, swing, and the blues. You could take your pick and while the night away dancing and listening, with your favorite cocktail.

Unfortunately, as the war ended, the availability of jobs diminished, and West Oakland gradually declined. It was still going into the 50’s when urban renewal and BART development put the final nail in the coffin. You can still find many beautiful Victorian homes in West Oakland, but many were destroyed for the Cypress freeway and aforementioned projects which further divided the community.

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is Representing The East Bay at GALA!

Mon, 25 Dec 2023 04:59:12 GMT

By Melvin Terry

It doesn’t seem so long ago when I first heard of GALA (GayLa), a sort of choral Olympics where queer folks from around the world get together every four years to celebrate our existence and joyously sing for each other. Well, it was 16 years ago, when I first joined the then Oakland East-Bay Gay Men’s Chorus in 2007.

Fast forward to 2012; inspired by 2008 about 30 members attended GALA in Denver after working very hard to be mostly off book. We showed up in our new outfits of snappy GAP jeans and iridescent vests. The three venues were spectacular, and there were about 5000 attendees.

In 2016 when GALA was held in Denver again, about 6000 attended. Apart from our own set we were joined by the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Chorus performing "Was It the Wind?" which was composed for us by Jack Curtis Dubowsky with lyrics by East Bay poet Ina Coolbrith. That was quite a thrill. (Click below to watch).

After our individual set a group of people were very enthusiastically cheering and clapping when we exited. At first, we weren’t sure what to make of it until they started shouting “Bravo Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus”. When I remember that moment, I get goosebumps all over again.

Another wonderful part of the festivals has been the ability to see all the other choruses perform, from as small as 6 people to the mega choruses from the major cities like NYC, Chicago, Seattle and Minneapolis.

Los Angeles always does some fantabalous production a la Hollywood, San Francisco doesn’t disappoint, and Heartland Chorus of Kansas usually surprises with a craftily organized moving theme concert. Of course, our sets have gotten better and better. (Click below to watch).

There were brave choruses from mainland China and Cuba, whose very presence was heart- warming and inspirational.

Did I mention there are parties? Well, there are quite a few of them. You can let your hair down, have a great time and meet people from all over. Some people have even met future spouses and definitely, some future ex-spouses.

Above and beyond, it has been a great opportunity for chorus members to get to know each other and to experience the cities we visit together. Some chorus members coordinate make side trips either before or after the festival to enjoy the local nature. (Click below to experience some of the highlights)

Unfortunately, GALA 2020 was cancelled due to COVID, so 2024 in Minneapolis will be the first time we will perform at GALA as the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus and with our new logo.

Previous GALA’s have been so uplifting and life-affirming. 2024 is going to be such a great experience for all of us that we want as many members to attend as possible.

That means that financial means should not be a barrier. There is a scholarship fund for membership and a special GALA fund to assist members who need it to make it to the festival. The costs will be substantial (registration, flight, and hotel).

Anyone who has the means and would like to donate to the GALA fund Please contact Dustin Bankston at dustinbankston@gmail.com or go to our donation website: https://www.oaklandgmc.org/give

Aaron Hughes Interview with June Kamerling

Sat, 21 Oct 2023 22:05:53 GMT

By June Kamerling

Welcome to Aaron Hughes, recent-ish chorus member and our new Marketing Committee Chair. Aaron took over being chair of the chorus PR Marketing Committee when our former fearless Leader Denis Whitaker moved to Ohio last summer. Aaron comes to the marketing committee with loads of background in group management and organization.

As I ask everyone I interview this first question, I asked Aaron as well….”How did you find OGMC”?
AH: “It was just post pandemic, I was searching for the next thing I wanted to do. I did a google search and found that OGMC was having auditions. I reached out through a meet up group and got no response. I persevered and I later found out about the summer Sondheim Concert (this was summer 2022) Auditions and an open rehearsal were coming up. I went to the rehearsal to check it out and see what it’s like. I loved the feeling of this East Bay LGBTQ chorus community. I auditioned….and I was in. I even got a solo, the first concert as King George in the Hamilton song, “You’ll Be Back”.

I asked, “What is your musical background?”
AH: “In my earlier days I sang in a lot of chorus’s as a boy. I also played a bunch of instruments, but my true love was musical theater. My under grad is musical theater. I performed a lot in Australia, where I’m from. In my 20’s, I was passionate about Sondheim. I loved the PBS specials on the various Sondheim shows….(I’d watch in between other musical theater breaks). I got to see Company on Broadway the year Patty Lupone was in it”.

J: “Would you talk about your sense of the chorus and how you got involved with PR Marketing?”
AH: “Going into the chorus was my first opportunity to do something that was purely me. I was hugely nervous. I hadn’t done anything like this in 8 or 9 years. I felt like a deer in headlights. However, everyone was so friendly and welcoming, the chorus is where I found my “family”. I didn’t expect such an embrace of new people and non cliquey feeling as I’ve found in other chorus’s. It blew my expectation… having women and trans people in the chorus, being pronoun specific and respectful. There was so much care and attention to Covid policies. This was a different experience than other LGBTQ organizations I’ve been involved with. People were genuine, the music was wonderful and the organization seemed solid and like something I would like to be involved with. I think we don’t toot our own horn enough about how unique we are as an LGBTQ chorus”.

J: “ What got you into being head of marketing- what’s your general sense of the structure of the chorus, aside from singing?”
AH: “As I got more into the ‘behind the scenes’ of musical theater, I became a bit disillusioned and burned out so I stepped away for a while. I got a Master’s degree in Switzerland and travelled the world. Career-wise, I’m a chameleon. I was involved in mortgage, then hospitality for many years… now I have my own marketing firm.

Within a year I’ve seen a massive arc in this chorus which lead me to wanting to be PR marketing chair. I entered the chorus at a seminal point of shift. The chorus came back after pandemic. Elements were shifting with-in leadership. There is an extraordinary amount of work that happens behind the scenes to have us where we are today. It’s pretty epic…..We’re having sold out shows back to back!! This is because of all the people in leadership, the strong foundation that has evolved.

When it comes to Marketing and PR, I tend to get passionate for the WHY… Why do you want to do this as an organization? What’s the story? I started seeing challenges… an organization coming into transition. Some of the software systems we’ve utilized need to change and grow so that we can more clearly tell our story. So that we can be more visible in the community.

Technology has changed so much over the years. We have to keep up with it and add it to PR marketing in order to be able to put ourselves out there to our members, our audience, our donors. Are we engaging with them? There are so many platforms available; Tic Toc, Instagram, Eventbrite, etc. Our audience base is diverse. Our communication ways need to be as diverse. I believe I bring this knowledge to this organization and to PR Marketing at this time… An understanding of these generational elements; Creating a space where this community gets to learn together. It’s a safe space where we get to tell our story. We get to add different elements of our visibility together.”

J:“This is a big turning point- how do you envision the chorus going into the future”?
AH:“I don’t think we celebrate how unique and spectacular we are. I see us being able to celebrate our story…..our history. Going into our 25 ^th year as a chorus is extraordinary.

I joined this organization because of how people made me feel. I know I’m not alone in this. I can only see an organization like this growing and getting bigger, I don’t think it matters how big in numbers we get. We will not lose the authenticity that we have. I will continue to look at where I can be of value”.

J: “Thank you Aaron for taking on this really important job as chair of PR Marketing. As a member of the PR Marketing committee I can already see a big difference in Our organization and push to become more visible out in the world as an LGBTQ chorus.”

True Colors Concerts: Oakland Gay Men Chorus Featuring New Voices Bay Area TIGQ Chorus

Sat, 01 Apr 2023 17:25:20 GMT

By Melvin Terry

We are thrilled to be joined by New Voices Bay Area TIGQ Chorus a mixed-voice choral ensemble for singers who self-identify as transgender, intersex, or gender-queer (TIGQ).

Their goal is to build a creative, empowered, joyful space for our TIGQ community, to encourage voices that have been silenced or shamed, to grow and be heard, and to change how the world thinks about gender identity and music.

In these troubled times when there are multiple attempts to roll back rights for Queer, Black and Brown people such as far-right commentator Michael Knowles announcing from the Conservative Political Action Conference stage a few weekends ago that “transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely,” and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas hinting that after Roe Vs Wade was struck down other previous decisions should be revisited. Many of us are afraid that this conservative activist court might strike down same-sex marriage. There are many bills either passed or pending throughout the country restricting the ability to vote. Most affected by these new laws are Black and Brown people and people with limited means.

Fortunately, some of us are showing our true colors and pushing back: A Nebraska Democrat, State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh began her filibuster during a Senate meeting a few weeks ago vowing to filibuster every bill her state Senate colleagues introduce if they support a measure that would restrict certain transition-related health care for minors.

“If this Legislature collectively decides that legislating hate against children is our priority, then I am going to make it painful, painful for everyone,” - Cavanaugh said during the meeting.

The mission of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is to give voice through song to a community where everyone matters. Through our repertoire, we aim to offer hope and encouragement to those in our community struggling with bullying, depression, and mental health and those who love them.

These issues are highlighted in “You Are Enough” from Aron Accurso’s “A Mental Health Suite”. We believe you will be inspired and uplifted by Jonathan Larsen’s “Seasons of Love (from Rent),” Sara Bareilles’ pop hit “Brave,” and our title song “True Colors,” originally sung by Cyndi Lauper.

“My Heart Be Brave” is a stirring and reflective piece composed by African American composer, Marques L. A. Garrett and based on a Sonnet by James Weldon Johnson, also African American, who along with his brother John wrote the words and music to “Lift Every Voice and Sing”, the Black National Anthem.

Seth Frost & Kelvin Ellis Interview with June Kamerling

Sat, 01 Apr 2023 17:17:27 GMT

By June Kamerling

With our upcoming spring concert, “True Colors,” a few weeks away I interviewed Seth Frost and Kelvin Ellis, two baritones in Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus. They both also sing with New Voices Bay Area Trans, Intersex and Genderqueer Chorus, who will be joining OGMC for a few songs.

I asked Seth first, “How did you find OGMC, and what was the chorus like when you first joined?”

“My former voice teacher Eli Conley ( www.eliconley.com ) told me about OGMC. He knew Billy Sauerland, our previous director before Ben, because Billy did his dissertation on voice education for trans people and Eli is passionate about teaching trans singers. That was in summer 2018, so I’ve been in OGMC for roughly 10 seasons.

I was nervous at first because I hadn’t been a part of a queer chorus before, but everyone was really friendly and welcoming. My first concert was the summer show, kind of Disney-esque. Some of the members were auditioning for small ensembles, and doing all this cool singing/dancing and there were costumes. It was pretty amazing and really fun.

Most memorable was Billy announcing that there would be a giant evil Donald Trump head during the theme song from ‘Little Shop of Horrors’. I thought he was kidding. He wasn’t.”

Seth moved to the Bay Area in 2015 from Lawrence, Kansas. He took piano lessons as a child, and later sang in the civic choir in his home town. He didn’t have traditional voice lessons until he started with Eli. Seth’s mom had played clarinet in high school, so Seth followed suit, but eventually quit band because it conflicted with the Latin class he wanted to take (“I was the wrong kind of nerd for marching band”).

Next I talked to Kelvin, one of the newer members of OGMC.

“I found my way to OGMC in January 2022, through Seth. I grew up in a family of singers and musicians, and I was interested in singing but not at all confident in my voice. I did take piano. Around 2012 I took my first taiko drumming class and loved it. In 2018, after coming out, I found a group called Queer Taiko which I still perform with periodically ( taikoandcommunity.org/queertaiko ). [Seth says he’s very good.] We do some vocalizing, like shouting words and sounds, and the teacher was very encouraging, so that kind of unlocked my voice finally. Then in 2020, a friend-of-a-friend recommended ‘New Voices.’ I joined on Zoom during lockdown, and it was like part chorus, part support group. When we resumed rehearsing in person, I met Seth. We sat next to each other, and then started carpooling from the East Bay, and… On one of our first dates, Seth was gushing about this other chorus he was in (and on the board of). I was nervous but it sounded super fun and I wanted to finally get into singing. OGMC has been a blast. I feel like I’m finally in the right place at the right time.”

About New Voices

New Voices Bay Area Trans, Intersex and Gender Queer Chorus will be joining Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus in our April 15 ^th and 16 ^th concerts “True Colors”.

New Voices Bay Area TIGQ chorus is run like a (free!) tuition class through San Francisco Community Music Center.

Here is a little about them, including a socially-distanced recording made for the 2021 Billboard Music Awards: https://ybgfestival.org/event/new-voices-bay-area-tigq-chorus/

They’ve been around since 2018 and sing about 4-5 engagements a year. The chorus is comprised of about 30 men, women and a wide variety of people with non-binary gender identities.

Rather than SATB, the voice categories are numbered as 1, 2, 3, 4. Singers are able to move from one part to another as they feel comfortable, and there are often in-between parts, “1.5, 3.5” etc.

The director is Reuben Zellman, one of the first openly trans rabbis in the country ( https://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuben_Zellman ).

“How did it come to be that we’re singing together?”

Seth has been telling each group about the other for a while, trying to be a bridge between the two. Previous director Billy was especially aware of trans issues in the singing community and worked hard to make the chorus a trans-friendly place. When Billy left, Seth made it his job to bridge the two choruses. Brian Tognotti, on the artistic committee of OGMC, asked Seth who to talk to, and Seth got him in touch with Reuben.

In our time talking, we discovered that Kelvin’s parents were in The Berkeley Broadway Singers chorus with me many years ago (small world).

Tribute from OGMC to Curtis Marsh

Mon, 13 Mar 2023 02:49:37 GMT

By Steve Smith, Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus Board of Directors

Frequently the brightest spot in anyone’s day is the person who looks after their hair. In those intimate conversations, we trust that person with news, opinions, and world-problem-solving. During the pandemic, Curtis Marsh became one of those pilgrims who made house calls to keep people presentable, sane, and somewhat connected to other humans. Imagine the brightest of bright spots once a month outside on the little deck at my place!

We sang together in the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus, which gives voice through song to a community where everyone matters. When Curtis joined in 2019, we had just been invited to work with the Oakland Symphony Chorus to perform Beethoven pieces with Emmanuel Ax under Michael Morgan’s direction. As an accomplished Tenor, Curtis was thrilled with the opportunity and plunged into performance mode. An amazingly rewarding cooperative experience was the result.

Curtis was born to perform and to delight audiences. He brought style and verve to every event, large and small. While everyone was scrambling to make things work during the pandemic, Curtis was one of our group of 70 or so who could not safely sing inside with large groups of people, so he and I kept up through the monthly haircut housecalls.

A favorite set of conversations about travel and keeping in touch with friends and family despite every obstacle were Curtis’ grand plans for his High School Reunion to be held this past summer back in Iowa. Although some classmates apparently proposed a fairly modest one-evening event, Curtis was determined to expand the scope and see to it that a 3-day party was in order. Sending wigs and gowns ahead, Curtis arranged an evening for all at Roederer’s Pit Stop in Burlington IA. I can only imagine the sheer delight he created for all those folks he used to know.

His murder Saturday is all about shock and horror. How much hate can there be lurking in the soul of some other person in a sweet Oakland neighborhood where Curtis had lived among friends for 15 years? The life force of this man was a gift deserving love, gratitude, and applause. We salute Curtis and will rely upon law enforcement in Oakland to apprehend his killer and to prevent that evil from continuing in our community.

With love from the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus.

Oakland GMC Honors Black History Month with “My Heart Be Brave”

Sun, 12 Feb 2023 01:02:31 GMT

by Melvin Terry

February marks Black History Month, a tradition that got its start in the Jim Crow era and became official in 1976, with President Ford calling on the public to "seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history." For our spring concerts, “True Colors,” the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus will be performing “My heart be brave,” an important contribution to music in the Black tradition, composed in 2022 by Marques L.A. Garrett. He’s given us a setting of “Sonnet,” written by James Weldon Johnson in 1893.

A Virginia native, Marquis L.A. Garrett is an Assistant Professor of Music. at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Before earning his PhD in Music Education at Florida State University he was the Director of Choral Activities at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania. He holds an MM from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and a BA from Hampton University. An active conductor, Dr. Garrett is the artistic director of the Omaha Symphonic Chorus and founding conductor of the Nebraska Festival Singers. This is the first time Oakland GMC has had the opportunity to perform his music.

James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) is a name we remember today for having written the lyrics for " Lift Every Voice and Sing ” in 1900, which later became known as the Negro National Anthem. The music was written by his younger brother, J. Rosamond Johnson .

In 1897 James Weldon Johnson became the first African American admitted to the Florida Bar Exam since the Reconstruction era ended. Under President Theodore Roosevelt he was appointed U.S. consul in Venezuela and then Nicaragua for most of the period from 1906 to 1913. From 1920 to 1930 he was Executive Secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). In 1934, he was the first African American professor to be hired at New York University, and later he was a professor of creative literature and writing at Fisk University a historically black university.

Johnson was known during the Harlem Renaissance for his poems, novels, and anthologies collecting both poetry and spirituals of Black culture. “Sonnet” is one of Johnson’s earlier poems, published while the poet was in his early twenties and still attending Atlanta University. He died on June 26, 1938, at the age of 67, after a train struck his car in Wiscasset, Maine. His Harlem funeral was attended by over 2,000 mourners.

Sonnet

My heart be brave, and do not falter so,
Nor utter more that deep, despairing wail.
Thy way is very dark and drear I know,
But do not let thy strength and courage fail;
For certain as the raven-winged night
Is followed by the bright and blushing morn,
Thy coming morrow will be clear and bright;
’Tis darkest when the night is furthest worn.
Look up, and out, beyond, surrounding clouds,
And do not in thine own gross darkness grope,
Rise up, and casting off thy hind’ring shrouds,
Cling thou to this, and ever inspiring hope:
Tho’ thick the battle and tho’ fierce the fight,
There is a power making for the right.

James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938)

Garrett describes his relationship to the poem: “The first and last lines of the Johnson poem immediately stood out to me. In the midst of discrimination, our heart—the core of our being—must lead us into rightful change. And as we continue doing right, the principles of honesty, love, and justice will give us the power to strive for what is due all of humanity.”

Don’t you love learning the back story of a song? It becomes so much more meaningful for the singers and audience. For our spring concerts, “True Colors,” the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus (OGMC) will be performing many wonderful songs— songs that sing of hope, resiliency, and being enough, when there is so much discrimination and divisiveness in the world. We’ll be joined by New Voices Bay Area TIGQ Chorus.

Black history should not be confined to just one month! Black history is American history. Please click on the links above for a deeper dive into this topic.

Visit the Museum of African Diaspora in San Francisco: https://www.moadsf.org

Do a google search for Black History or Black composers. There’s a wealth of information out there.

Wally Bee Interview with June Kamerling

Thu, 22 Dec 2022 23:04:40 GMT

By June Kamerling

I interviewed Wally Bee way back on May 7, 2022 in my backyard in Richmond CA, while our dogs happily romped together.

But no matter how long ago, this info is still current and important.

J: I always ask first, "H ow and when did you find the chorus?"

Wally went onto the internet in 2010 and googled “choruses in the Bay Area”. He found OGMC (then called Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus) and soon after went to the summer pops concert in Oakland.

“I didn’t know what to expect. I’d been in the Bay Area for 2 years and had recently ended a long-term relationship. I’d been in various choirs and musical outlets since childhood. Music has always been an important part of my life and now I wanted to belong to a chorus community and sing with like-minded people.

Michael Patch was the conductor then.

My first season was the holiday show at St. Paul’s Episcopal church.

I auditioned with my own version of “Santa Baby” and got to perform, with Doug Marques as Santa (he has has since moved to Sacramento. It was my first concert solo. Totally fun”!

At his first rehearsal Wally remembered meeting John Rogers, TA, Mel, James, and Jeff and a few others who are still in the chorus. “As seasons passed there were so many new members, as well as different directors between Michael Patch and Ben….Stephanie, Jeremiah, Carl and Billy. The board was re-organizing and there was a lot of work going behind the scenes.

"I joined the board in 2014, and initially served as secretary. There were quite a few challenges in the board work that needed to be done. It wasn’t long before I was elected vice president and worked with Lawrence Turner. I held that position for 2 years, during which we did a lot of fundraisers and refined some of the things we needed to refine as an organization. We wanted it to be part of the larger community. It was important to build that leadership and support structure”.

I commented that the chorus leadership seems so organized to me.

Wally replied, “It was a long road to our current leadership. When I joined the chorus in 2010 the board was heavily involved in operations and constantly looking for new, inspired blood. After serving for two years, 2014-2015, the organization had gained more stability, and was heading towards additional leadership under Dr. Sauerland. When he came on as Artistic Director, I knew we were in good hands so I left the board and decided to take a little time off. After a year, I started singing again, and a few years later in 2020 I joined the board again wanting to be more involved behind the scenes.

I loved the timeline project that Peter Dempsey created. That needs to be finished in memory of him.

We took time to reinvigorate this great organization, then Covid came and we lost a lot of members. We went from about 60 to 40, but the organization allowed us to weather these past few years.

It’s testament to all of the leadership that was there before.

J: Is the chorus community your main community of friends?

W: I also have my motorcycle group of gay friends, but the chorus is consistent and is my artistic outlet.

J: What’s your music background?

W: Music is my whole life. I started playing piano at age 4. I can plunk my way through music on the piano but I don’t sight read very well. I played mostly in church as a kid. In college I tried to be a theater major, then pre-law, then after 2nd year of college I ran for school board.

After college I forgot about music. I was working a lot. My energy was going into other areas of my life…

Till the chorus….I was going through a challenging breakup and analyzing my life and I figured “I should do something with music….that makes me happy”.

Coming to OGMC where I could participate in music with other gay men reminded me of being in a connected community. I love that music is an integral part of my community.

J: What direction do you want to see the chorus take in the next few years?

W: “The world is not imperfect nor is it on a path to perfection…it’s perfect at every moment”. I feel like the organization continues on the path it is finding for itself. We’re on a good path. We want to strive to be better….more members, more $$, but I feel that we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be right now.

That said, I’d like to see us more involved in the community. It can be challenging with 40 members…we all have busy lives. But we can be intentional and do community service projects and outreach.

I returned to the OGMC board right before Covid. One of our committee tasks was how can we engage community? One idea is a community project linked to a concert. We want members to participate via retreats, sectionals, and also things for community.

I hope what we see as an organization is more community involvement that speaks to our mission. Then we’ll attract the folks that we want. I appreciate and support Ben and his artistic leadership. We have the talent. With Ben and his vision we have a great trajectory for the organization. People feel connected to something greater than themselves.

J: Tell me about your songwriting.

W: It wasn’t something I ever dreamed of or pursued as a musician. I dabbled and wrote a song in high school (ie: a poem and added music). I never tried to make it a performative art.

It was actually Fancy Brian (Brian Murakami) who inspired me. Fancy writes beautiful poetry and I was inspired by his poem “Past Your Darkness”. With that inspiration I realized I actually can write music. My 2nd song came after a long and emotional phone conversation with my mom…”Love is All That Matters”….. I had heard a few people sing it as a solo. I approached our accompanist, Lynden Bair, about making it into a choral arrangement and he connected me with Tim Sarsany who arranged the piece currently in the OGMC library. This was in 2019.

J: I remember Don Martin sang it at my house at a Miss Smith class

W: That was the first time heard it performed. I received the arrangement New Year's Day 2020. I gave it to Ben and he programmed it for the April 2020 season - “Be The Change”….and then Covid and so we didn’t get to perform it in person for that season. Instead we were able to put it together for a Thanksgiving release as a virtual choir. It was fun to sing it as a virtual choir…..and then we performed it for our Welcome Back concert in person which was really amazing.

Now I have another one that is yet to be named that will come out soon. I’d like to find a music publisher and have them for sale at GALA. I’d love to see OGMC perform both songs at GALA and then I share them with the greater choral world. Each piece of music I wrote took about 3 months. Siddhartha (the current one) has been on paper for a long time. It’ll happen.

Aside from having OGMC perform my compositions, I have had the distinct privilege of refining some of my musical abilities and connecting with other organizations including GALA Choruses, and most recently Berkshire Choral International who perform multiple concerts around the world. I had the joy of singing with BCI in Barcelona during the Summer of 2022, where we performed two classical pieces at the Palau de la Musica, under the baton of Grant Gershon, the Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Master Chorale, and the Resident Conductor for the Los Angeles Opera. This week-long, immersive choral experience was truly one-of-a-kind, and one that I hope to repeat again soon in another international city. Thanks to OGMC, I have had many experiences with various types of music, which gave me the confidence to sing abroad!

Members Out in the World: TA Dunn

Thu, 06 Oct 2022 16:02:21 GMT

I love go to Science Fiction conventions. I have a membership for DisCon III which was scheduled to take place in Washington D.C. last August. Instead of in person, it will now be a hybrid zoom/attendance con next month. I also go to our local bay area con BayCon. These are nonprofit events that include horror and fantasy as well as sci-fi. The panels that interest me most are about real science topics with panelists that include scientists, writers, and artists. These are very different than the Star Trek conventions which are commercial.

I also ride roller coasters and like visiting museums, and you can occasionally find me at a play or musical here in the Bay Area. I walk an hour in my neighborhood about 5 times a week, go to movies and watch a lot of TV, much of which is PBS.

Members Out in the World: Bruce Carlton

Thu, 06 Oct 2022 15:58:24 GMT

I joined OGMC in the fall of 2019 – just in time to perform in the holiday concert before COVID. What a joy to finally be back together again in this fall of 2021!

I’ve been fascinated by theatre and music ever since I can remember. As a kid in Southern California I had a wooden orange crate in my bedroom that I had turned into a stagehouse. It was on its side, and I could fly sets through the spaces between the slats and move little figures around on the “stage” for rehearsals or performances. My mom rigged up a scalloped curtain on the proscenium arch for the “grand drape.”

As a present for my eighth birthday my parents surprised me by dyeing some sheets purple and creating stage curtains over in one corner of the garage. With my 78rpm record player “backstage” to provide the music, my friends and I would put on shows for ourselves and sometimes for our oh-so-lucky parents.

In fifth grade I had the tremendous good fortune of having Mrs. Edna Garberg as my teacher. She had a background in theatre, and she encouraged me to write a play, “The Wild Ride of Mr. Toad,” which the class then produced and presented. Years and years later, when I was a student at the University of Heidelberg, Mrs. Garberg came to Germany for a visit: We took in as many German theater productions as we could during that week!

My family lived on Okinawa from 1960 to 1962. It was during my freshman year in high school that my algebra teacher recommended me to an Okinawan samisen master, who had taught a blind man to play and was now in the market for an American guinea pig. For the next year-and-a-half I took samisen lessons with Mr. Yamashiro and eventually appeared on Okinawan radio and TV. Heady stuff for a 15-year-old!

One summer in college I performed with San Diego Civic Light Opera (Starlight Opera), but my next “serious” stage work wasn’t until I had finished graduate school and was gainfully employed as a college librarian. I joined the Lamplighters, San Francisco’s Gilbert and Sullivan troupe, where I met my future husband (Richard McCall) in a production of Pirates of Penzance. We moved to Berkeley, named our big Mission Revival style house Penzance, and hosted lots of cast parties. Rich and I were together for 38 years before his death.

When Rich and I retired and moved to Sebastopol, I enrolled as a theatre arts major at Santa Rosa J.C. It was my first formal training. A couple years later I also completed the ACT Summer Training Congress. Sonoma County had a vibrant theatre scene, but after Rich’s death I chose to return to the more immediate Bay Area, where I found a wonderful, bayfront condo in Alameda. I was playing roles all over the Bay Area (CalShakes, San Jose Stage, Stanford) until my aunt’s health deteriorated to the point where I needed to spend more time with her in Southern California, and I couldn’t commit to long rehearsal and performance schedules. That’s when I discovered OGMC! The one weekly rehearsal worked perfectly!

A couple months into the pandemic my 99-year-old aunt passed away (not from COVID). I inherited her three 17-year-old cats and spent lots of pandemic lockdown time with them here in Alameda, looking out at the bay. Other than our OGMC “Love is All that Matters” video, my big artistic adventure during that period was singing virtually with the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus.

Nowadays I’m president of my homeowners’ association; it’s kind of an interesting gig. Then, on Fridays I love commuting by ferry over to San Francisco to volunteer in the ACT Library. Still, most of all I am soooooo happy to be singing again in person with the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus in our wonderful new quarters at Oakland First Pres! The body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.

Response to Community Attacks

Wed, 05 Oct 2022 15:51:52 GMT

Hello Oakland GMC Community,

As we are sure most of you are aware, there has been a wave of attacks against our community on multiple levels. We have seen legislation such as the “ Don’t Say Gay” bill from Florida working to silence and marginalize us. We have seen and heard far right extremists demonize trans individuals and drag performers . And most recently we have seen the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe V. Wade , eliminating federal standards on abortion access.

The threat does not seek to stop there. The words of Justice Clarence Thomas were “In future cases, we should reconsider all of this Court’s substantive due process precedents, including Griswold, Lawrence, and Obergefell. Because any substantive due process decision is ‘demonstrably erroneous,’ we have a duty to ‘correct the error’ established in those precedents”. Griswold v. Connecticut is access to contraceptives without government restriction. Lawrence v. Texas is sodomy. Obergefell v. Hodges is same-sex marriage. These are their spoken judicial plans and do not include the many local and state homophobic/transphobic/misogynistic laws and rulings to come.

In this dark and threatening time, we MUST stand together like never before. We HAVE to have solidarity with each other, we HAVE to fight in each other’s struggles, and we HAVE to do all that we can to win. We must also take care of each other and love each other. There will be some victories, however there will also be many losses. We must brace for that as we move forward. We REFUSE to lose our rights that have been granted to us and we MUST fight to remind this country and ourselves that we deserve and demand equal rights, respect, and love.

Thank you so much for reading this. Remember, though the fight ahead of us will be long and arduous we must do what we can to support each other. We are all we’ve got.

From the Board of Directors of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus.

Photo Credit: Martha Asencio-Rhine / Tampa Bay Times via AP

Sondheim & Company: Broadway Our Way

Fri, 26 Aug 2022 22:06:26 GMT

by Mel Terry

I attended the concert of “Sondheim & Company: Broadway Our Way” with mixed feelings; as a chorus member on leave it was a little sad to not be on stage when there was such fabulous repertoire. On the other hand, it was wonderful to hear how great the chorus sounds from out in the audience.

It was a rousing success! With the house nearly full to bursting, our fans were full of joy. And what an audience it was! We cannot be more gratified and grateful for the return of our loyal fans and to those who have found our family for the first time.

The chorus was in its element, blithely performing Stephen Sondheim’s tongue tripping “Everybody Says Don’t,” and pensively crooning the lyrical “Send in the Clowns.” The blending of the sections during “You Will Be Found” was impressive. There were some tears shed in the audience during “I’m Not My Father’s Son,” and a lot of whooping and hollering with “You Can’t Stop the Beat,” especially when the chorus let loose with the fabulous choreography, aka cool dance moves. “You’ll Be Back,” from Hamilton, was also a great hit.

The soloists throughout were amazing, showcasing the talents of the many individual singers that make up the ensemble.

Dr. Ben Riggs added to the appreciation of the numbers by giving some back story, especially by painting a verbal picture of George Seurat and Pointillism with “Sunday” from Sunday in the Park with George. It was thrilling to be part of the audience that spontaneously rose to its feet with thunderous applause at the end of the concert.

Freight & Salvage is a great venue, large enough to accommodate a sizable audience, small enough to maintain a sense of intimacy. The accessibility by BART is also a bonus. The F & S crew was welcoming and did a great job. Many thanks to all the OGMC volunteers who helped make the operations run smoothly, and to Mark Teixeira for doing the audio recordings.

A special shout out to our sponsor, The Port Bar , in downtown Oakland, located less than a block away from 19th St. BART station. The Port Bar is great place to meet friends, supports the community with fundraisers, and puts on great shows, including Sunday Drag Brunch!

It was great seeing the chorus on stage and watching our membership expand as we return from our pandemic hiatus. We would love to share the joy of community and performance, and see our numbers grow even more. If you or anyone you know can sing in the Tenor, Bass, Baritone range who might be interested, please contact our Membership Coordinator at membership@oaklandgmc.org . and/or join us at our open rehearsals on September 6 and 13, and meet the chorus. Auditions will be on September 17 ^th . We also have opportunities for non-singing volunteers who’d like to be part of our family.

NOTE: All participants will be required to show proof of vaccination for COVID-19. You will be asked to present documentation at the rehearsal site before entering. If you do not have the documentation you will not be allowed into the rehearsal venue. You will only need to present the documentation at your first rehearsal. Masks may be required at rehearsals, at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

We are looking forward to kicking off the season right, with our holiday concerts on December 9, 10, and 11 in Montclair, Walnut Creek, and Oakland. Save the dates!

Change Is Good

Thu, 09 Jun 2022 00:40:31 GMT

Change is Good

By Spike Lomibao

Even if change comes about slowly, it can totally be worth the wait. In April, we finally brought a program to the stage that was in production two years ago! Artistic Director, Dr. Ben Riggs reflected: “Since that time, the world has seen profound change, some for the better and some for the worse. What remains the same is OGMC’s commitment to social justice and societal transformation, one song and one heart at a time.”

And so at our familiar venues in the First Presbyterian Churches of Alameda and Oakland, the Chorus explored several dimensions of change in our lives. Early in Act I “Seize the Day” (from “Newsies”, Menken/Feldman/Emerson) and “Let the Music Fill Your Soul” (Narverud/Bode) were upbeat and uplifting tunes that are truly motivational. There were somber moments in “Refuge” (Walker/Teasdale) and “Prayer for the Children” (Bestor/Klouse) that reminded us of the necessity to foster peace and civility amid social and political unrest. One could not help but think of Ukraine, as the latter song asks “Cryin’ who will help me to feel the love again in my own land?…” The title selection, “Be the Change” (Narverud) wrapped up Act I, encouraging us to take personal initiative toward making the world better: “So I’ll take charge, be brave, work hard, have faith, stand strong for what is good, I’ll be the change.”

In Act II, “It Takes a Village” (Szymko) helped bring home the message that raising a child, which could also apply to social movements, is both a burden and joy experienced by our communities; while “Make Them Hear You” (from “Ragtime”, Flaherty/Ahrens/Funk) speaks to making things happen with active, vocal communication. One noteworthy highlight of the second half was the premiere of “Look Out Above,” arranged for OGMC by composer Jocelyn Hagen and Minneapolis-based hip-hop artist Dessa. With choreography and human percussion in this contemporary piece, the metaphor for the incessant nature of time illustrates that “there’s no stopping us” in the important things we need to accomplish.

Ending on positive notes, baritone Wally Bee introduced and presented his original work, reminding us that in all that we do, “Love Is All That Matters”. While also intended as a live premiere two years ago, the Chorus created a Virtual Choir performance of this beautiful, emotional song in 2020, still available on YouTube . Finally, as is our tradition, the concert was tied up with a feel-good bow of optimism and gratitude for our lives just as they are with “What a Wonderful World” (Weiss/Thiele). It was Dr. Riggs’ hope that the concert would inspire: “to create change where it matters most in your life—because each of us, no matter how small we think we are, can Be the Change.

Speaking of change… of seasons, don’t miss our summer concert on July 9 and 10, at Freight & Salvage in Berkeley: “Sondheim & Company: Broadway Our Way”. This will be a selection of several famous numbers from the theatre, and also a tribute to the genius, who passed away in November 2021.

Members Out In The World: Ethan Solomita

Thu, 09 Jun 2022 00:39:48 GMT

Members Out In The World: Ethan Solomita

In 2021, I enjoyed the result of four years of effort and became an Italian citizen. My great grandfather was born in Italy, and Italy respects citizenship through blood. But what an exploration through my family's past to prove it! Reading old census data to try to find a household with both my grandfather's and great grandfather's names, seeing where they lived during their time, and eventually, tracking him back to his birth place in Italy and obtaining a 150-year-old birth certificate. Five birth certificates, four marriage certificates, and two death certificates later, I had my evidence. Now I also have a passport.

Out of respect for what Italy has just given me, I've been spending a lot of time learning Italian. But making it fun can help you get through the challenges. I decided to read the first three Harry Potter books in Italian, and then listen to their audiobooks. There are also a lot of fun YouTube channels dedicated to helping people learn Italian. Some day, perhaps, I will spend enough time in Italy to become fluent.

Members Out In The World: Ron Correll

Wed, 11 May 2022 21:29:33 GMT

Members Out In The World: Ron Correll

I have always had an interest in music. During my senior year in high school, I discovered my love for dancing and performing. This was because, following the urging of my best friend (who I later realized I also had a crush on) I auditioned for the school’s two drama productions that year: Mash and Godspell. I caught “the bug.”

After high school I pursued my interests in performing, doing community theater and some professional acting, all of which included a lot of musicals. Eventually though I had to “get back to the real world” and do things like finish getting my college degree. So, my love for singing, dancing, and performing got put on hold until 2018.

On July 24, 2018, I met Mike Feichtner. We connected online and started seeing one another, our first date being a magical coffee date at a nearby Starbucks. When talking about my background, I mentioned my love of singing and performing, and it was Mike who told me about the auditions for the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus. He drove me to said auditions, and the rest is history.

On Friday January 11, 2019, we were sitting in a barbershop in Livermore. Mike was getting a haircut. As we were leaving, Mike mentioned that the music that was playing while we were at the shop had caused him to fantasize about us dancing together. He asked if I would be interested in taking dancing lessons. I answered “Sure,” and so we found a local Arthur Murray Studio here in Livermore and had out first Ballroom dancing lesson.

Since then, as a dancing couple, we have never looked back. We have learned more than a dozen dances, gone to actual dance competitions (some virtual, some in person) and just recently received a ranking of “Gold” for a solo/formation we performed with our instructors to the song Feel this Moment, by Pitt Bull featuring Christina Aguilera.

Both the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus and Dancing have continued to be a major part of our lives. On October 24, 2020, Mike and I got married. Because of Covid, we could only have our two dance instructors, our best men, and the officiating Pastor present but the ceremony was aired on YouTube live for people to watch. We were also able to have a “virtual-reception”, which included a recording of the OGMC performing our signature song “What a Wonderful World” and a prerecorded 8-part first dance .

Here’s hoping that everyone’s life is filled with joy, music, love, and dance!

Dustin Bankston Interview with June Kamerling

Fri, 22 Apr 2022 22:29:27 GMT

OGMC Interview with Dustin Bankston,

By June Kamerling

J: How did you find the chorus? Who was the director?

D: I found the chorus in 2011. After finishing law school I was moving to the Bay Area from Sacramento where I was in the Sacramento Gay Men’s Choir. When I moved here I inquired about a gay men’s chorus and found OEBGMC….at that time it was Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus. I was just in time for the holiday show season (Aug 2011). Stephanie Lynne Smith was just starting as interim director at the time. Wally Bee was running the auditions then and was the first person I met. Many of the current members were already in the chorus. Having just come from a gay men’s chorus in Sacramento it was just a nice and easy transfer.

J: What was your music background growing up?

D: I grew up in Mississippi. I started singing in choruses in school and church. I was in Show Choir through high school graduation and then I was in men’s glee club in college. I didn’t do musical theater specifically, but show choir was musical theater-ish…theater adjacent…we did dancing and musical theater songs but I was never IN an actual musical theater show.

J: How long did it take you once you were in OGMC to get involved? What was the progression till you became board president?

D: For a few years I was just a Tenor-2. I was also Section Leader for a bunch of years but that was all I did. Then I started volunteering here and there for other things…working a booth at an event, and one off things that didn’t require a lot of commitment. At some point I became Outreach Coordinator. No one was really doing that in an organized way. Then I was asked to be on the board since I was an attorney…it’s always good to have an attorney on any board. I was on the board for a year before I became President. I did that for 3 years. But now I’m Venue Coordinator…we need someone to investigate appropriate venues for us to sing in. There’s a lot more involved than one would think so it’s a time consuming job. We have to look at size of audience, size of stage (how many singers can fit?) acoustics, restrooms, general location, parking, public transportation, cost. Things you wouldn’t really think about.
We’re looking for venues that are not churches. There is lots of clamor for non-church venues so the competition is great and the rental fees are often high. We have a good number of church venues that work well for us and some of the churches have low rental fees. So Venue Coordinator is a lot of gathering information in a timely fashion season by season. Then I get to organize in order of priority. It's not easy. People don’t realize how much is involved.

J: How is the chorus different now compared to when you first joined? What would you like to see in the future?

D: It’s not dramatically different. We were fairly organized when I came in but we’re more organized now. Things are moving forward. I love the chorus as it is. I like what it does. I don’t need to see something dramatically different because it works for me and for the chorus members. But we can always be better. We can reach more people in the community to have a bigger audience and better shows that include a social justice message. As long as we provide sense of community and artistic outlet for the members, as well as something enjoyable for our audiences then we’re right where we need to be.

J: Do you find that your community of friends are mostly chorus friends? Was that true in Sacramento?

D: Here yes. I’ve made close friends in the chorus. I like that community function of the chorus. It gives us friends and our social group. In Sacramento I was in law school so I had friends from other sources than the chorus.

J: Do you think the chorus needs to grow in people numbers?

D: I think we were on a good track size wise before the pandemic and we’ll get back there. I think it could be a bit bigger but not gigantic. I’m confident it’ll get to where it needs to be. It needs to be large enough to accomplish what we want to accomplish. With about 70 singing members we can get a smooth running organization and great sound. We can do it with 50 too but 70 ish would be ideal in my opinion. I trust that things will organically move to where they need to be. If the chorus gets too big and people are not getting what they want, some will leave.

J: Do you think we need to be more active in attracting racial and gender diversity or do you think it will happen organically?

D: Mostly it can organically happen but at the same time we need to make sure that they are welcome. It may not be obvious and it needs to be obvious that we welcome diversity. We are historically a gay men’s chorus and it needs to stay as that for the community of gay men to be able to come together, be together, be gay men together. It’s performing a function for the gay men community, and then everyone else can be a part of it. Everyone in our chorus who is not a gay man usually has some kind of affinity for gay men in some way. They support the community and want to have that be a part of their community as well. Being primarily a gay men’s organization supports the needs of that community.

Members Out In The World: Steve Smith

Fri, 22 Apr 2022 22:11:09 GMT

Members Out in the World: Steve Smith

I’ve been involved with theater since 1975 when I was in school at Boulder, Colorado as a creative writing major. I got involved in Touring theater originally as a writer, not an actor.

I had written a play, Prints, that was produced several times. After a summer in the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, I was able to take off on this amazing Colorado Caravan adventure with five other actors in a van doing shows and workshops in practically every school in the state.

This work eventually produced an MA in Developmental Theater. It was great fun, an excellent way to get to know all of Colorado, and the means to become deeply comfortable with performing.

The current play, Yards and Porches, has had several Zoom readings during the pandemic. Set in Boulder, it takes off and goes to Alaska, Washington DC, and then eventually to a nebulous place….a waiting place. Eventually, it lands on the primary value of facts, justice, and kindness.

Here is a link to a YouTube reading of Yards and Porches .

Members Out In The World: Mel Terry

Fri, 22 Apr 2022 22:05:09 GMT

Members Out in the World: Mel Terry

In 2009 after singing with OGMC for 2 years, I thought it would be good to get an upgrade on my performance skills. I signed up for a musical theater class at Stagebridge in Oakland, the nation’s oldest and most renowned performing arts organization for older adults.

It was love at first sight. The classes were great, the people were very friendly and welcoming. I felt right at home. I was thrilled to be cast in the play Counter Attack which had 30 performances at the Ashby Stage in Berkeley. The romance continued and eventually I was enticed to join the board of directors; I consummated and currently am the board secretary.

When OGMC went into performance hiatus last March, and performance opportunities were few and far between, I started taking memoir and storytelling classes at Stagebridge via Zoom. Storytelling has been a splendid opportunity to meet new people and develop deeper ongoing relationships. While weaving stories from the fabric of our lives we get to revisit the past and try to make sense of sometimes confusing and hurtful experiences from a more informed perspective. It can be very therapeutic! At the end of each class series, we have a showcase so we can share our performance with family and friends. Here’s my most recent .

Storytelling skills and singing complement each other and this has been a way for me to keep up my voice training and expression during these soon-to-end trying times. On-line learning has been a godsend AND I am so looking forward to singing and storytelling in person again.

Members Out in the World: Joe Rosenmayer

Tue, 01 Mar 2022 02:45:37 GMT

Members Out in the World: Joe Rosenmayer

When I was envisioning my musical career, the thought I might sing on a hip-hop record never crossed my mind! I met Jinks about 10 years ago and when I found out he was a hip-hop artist, we started talking about our musical backgrounds, which were very different, but we both appreciated and respected each others experiences. At some point I brought up (half-joking) how Nelly had Tim McGraw sing on one of his records, and we should do that. Well, several years later he came to me and said he wrote a song based on a video he saw about a kid being bullied in school and no one doing anything about it. The kid got to the point where it was just too much and he snapped on the bully. Jinks was pretty inspired and was hoping his song might raise awareness and serve as a warning to bullies that this might not go the way you planned. He played me a demo version of it and asked me if I wanted to sing the hook.

I immediately said yes, I loved the song and the story behind it. While the song is broad and we don't know the reason this kid is targeted, bullying is something many gay kids (and even adults) have to overcome, so I definitely related to the topic and really wanted to be a part of it. Recording in the studio was fun but also a little intimidating and exhausting. We were there several hours, had to make sure we got it right, and also do all the harmonies that get layered on. Those high and low notes you hear....all me! When he released it earlier this year, the response was great, I've heard of teachers playing it in school, and parents sharing it with their kids who get bullied.

I'm so happy to be part of Big Bully ( iTunes / Amazon ), and now I'm happy to share it with the Oakland GMC community. Enjoy and be kind to each other!

Joe Rosenmayer, aka Jo-E Rose

Members Out in the World: June Kamerling’s Braided Rugs

Tue, 01 Mar 2022 02:41:26 GMT

Members Out in the World: June Kamerling’s Braided Rugs

My mom was an artist. Fabric was her medium. I grew up around fabric and her creations: doll clothes, my clothes, beautiful custom designed garments for women, spectacular creations. I learned to sew at an early age and developed a love for fabric and putting colors and shapes together. Throughout my life I sewed my own clothes, made quilts, fabric wall hangings—and then I had kids and it all stopped except for occasional mending.

Fast forward to 2020. About half-way through the pandemic year of staying home and mostly not working, I dragged out all of my fabric and wondered what I could do with it all. Something was brewing. I wanted to do something with all these great colors and patterns. The previous year I had bought a braided rug on line for my bedroom. Every time I looked at it I thought “I could do that; it looks easy. I’m going to try this.”

I checked out YouTube videos about making braided rugs—there are so many ways to do it. Ultimately I decided I would do it my way, whichever way that was, and I was about to find out. I tore some of my fabric into 3½- to 4-inch strips, tied the ends to a bedpost, and started braiding. I figured out how to overlap the strips with the next strip rather than stitching them together. (It's too much work to stitch). I learned as I braided: what works and doesn’t work, what fabrics work better than others, and how to keep the top smooth with no ragged ends. After I braided many feet of fabric I started hand sewing with a needle and embroidery thread.

The hardest part was getting started, but once I had a small circle going the rest followed easily but painstakingly slow. If I wanted a 3-foot rug, I learned that I needed about 100 feet of braid, so after sewing about 50 feet I went back and braided more. And so on and so on.

I’m now on my 5th rug. I’m excited about this one because I’m working with specific colors. I haven’t done that yet and can’t wait to see what the end product will be.

I give them all away. The joy for me is in the creating for a particular special person in my life. I get to “have” the rug while I’m making it, so I don’t need to keep it. I have photos. This is the first one I’m timing. So far about 15 hours and I still have another 50 feet to braid and 75 feet to sew. I’m guessing roughly 30 hours of work for one rug plus a lot of episodes of mindless shows. (I have to admit here that I’ve never watched The Golden Girls, so that has gotten me through the past rug or two.)

This work feeds my creative passion. It's meditative and relaxing. I figure I’ll keep making braided rugs for as long as the creative fire keeps burning and my hands hold out! I’m always happy to take fabric scraps that you’d like to get rid of.

The Injustice of Kyle Rittenhouse

Tue, 11 Jan 2022 03:17:37 GMT

A Letter from Shawn Simon
The Injustice of Kyle Rittenhouse

Hi everyone,

By now I’m sure that you’ve heard the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse in the killing of Anthony Huber, Joseph Rosenbaum, and the shooting of Gaige Grosskreutz.

I wish I could say that I was shocked by this. As a 17 year old Kyle was driven by his mother across state lines, legally purchased an AR-15 due to a loophole in Wisconsin hunting laws, and then shot 3 people with that AR-15, killing 2. He was empowered by his mother who drove him across state lines. He was empowered by the officers that did not arrest him immediately after that shooting. He was empowered by the conservatives that raised funds and praised him (including Congress Members like Rep. Gaetz and Rep. Cawthorn who said they’d consider Kyle for an internship). He was empowered by a judicial system that did not allow those who died to be called “victims”, encouraged protestors to be referred to as “rioters and looters”, said a video of Kyle saying he was eager to shoot people with his AR-15 was not relevant, and that continued to coddle and cradle him ‘til he received his acquittal.

This is what we are up against. This is the anti-racism work we have to do. As a chorus, we have to stand up and call out these societal and systematic injustices. We have to take action within our community to help it heal. We have to cultivate a space where our people of color can feel vulnerable, be heard, and heal.

To our chorus members of color that are hurting, I feel and mirror your pain. As I said I am not shocked by this decision; however, I am still hurt by it. Take the time you need to recover and heal. However, do NOT become normalized to this. We are in a society that pushes for the normalization of violence against us and we CANNOT accept it.

To every other chorus member, keep doing the hard work. You can reach the people we cannot. Make the uncomfortable phone calls. Have the tough conversations. Reach the people that we cannot. Anti-racism is rarely comfortable but it is always important. This is your part in anti-racist work.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I wish us all healing and action as we continue to fight against a multitude of oppressive systems.

Shawn Simon
BLM Coalition, Board of Directors

Members Out in the World: Dave Burdios-Woemmel

Mon, 10 Jan 2022 22:41:14 GMT

Members Out in the World:

Dave Burdios-Woemmel

It’s hard to believe it’s been over a year since we all sang together! Our world changed fast, and put a halt on some big plans.

I was all set to have a live solo Cabaret show on March 27, 2020 when the world shut down. Things moved online, and I was asked to reimagine the show to perform a Miss Smith Presents livestream fundraiser show in July, “With Our Two Hands”, featuring my friend Bobby Weinapple on guitar. Together we raised over $1500 for Ohlhoff House. This performance was followed by a group fundraiser concert of original songs in November, starring Jeff Becker along with Don Martin, June Kamerling and yours truly.

During this year I’ve also been inspired to write music; I composed four new songs. I’m grateful music has remained a part of my life throughout the pandemic.

The other exciting event in my life last year was getting married to my partner of many years, Brayth Burdios. My husband and I had plans for a larger wedding with all of our friends and family, but Covid said “nope”. Not knowing what the election outcome might be, we decided to go ahead with our original wedding date on 10/10/20. We had a small ceremony and reception at the Monterey Plaza Hotel which we were able to live stream for family and friends to tune in. Even our doggy-daughter Eska participated in the ceremony and walked down the aisle. Thanks to all for your well wishes and support!

Members Out In The World: Brian Tognotti

Tue, 28 Dec 2021 20:42:12 GMT

Members Out in the World:
Brian Tognotti

Brian Tognotti (Baritone) had a passion for LGBTQ film for many years and in late 2019 began production on his first film Just Ask Him , a romantic short set in high school. Completed in early 2020, the film was released on the festival circuit just as the pandemic was causing film festivals to go virtual. Just Ask Him was accepted into festivals in St. Louis, Palm Springs and San Francisco and won an award for Outstanding Excellence - Drama in the LGBTQ-U Unbordered International Film Festival. The film was released on YouTube in January 2021 and reached 100,000 views in 9 days and is now just shy of 400,000 views.

Brian is now working on another romantic short film called Ravioli Night and a web series in collaboration with fellow Bay Area queer filmmaker Shawna Khorasani. Check out Just Ask Him and Brian's YouTube page .

Members Out In The World: Gaelynn Sparker

Tue, 28 Dec 2021 20:38:01 GMT

Members Out in the World:

Gaelynn Sparker

Thanks to a father who only encouraged "real careers" and growing up in rural TX where only "manly things" are okay for boys I've had a life-long struggle with embracing my creativity. I flirted with a lot of "hobbies" as an escape from the oppression of living in TX, and for a brief time I did foil-wrapped stained glass (and still have a few pieces hanging in the house), but I kinda' fell off this path during the move to the Bay Area in 2000 and embracing a corporate career. Joining OGMC was my first step back on the path toward nurturing my inner artist. Thanks, everyone, for your support on this journey! During the pandemic I've finally made great strides toward pulling my inner artist out of the art closet. (That's a thing right?) I've picked up stained glass again but in a new format: mosaics.

I love working in glass because SPARKLY!, and I love mosaics because they support a more spontaneous form of expression that's far more forgiving than stained glass windows. Also, you can incorporate almost anything into your composition if you're motivated enough.

For my first non-class-related mosaic project I decided to combine mosaics with my long-standing geek love for Dungeons & Dragons. I had a wall in the game room to fill, so I set myself a high bar of one mosaic representing each D&D school of magic. One silver lining of pandemic times is that I had a lot of time to work on this project, and I'm so pleased with the final results. I hope they bring some of the same sparkly color and joy to your life as they do to mine. For more photos, check out my Instagram or if you're feeling especially inspired by my work I also have a Patreon . (An Etsy store is somewhere on the horizon as well.) And if you're a geek who wants the full explanation of each school of magic, check out the Instagram photo captions .

Now I'm contemplating what my next project(s) might be. I hope to soon explore cement sculpture in pursuit of larger-scale mosaic artworks, but I've got a few "honey do" home improvement projects to get off my list first.

Special Gifts for Platinum and Gold Ticket Holders

Fri, 03 Dec 2021 19:00:25 GMT

Receive a special gift as Platinum and Gold ticket holders to our upcoming holiday concerts!

Beautiful holiday Holly Wreath cards including a pack of five blank cards with envelopes.

Thank you for your support.

Denis Whitaker Interview with June Kamerling

Fri, 15 Oct 2021 18:03:54 GMT

OGMC Interview with Denis Whitaker

By June Kamerling

I had the pleasure of interviewing Denis Whitaker in September 2021. It was great to get to know a bit more about his many skills and talents, after singing with Denis in the chorus and being on the Marketing Committee with him. Here is what Denis told me:

JK - How did you find the chorus and when did you become a member?

DW - “In January 2010, I saw a clip in the paper about auditions for a gay men’s chorus.

I didn’t know such a chorus even existed. It had been around for 10 years but I hadn’t heard of it.

I hadn’t been singing for a while, and I needed to make some new gay friends. The chorus was my door into a new world of music, friendship and community. I auditioned for Michael Patch. With my musical back ground I got in, though Michael assigned me to sing 1 ^st tenor. I did it even though 2 ^nd tenor was more fitting for my voice. Eventually I moved to T2."

JK - How did you come to live in Martinez?

DW - “Years and years ago I went to Yosemite Valley with a friend and fell in love with it again. I decided I wanted to live there, so I got a job at Ahwahnee Hotel as a bus boy. The rest is history…..I took a number of restaurant and hotels jobs over the years.

Later on I was working in Menlo Park for a restaurant chain, The Velvet Turtle. They were closing that “store,” and they offered me a GM position in Pleasant Hill. I moved to Martinez to take that job….well, THAT business closed about a year later.

I had to find a job. I became a restaurant manager at Walnut Creek Marriott, then moved to catering sales and marketing for about 10 years. I was Director of Catering and Event Management when I retired. My back ground is 35 years in restaurant management, though I was trained to be an actor and a singer.”

JK - Tell me about your musical back ground.

DW - “Got a while?

I grew up in California… San Carlos and Orange County. I started studying music when I was 6; Hawaiian Steel guitar with Professor Sydney Gelb. Then accordion, then clarinet… I had perfect embouchure— I had buck teeth.

By the time I was 8, I was reading music.

In Catholic school I learned to sing Gregorian chants in the original notation from the nuns. At 16 I started taking voice lessons. My first solo recital was at 17, singing as a baritone. In college I was a drama major and music minor. In my 2 ^nd year in college I took singing lessons at Cal State Fullerton. My voice teacher vocalized me up to a high C, made me promise not to sing baritone ever again.

When I was living in San Luis Obispo I formed a vocal quintet with friends I’d been singing with. We sang SSATB. I LOVED singing harmony with one on a part.

Since I moved to Martinez I have sung with SF Symphony Chorus, The Mastersingers, Cantare con Vivo, Oakland Symphony chorus, and now, of course OGMC.”

JK - When you came into the chorus what was it like? What was the general feeling?
Who was there? Who did you connect with?

DW - “The members who’d been there from the very beginning were Peter Dempsey, José Colon, and John Rogers. The chorus felt solid. Michael Patch, the AD, quit suddenly a few years later. That’s when Stephanie Smith came in and things really started to change.

There were maybe 40 members when I joined. Most tended toward older. Back then the chorus had trouble attracting younger singers. It took a few years to get the 30-somethings….Joe, Dustin, Wally, Brian, Dave, Lorenzo….They all came in about the same time. Now we’ve got 20-somethings, so we have a wide range of ages.

A chorus like ours is unique in that a range of ages can come together and become friends. The younger guys didn’t know the history of the chorus or much about their own history as gay men. Aside from churches and bars what else was there to bring gay men together across a range of ages? This is a great way to come together and form friendships in our community."

JK- What is your involvement in the chorus beyond singing?

DW - “I quickly became deeply involved with the chorus. In my 2 ^nd year I became part of the Artistic Committee, and then its Chair. Stephanie succeeded in building a better infrastructure. In 2014 I was part of a committee that re-wrote by-laws, with a strong Vice- President system to run the chorus if we didn’t have a Chorus Manager. With my management experience I was voted in as VP. I’m proud of what we did during that time. We’re stronger and more organized with a solid inner structure.

As a result, we can now attract independent board members who are not singers in the chorus, who have a good networks of people with knowledge, community and money connections. We don’t have a really solid financial base but I think we can get there now. These days I’m chair of the Marketing & PR Committee.”

JK- What do you want to see in the future of the chorus?

DW - “I’d like to see us grow in numbers and diversity. We have 7 new people joining the chorus post pandemic. This is great.

My seat on the Artistic Committee gives me permission to weigh in on what we sing. My passion is classical music, though I love other genres as well. Mostly right now I’m so happy to be back singing IN PERSON together.”

OGMC Mourns a Friend

Fri, 27 Aug 2021 23:51:31 GMT

We learned recently of the passing of Michael Morgan, Music Director of the Oakland Symphony, and a friend of the chorus. We collaborated with the Symphony and the Symphony Chorus three times in the recent past, singing the Brahms German Requiem; Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy (with Emanuel Ax), and the Prisoners’ Chorus from Fidelio; and selections from the Mozart Requiem, all under maestro Morgan’s baton. Everyone who participated was enriched by the experience.

We’ve lost a friend and collaborator, and the whole community has lost a treasured musician. Our hearts go out to all of our brothers and sisters in the East Bay musical family.

Happy Juneteenth!

Sat, 19 Jun 2021 01:12:13 GMT

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is excited to welcome our newest national holiday, Juneteenth, as a significant opportunity for us to celebrate and highlight the contributions of the African-American community to our organization, our city, and our nation!

We look forward to further strengthening our commitment to promoting inclusivity within our Chorus and to increased communication with the entire Oakland community, as we return to in-person rehearsal and performance in the coming years. Happy Juneteenth!

Shawn Simon Interview with June Kamerling

Thu, 25 Mar 2021 20:42:30 GMT

TUESDAY FEB 9TH, 2021

JK- I had the pleasure of interviewing Shawn on Zoom last month (unfortunately not in person).

I was hoping to have the interview ready to publish for our last Town Hall during Black History Month but the timing didn’t work out. So…here we are a month later.

First question I always ask…

JK- When and how did you come to the chorus?

SS- I had recently come back to the Bay Area after 4 years at Humboldt State (I was born and raised in the Bay Area…born in Oakland, raised in Alameda). In fall of 2016 I was visiting a friend in LA who is in GMCLA. When I heard them sing I thought “I need this”. I found OGMC (used to be OEBGMC) through an app called “Meet Up”. James was facilitating the app for the chorus at the time. I contacted him and he gave me all the information I needed for auditioning.

JK- Is the chorus different now from how it was when you joined?

SS- I’d say the chorus is very different now from when I joined. The year before I joined there was not a lot of diversity. James had been trying to increase diversity in his advertising and recruiting new members. The year I joined there were a lot more younger people and people of color. We continue to grow in diversity as we welcome trans people and women to sing with us.

Billy was the director when I came in. I joined the chorus at that sweet spot when everything was going into a really positive trajectory. Billy greatly improved our professional look. He made us sound and sing better as a unit.

JK- What’s your music background?

SS- I got started with music in my church choir. I was in the stands every Sunday trying not to fall asleep. I enjoyed singing but it was hard for tiny me to wake up at 6 AM and spend the entire day singing for the Lord. Other than that I wasn’t participating in anything musically, just singing in the shower. I was in some high school musicals, but nothing in college.

JK- Tell me about high school musicals...Were musicals your “life” in high school as they are for many high school kids?

SS- I wouldn’t say they were my life but I really enjoyed them. I went to Oakland School for the Arts to be an actor. It turns out only Drama majors got roles in plays so my next choice was musicals…..it turned out I really loved them and looked forward to the spring musical every year. Usually I was in the ensembles but one year we did Seussical the Musical . I played Mr. Mayor which turned out to be really hard because I’m a bass and Mr. Mayor was a comical role with a higher voice. But I learned how to make the change in my voice and it worked out.

In college I took some piano classes. I enjoyed it and tried to keep up with it but I didn’t practice enough and never took it further. When I joined the chorus in 2016 after coming back to the Bay is when music really took off for me.

JK- Did you start getting involved in chorus leadership and politics from the get go or did that come later?

SS- I’d say kind of from the get go….First season they leave you alone...then they say “Hey, You’ve been here long enough...come on, join a committee…” So I joined 4 committees. I really jumped in but it wasn’t too much work.

JK- What committees did you join and how did it go? Did it lead to where you are now?

SS- I started with membership, finance, production and…I can’t remember the other. I left the area for 7 months to move to Memphis but quickly came back. Steve Smith approached me about being a board member. I agreed, so I was on the board which makes you part of the leadership committee. Meanwhile, I was still on production and I dabbled with the marketing committee for a bit. I’m on the governance committee right now. That’s my general journey.

JK- Where do you see the chorus going at this point once we can be active and start meeting again?

SS- Once we can meet again I want to see us become more engaged in the local community that we have around us. Engaged in different ways than we have been...I love the outreach that we do and our concerts are great. I also want to see different kind of volunteer events. There are ways we can show up for our community that are high contact and low impact. Wally suggested we do a clean-up around Lake Merritt…..things that will make us visible in the community around us. We can have fun being together and serve the community at the same time.

JK- Many people I’ve interviewed had said that the chorus became family and led to their involvement in their local gay community. Was that true for you being newly back in the Bay Area? Did you have a gay community before you joined chorus?

SS- Yes and No. When I joined it definitely felt like family. And that is important to me. When I join any community it needs to feel like a family. OGMC was just the right size. I could get lost in the crowd if I wanted to without entirely becoming invisible, but I could also connect with so many different people personally.

I was already connected to a few queer groups before I joined the chorus. When I first moved back to the Bay I was a health educator for Health Initiatives for Youth which is a non-profit in SF. I worked with “We’re in Trans” youth across the Bay Area which connected me with local queer activist organizations so I felt like I was connected to local gay communities. I was also part of a queer volleyball group.

JK- How do you see your involvement with BLM interfacing with the chorus?

SS- This goes back to what I said earlier about wanting to do more local events and showing up as a community. We, as a chorus, need to do more to show up for our people of color. We are a primarily white chorus and that does not reflect the diversity of our community. I want to see us reach out to the community around us to build some of those bridges and to create a culture of tolerance, acceptance and understanding of the diversity around us.

JK- Would you talk about the Black Lives Coalition? How did that come about?

SS- YES! I’d love to talk about that! John Chastain approached me in June 2020 right after the killing of George Floyd. He said “We have to do something”. John and I started collaborating on what we could do as a chorus in the Oakland community to show our solidarity in a stand against racism. As BLC formed we had to look at “What can we be doing to be sure our own house is clean?”. We have to “clean house” so we can have the right impact on communities around us. We want to be sure the chorus shows up as welcoming and anti-racist.

We welcome anyone to join the Black Lives Coalition. We meet Wednesdays at 7 PM. We have done a series of Town Hall meetings and we’re going to do a board and leadership diversity workshop and continue to make sure that the chorus strives to be welcoming to all people of color.

JK- I’ve learned a lot from the Town Hall Meetings. Thanks to you and the members of your committees for all the effort that has gone into Black Lives Coalition and reaching out to our very diverse community. It’s great to know that the chorus has been busy during the past year doing good in the world during the pandemic. We’ve stayed connected and afloat and we look forward to that work continuing into the future and especially to being able to sing together again.

A STATEMENT OF SOLIDARITY FROM THE OAKLAND GAY MEN’S CHORUS

Wed, 24 Mar 2021 21:29:35 GMT

A Statement of Solidarity from the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus stands with our Asian-American members and alongside the larger community in mourning lives lost and remembering those who have suffered anti-Asian hate crimes. We know anti-Asian violence is being fueled by years and generations of vicious anti-Asian rhetoric. We also know that white supremacist harm is not limited to Asian-American communities.

We are horrified by the continuing acts of violence against members of our Asian-American communities across the country, from New York to Oakland’s Chinatown, and we urge our members to take on the hard work of combating white supremacy and rooting it out in all of our communities and systems. The most important chorus right now is the chorus of voices demanding justice.

Hate, intolerance, and racism have no place within the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus or anywhere. Join with us in raising our voices together for a more just world. We encourage you to check out and support the following organizations that serve the Asian/Pacific Islander community:

National

National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA) - https://www.nqapia.org
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund - https://www.aaldef.org
Asian Americans Advancing Justice: Asian Law Caucus - https://www.advancingjustice-alc.org

California

Asians with Attitudes - https://asianswithattitudes.com
Chinese for Affirmative Action - https://caasf.org
Vietnamese American Community Center of the East Bay - https://www.vacceb.net/programs/anti-crime/

Interview with Joe Rosenmayer

Sun, 31 Jan 2021 00:54:26 GMT

Interview with Joe Rosenmayer

After an afternoon of rehearsal for Jeff Becker’s show, Something Special , which Joe was accompanist for, he and I sat on my front porch and chatted about his experience in the chorus.

JK - How did you find the chorus?

JR - “I came to the chorus in Fall 2012. I moved to the Bay Area from Chicago in 2011 so I was here for a year before I joined the chorus. I was in Windy City Gay Men’s Chorus in Chicago and I knew wanted to join a gay chorus here. I knew there were many gay men’s choruses in the Bay Area and I knew about SFGMC but we were living in El Cerrito and OGMC was closest.

Mike, my husband, had moved here before I did and I think he found the chorus first and was an usher at a concert.

I did a google search and found OGMC. I volunteered as an usher for the spring concert before I joined which was right after GALA.

Stephanie Smith was director….she was wrapping up in the chorus as interim director…so I sang with her for one concert and then Jeremiah Smith came on board.

My audition with Stephanie was the weirdest audition (what a surprise, right?). She made me dance. In the form I filled out before the audition I gave myself high marks for sight reading. She gave me a really hard piece to sight read and I did a really terrible job (laughing). It was a weird chanty piece with no time signature which it turned out, we did for the concert that season. I felt really stupid after sight reading. Then she made me dance.

All the chairs were put away….She said to just use the space. I was a dancer so it wasn’t that intimidating. Then she changed tempo from fast to ballet. It was fun and really strange…and I got into the chorus. That was my intro to Stephanie Smith and OGMC”.

JK - Did a bunch of you come in at the same time?

JR - “I was the last of the group of my close friends. Walter and Dustin had been in for a while. Then came Dave and Brian. When I ushered, Wally came to me and said ‘be sure you sign up to audition’. I became fast friends with those guys and we’re still close friends….8 years later”.

JK - What was the chorus like then vs. what it’s like now….8 years later?

JR - “It’s hard to say...it was in a transition. I came in at a tumultuous time…a lot of drama. Someone walked out during my first rehearsal. I don’t remember why but I remember thinking “OK…What’s going on?”

It was a rocky but it came in waves. Now we feel stable (well, pre-pandemic).

When Billy came on board is when we started to get more serious…we didn’t have to keep resetting. Billy was with us for a while and we grew as a chorus. With Ben coming on last year we were in a really good place and it was a smooth transition. No drama. The board has been solid for a while and I think that has really helped create a sense of stability within the chorus."

JK - Tell me about your role in leadership in the chorus.

JR - “I wasn’t in a leadership role for a few years. I came, sang, left. Denis Whitaker was the T1 Section Leader when I joined but then he went to T2 and I immediately became the T1 section leader….my 2nd concert.

Eventually I joined the artistic committee. I seem to have followed Denis’s footsteps….Every time he moved forward I took his place. Then I joined the board and became VP (still following Denis…but I won’t become marketing chair). I’m in my first term on the board now”.

JK - Where do you see the chorus going and where would you like to see the chorus go?

JR - “Hard to say right now cause everything is so weird. We’re hoping for a holiday show next year.

It’s really kind of. I miss the chorus. The virtual choir was really fun but I really miss singing in person with the group. I’d love to see us grow as much as we can. I’m afraid some people will get used to not singing and leave. I’d love to do a show at the Fox theater...that scale. Ben said “Think big…dream...think big. What do you want?”. It would be amazing to get that big.

We need to focus on our diversity a bit more. We’ve been trying but it’s a struggle. BLM coalition is a big thing. I hope it gives us places to recruit. Our mix is not that diverse. I’d love to have more people of color. I want to grow in numbers but also in diversity."

JK - I’d love to hear about your music background?

JR - “I started taking piano when I was 6. When I was in 3rd grade my older sister was cast as Peter Pan in her high school musical. That was my first exposure to theater. I remember going over her lines with her so when I went to the show I knew the whole script and all the music. It was so exciting to me. I loved it.

I was in church choir and that was great but THEATER is where I fell in love...where it all started.

When I was in 5th grade the local high school did Sound Of Music . They offered roles of the Von Trapp children to the middle and grade school kids. I was Frederick Von Trapp. The high school kept allowing the middle school to audition so I was in all the high school plays all thru school. And then in HS I stayed in theater as well as chorus and continued all thru college.

When I was a sophomore in HS I started playing piano in church and I never stopped. It’s an easy way to make good money. I had a church gig for 15 years and I was church music director for 4 years before I moved to California.

I also did music direction for local community theater groups in Chicago for vocalists as well as the bands.

Depending on the show I either played piano, music directed or was in the show as an actor/singer.

I was in a Cabaret Ensemble in Chicago called The Chicago Red Line. I currently sing in the Episcopal Church choir and sometimes music direct. I’ve done a lot of music and theater my whole life”.

JK - Back to The chorus. How does the chorus feel to you now, especially during the pandemic?

JR - “As I said earlier, I lived in California about a year before I joined the chorus. When I joined is when I really started feeling at home here. It’s what changed me. I was very homesick for Chicago a lot that first year. The chorus really made California be my home."

JK - Everyone I’ve interviewed has said the same - that the chorus feels like family…I agree too.

JR - “Yes, We fight, we cry, we laugh, we celebrate together. Like when Peter Dempsey passed away. It was so sudden. We were already getting together that night for our weekly Zoom call. We decided to make that meeting about Peter so people could process and talk and come together. It was really beautiful and really felt like family. We sang What a Wonderful World . I cried (we all did). Everyone had an opportunity to talk. It really brought home for me how much we are a family. Zoom is weird but it’s what we’ve got right now and at least we can see each other and still be together.

When I joined I was on the younger spectrum at age 31. There were several over 50’s but hardly any younger people. But that’s changed. Now we are much more diverse as far as age goes from 20’s to 80’s. The difference in generations doesn’t matter. It’s never been an issue.

Everyone is welcome. I was unsure how it would go to allow women into the chorus but it’s been great.

I didn’t know if some people wouldn’t respond well to change but everyone has embraced the diversity."

JK - For me, as one of 3 women and even as one of two straight women, age/gender doesn’t feel like an issue at all.

JK - Is the chorus your main connection in your life to gay community?

JR - “Definitely. My church is extremely open…there are a lot of gay people but chorus is where I’ve found my place. I feel very much a part of it. I can’t wait for us to be able to be together in person and sing again."

A holiday gift from the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus

Thu, 24 Dec 2020 00:14:32 GMT

The holidays are all about traditions. The fancy platter for the Thanksgiving turkey that came from your grandmother. Your favorite aunt’s crispy latkes. The ornaments the kids made. Partying with friends on New Year’s Eve.

But this year has been different. This cruel year made us leave behind our traditions, temporarily, we hope. Here are a few things that didn’t happen this year:

Chanticleer did not sing Biebl’s “Ave Maria.” The Symphony Chorus didn’t present “Messiah” at Davies. Our brothers across the bay won’t be “Home for the Holidays” at the Castro. The Interfaith Gospel Choir didn’t join the “Break Bread” concert at the Paramount, because it didn’t happen. Neither did your church choir’s annual Christmas concert. And, of course, the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus couldn’t perform the holiday concerts that have been a tradition with us, and with you, for more than 20 years.

To the singers of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus— and to all the singers in all the choruses— this is a profound loss. Singing is at the heart of who we are, and nothing can take its place. Our highest hope is that our organizations can survive this challenging year to sing for you again. We don’t know yet when that will be, but we hope and pray that we won’t have to endure another Christmas without carols.

In the meantime we’ve been trying to stay busy. Last month we released a Virtual Choir video, debuting a song that was written for us by our own Wally Bee. We’re delighted to be able to send you a link to it below, with our sincere wishes for a joyous new year. We hope it puts a smile on your face!

You can play your part in keeping us aﬂoat through these stormy seas. Every contribution matters! Please consider the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus for your year-end donations. From our family to yours, thank you!

Make Good Trouble!

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 23:42:06 GMT

For our 10th and final Choral Collage, we’re returning to Bayard Rustin.

We think he was speaking directly to us!

Just go! Register! Vote! | Choral Collage

Thu, 08 Oct 2020 16:29:22 GMT

Our 9th installment comes with words of wisdom from the Indigo Girls, taken from their 1999 song “Go.”

With a career spanning over three decades (and counting), and well known for their intricate harmonies, captivating lyrics, and incredible guitar skills, this folk rock duo often brings activism into their music, boldly singing out for the environment, gay rights, and civil rights.

While on tour during election years, they often include this song in their sets, which serves as a reminder and a plea to vote. Since their tour was cancelled this year due to Covid19, we are helping to get their message out — how important your vote is, especially this year — don’t assume anything, just go!

https://registertovote.ca.gov

Giving Back & Getting Involved | League of Women Voters of Oakland

Thu, 08 Oct 2020 15:49:03 GMT

by Mel Terry

It’s been 6 months since the chorus has sung together. Although we keep in contact through Zoom meetings and gatherings, we do miss our in-person gatherings and our community.

Fred Rogers, our Production Committee Chair and raconteur extraordinaire, felt that the upcoming November election was too important to sit on the sidelines. The League of Women Voters has previously had voter registration available at our shows during election years and it seemed urgent to him that we get involved with them again this year.

He contacted chorus member Steve Smith who gave him a local contact and the wheels were set in motion.

He organized a team of OGMC members to help get out the vote. Fred, Bruce Carlton, John Rogers, Michael Sibio, Steve Smith, Mel Terry and Brian Tognatti hit the streets this week wearing OGMC t-shirts and masks, keeping appropriate social distance and taking advantage of the breathable air.

Moving quickly up and down the many hills and stairs of the San Antonio district of East Oakland, one of the most diverse areas of the city, and a historically low voter turnout precinct, they distributed door hangers encouraging voting.

Aside from the occasional barking dog everything went smoothly and over 500 door hangers were hung.

All agreed that it was great seeing each other, felt good doing something for and in the community, and it was a splendid work out! Just one example of the OGMC giving back to our community.

To reach the League of Women Voters of Oakland, please contact:

Bonnie Hamlin, V. P. Administration

Member of the Communications, Development, and Membership Committees

Office Coordinator, League of Women Voters of Oakland

(510) 834-7640 League Office

Interview with James Berglund

Thu, 08 Oct 2020 15:07:55 GMT

by June Kamerling

I had the pleasure of interviewing James Berglund on a beautiful Saturday morning walk at Pt. Isabelle recently.

James and hubby, Jeff McEwen, have been in the chorus for 10 years.

James lived in LA and was in a mixed SATB GALA chorus there, West Coast Singers from 1996 till 2009.

James and Jeff met at Montreal GALA in 2008.

James moved to the Bay Area a year later, leaving his WC Singers “family” to join Jeff who was already with SFGMC at that time. James joined and sang with them for 4 years.

They lived in Oakland and knew of OGMC. They had been to OGMC concerts and noticed that the chorus was growing and sound was getting better. They decided in 2010 to leave SFGMC and join OGMC both at the same time (yay!).

Michael Patch was director of OGMC at the time and then Stephanie Smith came in.

James’ musical background is a little out of the ordinary! “I was a beginner when I joined West Coast Singers. I had been in some talent shows in the past. I didn’t know how to read music but I have a great ear. I trained myself to match pitch by listening to my mom’s vacuum cleaner and I’d sing that pitch (laughs)….and go up and down and do different pitches. I learned how to imitate sounds and voices so mostly I just listen to how things sound and copy the pitch. I had a hard time learning piano because I played by ear. Now I’ve learned how to read music enough to follow along”.

I asked him what the chorus was like when he first joined.

“OGMC was very insular at the time. I had a hard time finding my place in the group. Peter Dempsey was the most welcoming. He was quite a driving force back then. His passing was really rough on me.

Jeff Ray, (who used to be on the board but, stepped away 2-3 years ago) was in the chorus then. I’d sit next to him in the back row and we’d crack jokes. We clicked”.

James continued, “The chorus has changed dramatically for the better since I joined. It’s not the same chorus. We’ve come a long way.

I’m happy to see ‘the old guard’ holding up the chorus and the new people coming in adding changes. The chorus is who the people are and we’ve got some amazing people. It’s lovely to see everyone from younger to older members as well as ethnic and gender diversity. I find the chorus to be much friendlier now. We were more insular back in the day. But now it feels like family. Groups of friends mix with other groups of friends. I feel the same intimacy I felt with The West Coast Singers”.

I asked him what direction he would like to see the chorus take in the future? “We’ve come a long way since I joined but we need to continue to grow. We have such great potential going on. We’re a lot more inclusive of gender and gender identity. We just need to keep growing.

I love the family aspect of the chorus. I love to sing but it’s not my deepest passion. I love the artistry but it’s the human connection I truly love. I call it my church.

When I joined the chorus connecting with the gay community was important but not so much now….now it’s just the people. I’m happy it’s mostly gay, but I’m happy that it’s not all gay. I love that we have people who aren’t queer, male, gay identified”.

In summer of 2019 I was looking for a chorus to sing with having left my previous chorus the year before. I missed singing in harmony with others. Stephanie Smith had suggested that I audition for OGMC. I was friends with some of the members but had never considered that as a straight woman I could join a “gay men’s chorus”. As Membership Chair, James was the first person I contacted in the chorus to find out about auditioning. He immediately made me feel comfortable and welcome.

As I settled into my first season in OGMC (Sept 2019) I found out that Membership Chair was quite a multi-hat job. James explained more, “I became the Membership Chair in January of 2014 during Stephanie Lynne Smith's second run as our director. I took the role reluctantly because I wasn't sure I would want the responsibility. I quickly found it to be quite enjoyable and rewarding."

My main role as membership chair is to be the connection for the general membership of chorus to the board of directors and other leadership positions. I encourage members to contact me with their concerns, questions, critiques, and accolades they have about their experience in the chorus. One major way of getting that information is through the surveys I send out at the conclusion of a concert block which allows members to voice their opinions. My role also includes having regular Membership Committee meetings where we plan out the chorus social activities. Everything from a bowling night in Alameda to scheduling and planning the weekend retreat rehearsals. I am thankful for the committee members for helping make the chorus a fun and enjoyable experience for everyone”.

The short time I’ve been in the chorus has been beyond fun and enjoyable. I thanked James for his part in welcoming me into the “family”. I know we all look forward to the day we can gather and sing together again and James and the members that are the OGMC glue can get back to their chorus jobs.

Rhymes with Witch! | Choral Collage

Fri, 25 Sep 2020 04:00:00 GMT

Our 8th collage features the Material Girl herself, letting us know what she thinks of uppity women!

It's September | Choral Collage

Wed, 02 Sep 2020 18:03:18 GMT

It’s September. Children are back in school.

Well, sort of… In this strange, sad year, and with kids in mind, our seventh collage returns to Leonard Bernstein for his compelling words about music education.

Art Isn't Easy | Stephen Sondheim Choral Collage

Mon, 31 Aug 2020 18:47:09 GMT

This is a subtitle for your new post

For the 6th of our series of collages we turn to the reigning god of the American musical theater, Stephen Sondheim.

Fairly early in his prodigious career Stephen Sondheim was lauded as the finest lyricist in English since Gilbert.

Then, he started writing the music, too, and there followed a string of Broadway's legendary shows: Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Passion.

Our quote is from his Pulitzer Prize winning musical, Sunday in the Park with George. We’ve picked a couple of snippets of lyrics where the master talks about the creative process.

Bayard Rustin | Choral Collage

Thu, 27 Aug 2020 18:40:52 GMT

Welcome to Round 5 of our Choral Collage Project, where we’re sharing our favorite quotes from LGBTQ+ musicians. This one is from the great Civil Rights organizer, Bayard Rustin. A lot of people don’t realize that he was an accomplished tenor who went to college on a music scholarship.

In New York in 1939 he was in a short-lived musical with Paul Robson; he was a regular at the Café Society nightclub in Greenwich Village; and recorded several albums from the 1950s through the 1970s, including a collection of Spirituals.

In 1953 he was arrested having sex with another man in the back seat of a car in Pasadena, and spent 60 days in jail. He was always candid about being gay, and he didn’t care who knew it, which was radical at the time. He stayed in the background of the Civil Rights Movement, mostly because his out-of-the-closet homosexuality rubbed people the wrong way.

Still, in 1963 he shared the cover of Life magazine with A. Philip Randolph as the leaders of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech.

Here’s what he had to say about his sexuality: “It was an absolute necessity for me to declare homosexuality, because if I didn't I was a part of the prejudice. I was aiding and abetting the effort to destroy me.” Bayard Rustin

Aaron Copeland | Choral Collage

Fri, 21 Aug 2020 18:36:11 GMT

Aaron Copland did more than any other American musician to bring “serious concert music” to the masses.

Moved by what he encountered during the Great Depression, he began composing in what he called his “vernacular style,” producing such iconic works as Appalachian Spring, Rodeo, and Fanfare for the Common Man.

After his Leftist politics drew the wrath of Joseph McCarthy and Roy Cohn during the Red Scare of the 1950s, his A Lincoln Portrait had to be withdrawn from President Eisenhower’s inaugural concert.

This thoroughly outraged the musical community— the very idea that Aaron Copland’s music was “unAmerican” was ridiculous!

Followers of the chorus will remember when we sang arrangements of several of his Old American Songs. Here’s what the master said about the meaning of music:

"'Is there a meaning to music?' My answer would be, 'Yes.' And 'Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?' My answer to that would be, 'No.’”

Noël Coward | Choral Collage

Wed, 12 Aug 2020 23:32:27 GMT

Our third Choral Collage comes from a man who could do it all. Noël Coward was world-famous not only as a songwriter and entertainer, but also as an actor, director, screenwriter, and playwright.

Let’s set the scene: Private Lives.

Awkward former lovers find themselves together again, on a balcony in the moonlight in the South of France. An orchestra plays somewhere.

They start slow-dancing. Elyot leans in to Amanda, and says, "Strange how potent cheap music is."

Inspiration | Choral Collage

Wed, 12 Aug 2020 23:03:46 GMT

We hoped you enjoyed our first Choral Collage, a series featuring great quotes from some our favorite LGBTQ musicians. This next one is from a genuine gay icon. Pulitzer Prize winning composer and diarist Ned Rorem has been a shining light for all of his 96 years. We were honored to sing his moving AIDS elegy, “Home,” a couple of years ago.

Your generous donations will help the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus get through these difficult months. Our mission lives on! We look forward to the time, not too far into the future, when we can come together again and share our songs with you.

https://www.oaklandgmc.org/give

Interview with Lorenzo Ramsey

Thu, 06 Aug 2020 20:44:48 GMT

by June Kamerling

The first time I met Lorenzo Ramsey and heard him sing was in a “Miss Smith Adult Performance Class”. To say that I was blown away by not only the strength, but by the smooth buttery wonderfulness of his voice would be an understatement.

In the short time that I’ve been singing with OGMC I’ve been lucky to be in the tenor section with Lorenzo.

I asked Lorenzo when he came to the chorus.

“I joined in 2012. I found OGMC online as I was looking for a chorus to join being new to the Bay Area. I had just moved here from Detroit and I was trying to decide which chorus to audition for. I did not even know that there was an Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus”.

Lorenzo left Michigan, his home, in search of and with a desire for equality. He had envisioned a life in Michigan, but he said it was a toxic environment with rampant racism in the suburbs and homophobia in Detroit.

“I had to accept that Michigan was not an ideal place for someone like me to marry and raise a family, so I moved to the Bay Area, which was known to be much more accepting of diversity.

In the process of my search for a chorus, I happened to run across a few YouTube videos and Stephanie Smith’s picture. I thought ‘OK, she’s kind of giving me Diva’!!”

Stephanie Lynne Smith was interim director of the chorus on and off for several seasons around that time.

Lorenzo auditioned for Stephanie.

I commented, “I’m sure there was no question, you were in!”

Lorenzo laughed and said “I had questions about whether or not I was in because she made us dance.

She tested our range and there was some sight reading…I think it was Carmina Burana…and then she started playing and said ‘I just want you to dance’…

I said ‘WHY?’ and she said ‘I want to get a sense of you being in your body’…”

To back up for a moment, Lorenzo told me about his musical background growing up…or lack of… Did he sing, take voice lessons, do musical theater? He said “NO, Not at all. I played violin and viola until high school. During my sophomore year, the choir teacher overheard my speaking voice in a class. She entered the classroom, pointed at me, and said, ‘Hey, you over there! I like the resonance in your voice. You are a tenor. I'm signing you up for chorus next year.’ I didn't see her for the rest of the year, but she found out my name and added it to my class schedule. My high school's chorus had ranked second in the state, but the entire tenor section graduated that year (which is why she was searching for tenors). When I joined this entire tenor section was brand new, but we brought home the state championship that year. My high school was the first from Detroit to win the state title”.

…And of course, Lorenzo was accepted into Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus.

Lorenzo didn’t know anyone else in the chorus, but he said that Wally Bee and Lawrence Turner were the first to embrace and welcome him into the “family”.

I asked him, “What was the chorus like then”?

“The chorus was smaller, less diverse, more of an older group of folks but a nice core group of people.

It was a lot of fun. Stephanie had literally a gun where she would shoot these golf ball things at people. I said, ‘This is the place for me’. It was great.”

Lorenzo said the chorus has changed over the 8 years he’s been in it.

“The chorus is larger, more diverse, a bit more committed to the community. We had a string of different choral directors over the years which came with various ups and downs.

We are now a more cohesive unit and we’re stronger for some of the adversities we’ve had to face”.

I asked if there is a direction he’d like to see the chorus take.

“I would love to see OGMC realize our spoken objectives regarding community outreach and greater diversity in the chorus… Practicing what we preach in all regards”.

Lorenzo had mentioned that the chorus was more diverse now than before. I asked if he meant ethnically, sexual orientation, otherwise?

“It was mostly gay men back then. Now we have trans members, women, younger members, people of all age groups”.

OGMC is community and family for many in the chorus. Lorenzo told me what he loves about the chorus. “The people of the chorus. They are genuinely wonderful people who will give you a hug, a sympathetic ear or a ride home when you need it”.

I couldn’t agree more….and we look forward to the day when we can all sing together again….and I can hear Lorenzo’s exquisite tenor voice a row or two behind me.

We Stand Together in Solidarity | Choral Collage

Mon, 15 Jun 2020 19:03:13 GMT

"This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before." ~Leonard Bernstein

We stand together in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the black community. We hope that our heartfelt message is heard––we’re calling for justice and equality for black lives.

But we can’t sing together for a while yet. Dammit! (The particularly cruel irony has not been lost on us that one of the most dangerous things we can do right now is sing together.)

But we can collaborate together, from home, to bring you some of our favorite quotes from LGBTQ+ musicians! Our first quote, about living in violent times, from Leonard Bernstein, is already special to our singers, since we sang a setting of it in our Lenny & Friends concerts in 2018.

We hope you enjoy this Choral Collage, and we hope you’ll be looking forward to the next one!

OGMC Statement of Solidarity: Black Lives Matter

Thu, 04 Jun 2020 22:54:03 GMT

Friends and family of OGMC,

The mission of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is to give voice, through song, to a community where everyone matters.

What we know is that we cannot have a community where everyone matters until black lives matter .

As an organization we want to name that we stand in solidarity with the black community. We recognize that in this moment–– silence is violence . It is our moral imperative to stand up and join in the call for an embrace of anti-racist mindsets, policies, and practices within ourselves, our organization, and our community.

The roots of Pride Month and modern LGBT+ rights came from trans leaders of color like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera who said “enough is enough.” Reading about these heroes and their stories is a helpful reminder that often social progress comes from protests and rage. That sometimes the ground must burn in order to create soil from which equality and anti-racism can thrive.

In order to make this commitment to anti-racism a reality, we are called to do both the internal and external work. If as individuals we protest and donate but do not unpack our own privilege and biases, then the change will not come. If we reflect deeply on our histories and interrogate systemic racism but do not show up for, with, and in our community, then the change will not come. If we somehow believe that this message absolves our organization of doing any actual anti-racist work, then change will not come. Our fight for black lives and our amplification of black voices must persist. Our commitment must not wane.

While our concerts and rehearsals remain on pause we are inspired by the collective international chorus of voices calling for justice and equality for black lives. We are committed to joining in their song and to supporting the work of bringing racial justice to our community.

In solidarity,

Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus

Tribute to Reber Brown

Thu, 04 Jun 2020 22:50:12 GMT

It is with great sadness that we have to report the passing of another beloved chorus member, Reber Brown. The tribute below is written by Jeff Ray, former board member.

I first met Reber Brown at Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi in 1980. I was a freshman and he was a junior. In my sophomore year, he befriended my roommate and often hung out in our room. He was a fixture at the Lambda Chi fraternity house as well, as they often threw open parties. He graduated and went on to pursue his graduate studies and we went our separate ways.

After moving to California, I attended my first OEBGMC concert in 2008. Perusing the program, I was delighted to see F. Reber Brown’s name listed as a member. How many F. Reber Brown’s could there be? Scanning the group, I finally found him, although I had to make sure, as his curly, curly hair was a thing of the past. I approached him after the show and we reacquainted ourselves. He was the same sweet, funny guy I had met many years earlier. He also confided that he and my college roommate were boyfriends back then, but they had been afraid to tell me. Mississippi in the 1980’s was not very progressive! I enjoyed his company many seasons to follow. Even when he no longer felt able to sing, he gave himself tirelessly to the chorus. He will be deeply missed.

Faith from afar: Coronavirus challenges Bay Area hospital chaplains to comfort patients from a distance | SF Chronicle

Thu, 28 May 2020 00:20:25 GMT

Chaplain Jeremy Sher outside the emergency room at UCSF Parnassus Medical Center.

written by Tony Bravo for the San Francisco Chronicle

photo credit: Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle

On behalf of the OGMC, we would like to say thank you to our members that are on the frontlines helping the community during COVID-19. Jeremy Sher is one of our members doing just that. Please click the read more link that takes you to the San Francisco Chronicle article about Jeremy Sher and others.

. . .

One of the most difficult adjustments for the Rev. Claire Bohman during the pandemic has been not being able to be in the rooms of patients dealing with the virus. Sometimes the work of chaplaincy can be about a gesture as small as a caring touch on a patient’s shoulder, she says.

As a chaplain at San Francisco General Hospital, part of Bohman’s job is to minister to sick or ailing patients. For some that involves prayer and spiritual care, and for others it’s about just being in the room to listen, both of which she now does remotely. But, Bohman admits, it can be difficult to be a compassionate presence when you’re not able to be physically present.

“I’m so grateful for the technology of cell phones and iPads, but there’s something lost not being there for them to cry on,” says Bohman, who is also the executive director of the hospital’s Sojourn Chaplaincy services. “Part of the pain of the pandemic is fearing touch. I’ve had to learn how to do my job without physical contact.”

Like everyone in a hospital’s ecosystem, chaplains are adjusting to work during a public health crisis — with new rules on personal protective equipment and using technology to prevent physical contact. And like many doctors, nurses and other health care workers, chaplains are finding their skills are in as much demand as ever, providing spiritual and emotional care to patients and their families. As hospital staffs are under unprecedented stress during the pandemic, chaplains are also finding their workloads increased by caring for workers on the front lines.

Interview with TA Dunn

Thu, 28 May 2020 00:03:06 GMT

by June Kamerling

TA Dunn is grateful to still have his job during Quarantine days working for IRA Services on accounts and evaluations. His company gave him a laptop so that he can work from home. His 10 AM to 7 PM schedule allows him to take his morning and lunch time walks as well as an evening walk after work. I spoke with TA on a Thursday evening at 7 PM after his long work day.

TA grew up in Richmond, VA. The US Air Force brought him to CA after college in 1981. He has never left.

TA first discovered OGMC at SF Pride 2001 (although the chorus originally started at Oakland Pride in 1999). Dick Kramer, the founder and artistic director at the time had a table for signing up that year at SF Pride. TA saw the sign-up sheet on the table there and that was it!! He was in!!

When asked if he had been singing before, TA answered, “I first learned to sing in church and elementary school. We would have school assemblies and they would teach us songs like the national anthem, America the Beautiful, This Land is My Land, though my faves are musical theater, folk and pop.

I sang in a choir in 7th grade but then was told I had to take French to get into college so I couldn’t be in high school choir. Aside from the church choir I sang in glee club in college. But after that I didn’t sing again till I joined OGMC so there was a gap of about 25 years."

I asked TA how chorus has changed over the years. “The biggest change is that we now have women in the chorus. That was something that was talked about not long after I joined but it never happened until recent years.

The chorus is so large now. It was about 30 or so when I came in. I think we have about 60 people now.

There was a crisis in 2003 and the chorus almost fell apart. The director left and we had no money. Thankfully someone anonymously gave enough money for us to be solvent again. That was in Aug 2003. A new director came in and we had our next concert at Christmas 2003."

I asked TA how chorus affects his life these days (when we’re singing together)?

He told me this: “I joined to be with a group of gay men…well, not just gay men, to be in a group I don’t have to hide in. In this chorus I’m accepted with no questions asked. I’m accepted for who I am, not what I am.

The chorus is the only way I’m connected with the gay community on a regular basis."

We both agree that we miss singing with OGMC and look forward to the day we can gather again with our community and sing in our glorious harmony.

Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus has a New Vision Statement

Wed, 27 May 2020 23:45:12 GMT

In early March, the Board of Directors and the Leadership Council of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus held their annual retreat, which focused on developing a Vision Statement for the next ten years. Our new Vision Statement would need to stand firmly on the foundation of our Mission and our Values, which have kept us strong and vibrant for more than twenty years. Our own Dennis Tseng led the two-day retreat, during which we produced a roadmap for the future of Oakland GMC. It’s our North Star— It’s how we’ll figure out what to do next, and how to do it. It was a wonderful exercise, and we left the retreat excited for the future.

Little did we know that our lives would be so thoroughly upended by a pandemic that changed everything. During this time of crisis it’s more important than ever that we have a set of guiding principles that keep us together as a community and give us ambitious and forward-thinking goals.

Now we need to share that Vision Statement with all of you, because it will drive the future of the chorus for all of us — our members, singing and non-singing; and our volunteers, friends, and patrons, who have been so loyal to us over the years. So here it is:

“Over the next decade, we will intentionally evolve into an artistic pillar of our community, creating experiences that foster fellowship, belonging, and joy.”

In a nutshell, our strategy is to become a permanent fixture in our community, a goal which will require growth, and also require planning and commitment from all of us. We are incredibly excited about where we are headed, and inspired by what the Board, the Leadership Council, and the Governance Committee (including our dearly departed Peter Dempsey) have given us with this vision. It serves as a heartfelt reminder that even in dark times, we must always imagine what could be in the future and aim for that with our whole selves.

As we struggle to make sense of our lives in seclusion, we are all missing making music on Tuesday nights. We miss the fellowship of our chorus family. We miss the hugs! We miss the joy of performing for our wonderful audiences. Uncertainty abounds, but one thing is clear: we need the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus! We need it not only to survive this challenge, but to rise out of hibernation rejuvenated and ready to thrive in new circumstances.

Finally, here is a graphic of our new Oakland GMC Vision Statement. We’ve defined several of the terms in the call-out boxes to the right. ( If you like you can also download the full-size version here ):

Tribute to Peter Dempsey

Wed, 29 Apr 2020 00:19:31 GMT

by Mel Terry

It is with great sadness that we have to report the passing our beloved tenor 2 and board member, Peter Dempsey. He passed away on Monday, April 20th. There is an obituary and guestbook to sign here, and the Chapel of the Chimes Oakland funeral home is hosting this page for sharing memories and expressing support for Peter's loved ones.

As one of the original members from 1999, Peter and his husband Phillip have been extremely generous giving time, energy, and financial support to the chorus since its humble beginnings as The Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus.

Peter brought light into the world both literally and figuratively. Whenever he entered a room he would light it up with his vivacious personality. It was wonderful how he would circulate among chorus members to get to know us better and share our stories. He was also a professional Lighting Designer with Dempsey Newport Group for 27 years, designing residential and landscape lighting for new home construction and household remodeling. Whenever we entered a new performance venue you could see him carefully scrutinizing the lighting design and later making excellent suggestions about how to improve it.

The chorus has spent enjoyable evenings at his and Phillip’s beautiful home where they hosted many a wrap party. Their holiday decorations were always spectacular.

Peter was an avid singer. It’s possible that he never missed a concert performance. He worked very hard to memorize his music and the joy he expressed at rehearsals and performances was palpable. Peter was very involved in the chorus leadership, serving on the board as President and Vice President and a member at large. He so often had great ideas and suggestions. He chaired and served on many committees, using his boundless energy to raise funds, develop strategies, and help implement our plans.

To quote Peter from tenor 1 June Kamerling’s recent interview of him, "The chorus is a place where singers come to sing, where identity is not questioned. Though OGMC is originally and primarily a gay men’s chorus, every gender and identity is included. Everyone is seen for who they are and not what they are. We take labels off. Each is an individual. We have come together to sing. We are a family."

His leadership and guidance will be deeply missed and we wish Phillip strength during this difficult time.

Interview with Jose Colon

Tue, 21 Apr 2020 02:07:31 GMT

by June Kamerling Jose joined the, then newly formed, Oakland Gay Men's Chorus in November of 1999 after seeing an advertisement in the Bay Area Reporter. “I joined the chorus because I love to sing. Over the 20+ years I’ve been in chorus I’ve met many wonderful people. I’ve always been a first tenor, even though my speaking voice is fairly low. I was in a community production of Jesus Christ Superstar, playing Judas, which is a pretty high part.

Interview with Peter Dempsey

Fri, 03 Apr 2020 00:39:09 GMT

by June Kamerling

Oakland Gay Men's Chorus started in 1999. Peter Dempsey was one of the original singers 20 plus years ago. He jokes he was a lot younger then….skin tighter and middle girth narrower!!

When asked, Peter told me, “Dick Kramer, our original Artistic Director, had a booth at Oakland Pride in 1999. As I walked by he shouted ‘Hey, do you sing’?”. Peter signed the clipboard, auditioned and he was in. There were about 16 or so singers back then, 4 voices on a part. “I was a 1st tenor. I had the ability to sing with the angels. That’s changed over 20 years”.

Peter describes how the chorus has changed his life and how the chorus itself has changed over the years.

Pre-chorus, in 1980 when Peter came out, met his husband, bought a house, lost the house in the Oakland fire of ’91, they were moved how supportive the city of Oakland was toward them, a gay couple, in the reconstruction of their home.

Peter and Phil were tired of having to go to bars and clubs to connect with others in the gay community. They wanted a more meaningful community.

So, when the call came to sing it was an opportunity for the gay community to come together, to be visible and stand their ground, especially at this time being close to the AIDS epidemic. The politics of the time was not conducive to inclusivity.

“In the first years we sang waving the flag. ‘We’re here’!!

We had people in chorus who were suffering with AIDS. They wanted to be seen as singers, not as victims of the plague. We lost members, including a singer from Australia whose parents asked us to sing Waltzing Matilda at his funeral.

Times were starting to change. As people got to know us we were no longer a stereotype.

Churches started making an effort to be inclusive. We were doing something that was of value to our community and we were more visible and respected for the quality of work we were doing”.

How do you see the chorus now?

“The chorus is a place where singers come to sing, where identity is not questioned. Though OGMC is originally and primarily a gay men’s chorus, every gender and identity is included. Everyone is seen for who they are and not what they are.

We take labels off. Each is an individual. We have come together to sing. We are a family”.

Important Update Oakland Gay Men's Chorus' Response to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Public Health Alert 🌈

Mon, 16 Mar 2020 20:31:51 GMT

Dear OGMC Friends & Family,

It is with a heavy heart but a strong sense of responsibility to our broader community that Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus has decided to delay our Spring Concert, Be the Change. We will announce new dates as soon as the current health crisis has passed and new dates have been confirmed with our performance venues.

Ticket fees for our original dates will be refunded. However, like any event-based non-profit organization, we rely on our event revenue to continue doing the good work we do. If you can find it in your heart and budget to make a donation at this time , it is deeply appreciated.

Further, we are suspending all rehearsals and other in-person chorus meetings and events for the next three weeks. At that time we will evaluate the appropriate course of action moving forward.

The SF Bay Area LGBTQIA+ community remembers. We take all health concerns seriously for our membership and broader community. We urge everyone to remain calm, follow the CDC’s recommendations , and be good to one another. Thank you for your continued support and patience as we work through this together.

Be the Change

Tue, 10 Mar 2020 18:29:01 GMT

This concert is postponed and we'll update this website when we can sing for you again!

. . . . .

In the face of growing concerns for both our local community and our world, we need messages to help us see and know that we have the power to move the world towards a better future; in other words: we can be the change we want to see in the world.

Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus proudly presents our Spring Concert, Be the Change. Join us to hear songs that will empower Courage : “Make Them Hear You”, Hope : “You Will Be Found” and Action : “It Takes a Village”.

With a special emphasis on intergenerational collaboration and advocacy, “This Is Your Time”, OGMC hopes to inspire all of us to be that change we need to see in our world.

After hearing and enjoying these and the other wonderful songs, you will leave feeling stimulated, uplifted, and with hope for better days.

Alameda:
Saturday 4/4/20 at 7:30pm

First Presbyterian Church

2001 Santa Clara Ave, Alameda, CA 94501

Oakland:
Sunday 4/5/20 at 4:00pm

Montclair Presbyterian Church

5701 Thornhill Dr, Oakland, CA 94611

article written by Mel Terry

Reflecting on Black History Month

Thu, 27 Feb 2020 16:55:49 GMT

I read this article a few weeks ago and thought that it provided an interesting background to Black History Month. I also appreciated the exposition of the power of music to teach about the past and to help create a more just and inclusive world. It’s a fairly short article but it gave me a jumping off point to look for more information.

I have included a few excerpts that I found interesting. R ead the entire article here .

Over the years, the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus has sung a number of the songs referenced in the article. There has been a little discussion of the background of these songs and this article sheds more light on their origins and possible meaning. I believe that when we know more about the songs we sing, it can bring a greater depth to the emotional connection and enhance our performance.

My interest is also on a more personal note; my great grandfather was an ex-enslaved person from Virginia. I knew a part of his story, but I had to do a lot of digging to get to know more about him and his family. His daughter, my great aunt Felicia, was one of the first two African American women to graduate from Willmantic College in Connecticut in 1906. She received her degree in teaching and taught at a school in her home county. After about a year she was forced out of her position by white people who didn’t want a black person teaching their children. There was quite a controversy at the time with many people on both sides. Ultimately, she had to leave because of threats of violence.

~article written by Mel Terry

Black History Month: Using Music to Teach About the Past

by Mary Rogelstad

The idea for Black History Month was developed during a difficult time for African Americans in the United States. In 1926, segregation and racial violence against the black community was widespread. Amid this struggle, a man named Carter Woodson, now known as the Father of Black History, wanted to find a way to celebrate African American achievements.

With his help, the second week in February was set aside for this purpose. It was designed to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and abolitionist Frederick Douglass.

Decades later in 1976, the celebration was extended to a month, and themes were created each year. In 2020 the focus is on voting rights for African Americans – marking the anniversaries of the passing of the 15th and 19th amendments.

Black History Month provides many cocurricular opportunities to use music to teach students about the struggle for freedom and civil rights and the important role prominent African Americans have played in history.

From “Ragtime” Make Them Hear You is an example of a composition that speaks to audiences in different ways over time. In the show, the song is performed by an African American character who wants the stories about his people’s struggle for justice to be shared with future generations.

“So many groups have seen themselves in that song,” composer Stephen Flaherty said. “It’s about believing in the power of your voice and the need to speak up.”

As the title says, “Make Them Hear You.”

Read the entire article here .

Lavender Seniors' Silver Anniversary Celebration

Wed, 11 Dec 2019 22:19:06 GMT

The Oakland Gay Men's Chorus had the honor and pleasure of singing for the Lavender Seniors' Silver Anniversary celebration, which took place at Eve's Waterfront Restaurant on November 9.

In 1999, The Lavender Seniors were the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus' very first audience. Throughout the years, the Lavender Seniors have continued to be a supportive and appreciative audience for the Chorus.

Performing for the group in 2019, our 20th Anniversary, happily reinforces our long-standing relationship.

Both Lavender Seniors and the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus were created to meet the needs and to improve the lives of underserved individuals and victims of discrimination.

The Oakland Gay Men's Chorus was introduced by Dick Kramer in a recruiting booth at the 1999 East Bay Pride.

Lavender Seniors came about in 1994, established by a group of 20 or so Senior Citizens concerned with the lack of services and legal guidance for the "Gay and Grey". The name "Lavender Seniors" was adopted after one of the founders printed the words on a sign directing LGBTQ Seniors to the first meeting.

The mission of Lavender Seniors is to improve the quality of life of "Golden Age" lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer residents of Alameda and Contra Costa Counties.

Lavender Seniors provides social support services that foster a sense of belonging for all LGBTQ Seniors. They are also active participants in local, statewide and national advocacy efforts.

We love seeing the smiling faces of Lavender Seniors in our audience. Long may our association endure in harmony!

Join Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus this December as we celebrate the sounds of the season at our annual holiday concert, “We Are Lights”!

https://www.oaklandgmc.org/tickets

In the Holiday Spirit

Thu, 05 Dec 2019 23:06:52 GMT

Andrea A. Firth, a writer for the Oakland Magazine and co-founder of Diablo Writers' Workshop , interviewed the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus. This is great timing to promote the holiday concerts this year! The online article should come out later this month and magazine were mailed to the Oakland and greater areas.

Thank you to Andrea for the insightful article. Also, photo credit goes to our talented past photographer of 7 years, Dan Radigan .

Originally posted in the Oakland Magazine .

Why We Sing

Tue, 24 Sep 2019 18:56:04 GMT

BERKELEY (KRON) — Anti-gay messages were found on a banner for the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus.

The targeted banner hangs outside the choir’s office in Berkeley.

“There’s been a lot of, a lot of disgust, quite honestly,” said James Berglund, choir member.

The banners were found with hate filled anti-gay slurs at the office on Alcatraz Street.

“People are just not going to be putting up with it anymore, so we’re tired of it,” Berglund said.

Welcome Dr. Ben Riggs

Sat, 21 Sep 2019 00:39:29 GMT

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is delighted to welcome Dr. Ben Riggs as our new Artistic Director.

Ben officially joined the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus as Artistic Director in August 2019.

After a brief summer break, OGMC returned on September 3rd to our rehearsal schedule for the holiday concerts. Ben treated the chorus to a very organized session peppered with lots of valuable tips and good humor and we were excited to see how far we came with our repertoire in only one rehearsal and look forward to delivering a great concert series.

Ben is also the Artistic Director of Resound Ensemble, a chamber chorus of volunteer mixed voices based in San Francisco. Prior to moving to the Bay Area, Ben was the full-time Artistic Director of Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus, a 160-member volunteer arts organization in Minneapolis, MN.

Ben was previously the Artistic Director of the Denver Gay Men’s Chorus and served two terms on the Board of Directors of GALA Choruses, an international association of LGBT Choruses.

An experienced church musician, Ben currently serves as the Minister of Music at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Oakland and teaches Church Music & Liturgical Singing at Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley.

He holds a Bachelor of Music in piano from Wheaton College Conservatory of Music, a Master of Music in choral conducting from the University of Colorado-Boulder, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Choral Literature and Performance from the University of Colorado-Boulder.

Originally from West Virginia, Ben now lives in Berkeley with his husband, The Rev. John F. Dwyer, and their 160-pound Bernese mountain dog, Lincoln.

We know that when you experience our sound and performance at our holiday concerts you will be as impressed as we are with our new director.

Our Banner

Thu, 19 Sep 2019 03:22:53 GMT

Someone has defaced our office banner and wrote “Die F… Die”.

In the past there has been discussion about keeping the Gay in the chorus name; that maybe it was time to change because so much progress has been made in our society. Seeing and reading the despicable defacing brings home the need to continue to be present and that the fight for respect and quality continues. We are figuring out the best way to get rid of the offensive markings and restore our banner to its previous condition.

Hopefully this was a one-time event, but we will be vigilant.

Below is our Facebook post and the comments we've received. Please add your own!

To Billy, With Love

Thu, 29 Aug 2019 00:29:14 GMT

How do you thank someone who has taken you from Disney to Bernstein?

It isn't easy, but I'll try.

For the last four years it has been the pleasure of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus to have William Sauerland as our Artistic Director.

We have grown together and seen each other through major changes. Billy became Dr. Sauerland after earning his Doctorate of Education in Music and Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University in 2018. His doctoral dissertation examined the experiences of trans and gender nonbinary singers and their teachers in the applied voice studio.

We became the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus, shedding after twenty years our beloved but unwieldy “The Oakland-Eastbay Gay Men’s Chorus”. And we have a new logo!

Our collaboration and relationship with Billy goes back quite a few years before his assuming the role of our artistic director. While he was still artistic director of the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Chorus he led us in joint concerts and outreach performances.

Besides directing us through four great concert seasons, many of which were sold out, Billy (as he will always be to us) has been instrumental in providing us with opportunities to perform with the Oakland Symphony and Symphony Chorus, the Oakland Youth Chorus, and most recently the Hugh Jackman Greatest Showman Tour in San Jose, in front of an audience of 12,000.

Through Billy’s colorful metaphors and clear direction, the chorus has grown in musical quality and performance confidence. We have also grown about 20% in membership. Our rehearsals have been focused and productive while still being fun. He has raised the bar for our standard of vocal achievement and given us the tools to continue to improve. He exemplifies our mission and core values.

Recently, Billy accepted the position of Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies for the School of Music at Purdue University. While we are sad to see him go, we are excited for him and his new career in Indiana. We know that they are getting a wonderful addition to their faculty and community.

We wish him the best, thank him for all that he’s given to us, and hope to see him when he visits the Bay Area with his husband Tom.

We are delighted to announce that the chorus has hired Dr. Ben Riggs to be our next Artistic Director. Ben was most recently the full-time Artistic Director of Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus, a 160-member choral organization in Minneapolis, Minnesota. We look forward to sharing more about Ben in our next post.

Auditions are here!

Tue, 27 Aug 2019 17:30:15 GMT

For audition info and to schedule your audition slot, please contact membership chair, James Berglund, at membership@oebgmc.org .

Farewell Concert for William Sauerland, Artistic Director

Fri, 19 Jul 2019 02:58:55 GMT

The above video, featuring Dr. William Sauerland, is made possible by P&G and published on The Great Big Story .

The following is by Dr. William Sauerland, as eloquently written in our summer playbill.

Having grown up on a dairy farm in Ohio, I have been listening to the music of Dolly Parton my entire life. I believe there is a special appeal in her songs – directness and beauty in her lyrics, familiarity and brilliance in her melodies, and radiance and intimacy in her delivery. As a country musician, Dolly is unparalleled in her prolific and creative output. Self-effacing, down-to-earth, and personable, Dolly often stands at odds with other celebrities of her renown. She is an icon the world over, and in my humble opinion, among the greatest musicians of our time. (Plus, she has also inspired more drag queen performances than is measurable!) Tonight’s show features many of Dolly’s greatest hits, both original songs and covers. When country music meets the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus, the result is Dollylicious!

After four years as artistic director, including fourteen different concert programs and hundreds of free community performances in over fifteen cities throughout the East Bay, my tenure with this amazing chorus will conclude with our concerts this weekend. My experience with this chorus has been inspiring. The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus has helped me become a better conductor, music teacher, and collaborator. I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to conduct this dedicated ensemble. (In case you are curious, I have accepted a position as assistant professor of music and director of choral studies for the School of Music at Purdue University. Indiana, here we come!)

While my departure is bittersweet, I am thrilled Dr. Ben Riggs will be taking over as artistic director. Dr. Riggs comes with a wealth of knowledge and experience of LGBTQ+ choruses, having previously served as artistic director of the Denver Gay Men’s Chorus and Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus. We joyfully welcome him to this community! Next season will be an exciting one. OGMC will be back in December with three performances of beloved holiday songs and will present two different concerts in the spring of 2020. The chorus will also represent Oakland at the quadrennial GALA Choruses Festival in Minneapolis in July.

I profoundly believe in the mission of this organization and the members who commit so much energy to fulfilling it. We aren’t just an organization, nor are we just a chorus, we are so much more.

We are family, community, and kin. Thank you for allowing me to be amongst your ranks. To have joined you in music making has been among the greatest experiences of my life.

Forever, in love and song,
William Sauerland
artistic director

Selfie with Dolly at our Concerts

Fri, 19 Jul 2019 02:50:03 GMT

(Well, the Dolly doll anyway!)

There will be a wonderful life-sized cutout of Dolly Parton at our CONCERTS!

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is a book-gifting program. Books are mailed directly to children age 0-5 to their homes at no cost. Over 1,000,000 books per month mailed in USA. https://imaginationlibrary.com/

The Dolly doll is compliments of The Berkeley Baby Book Project. They are the local affiliate, serving within Berkeley city limits so all children under 5 living in Berkeley are eligible. https://thebbbp.org/

Register a child here --> https://thebbbp.org/imagination-library

Spread the good word!

Leanne Borghesi will put the divalicious in Dollylicious!

Tue, 09 Jul 2019 20:51:15 GMT

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is delighted to welcome back the scintillating singer Leanne Borghesi to join us on stage. You may remember her electrifying performances with us back in 2017 when she and the City Swing Band rocked the house during our summer concert. If you weren’t there, you are in for a treat.

In August through October 2018 she spiced up the role of Rosie in the Lesher Center’s production of Mamma Mia. After a raucous off-Broadway run of Mood Swings at The Triad Theater in New York City, Leanne performed at “Jazz at Lincoln Center” in New York as a featured vocalist. She made her Carnegie hall debut on May 21, 2019.

Leanne is a vibrant actress and vocalist specializing in performance with Jazz ensembles, Big Bands, comedic ‘theatrical cabarets.’ and swingin’ club acts in New York and San Francisco. Her vivacious and robust vocals and performance styles make each performance unique, personal, and full of surprises. We are very excited to be working with her again. We hope to see you there, for a guaranteed good time.

Two convenient locations!

Here is the link to buy tickets to our Saturday show .

Saturday, July 20th - 8pm
Michaan's Auctions Theater
2700 Saratoga Street, Alameda

Here is the link to buy tickets to our Sunday show.

Sunday, July 21st - 7pm
Freight & Salvage
2020 Addison St., Berkeley

A Memory for Our 20th Anniversary

Tue, 14 May 2019 18:19:47 GMT

It was Spring 2011. For two years our church had discussed, debated, and obsessed over whether to become an “RIC” congregation, one with a public welcome—and not just a welcome, an embrace—of LGBTQ+ people and what they bring to the life of the church. The church members were still split on the “issue” (a horrible way to describe a situation that so strongly affects real people’s lives). We’d be voting at the end of May about our RIC status.

Months before, I had seen this coming, and decided to enlist the help of the Oakland GMC (OEBGMC at the time). Our church has a concert series, and we scheduled a concert in April, one month before the vote would be taken. On April 30, OEBGMC presented a wonderful concert, “The Men’s Choral Tradition: Love Songs, Sea Shanties, Drinking Songs, and Folksongs,” to an appreciative audience that was comprised about half of members of our congregation, half folk from the surrounding community who just like to come to our concerts.

As we all know, it’s easy to demonize a group of people when we *think* we don’t know anyone in that category, and this is certainly true of straight folk who have “never” had an LGBTQ+ family member or friend. But that concert put a human face on the community for those who were ignorant of what LGBTQ+ means. The very ordinariness of the performers said “we are YOU” and the grace with which OEBGMC members interacted with our audience members during and surrounding the performance made an impressive impact.

I don’t know whether the concert affected our congregational vote, but I’d like to think it did. The month after the performance, our church voted with a very large majority in favor of full inclusion, welcome, and embrace of LGBTQ+ people, starting a trajectory of learning what that means. Each year now we have a “Pride Festival Sunday” the last Sunday of January, and OEBGMC has been our special musical guest at two of those celebrations.

Shortly after our RIC vote, OEBGMC asked me to serve on a search team for a new artistic director. It was my privilege to do so and it was a delight to get to know the other team members—Mel, Lyle, Sherwood, Richard, and Wally—a bit better.

Congratulations, Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus friends, on your twentieth anniversary. You have been for us, and I’m sure for others, not only a source of musical joy but also an irresistibly positive face of the LGBTQ+ community for the Bay Area.

Martin Morley
Director of Worship and Music
Our Savior’s Lutheran Church
Lafayette, California

Congratulations to our Artistic Director, Dr. William Sauerland, and a Bittersweet Farewell

Mon, 06 May 2019 20:56:59 GMT

A Message from our Board President, Dustin Bankston

Please join me in congratulating Dr. William Sauerland, our Artistic Director, on accepting the appointment of Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities for the School of Music at Purdue University in Indiana! When Billy started as our interim Artistic Director in the Fall of 2015, we quickly realized how fortunate we were to have someone with his talent and skills on our conductor stand. In the last four years, our sound has improved extraordinarily and our membership has doubled, largely due to Billy's direction and charisma. We will miss him greatly and always remember the positive impact he has made during his tenure as our Artistic Director. Billy will be with us through the Summer concert before he and his husband Tom relocate to the Midwest in August.

We've come to know and appreciate a sense of stability these past several years, partly due to our strong Artistic Director, but mostly due to our members who have created a wonderful community. I have no doubt we will attract top talent in our search that will keep us on the forward path and our community strong during the forthcoming transition. The job is posted and interested applicants are encouraged to review the posting and submit their application. In the meantime, let's enjoy our remaining time with Billy before we send him off with our full support and gratitude!

If you or someone you know would be a great fit for this position, please see our Careers page for details.

Infinite Enthusiasm

Wed, 13 Mar 2019 18:53:39 GMT

Do you remember your excitement when you were a child opening your Christmas or birthday present? Or how about getting free tickets to Hamilton ? Multiply that times ten! That’s how excited we are at the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus to present and perform “Feeling Infinite” for the first time.

The Chorus is committed to creating beautiful music and supporting the performing arts. To celebrate our 20th anniversary, what better way to accomplish both goals than to commission a work!

Eleanor Wikstrom, an Oakland based, prize-winning poet and member of the Oakland Youth Chorus has written a poem called “Infinity,” which captures the “winding streets” and “twinkling skyline” of Oakland. This poem has been set to complementary music by the young, visionary, gay composer Dominick DiOrio. The resulting beautiful introspective piece magnifies not only the original poetry written in Oakland, but will highlight the enduring legacy of our two musical organizations and celebrate the rich cultures within Oakland itself.

As a composer, DiOrio has been hailed for a keenly intelligent, evocative style, which shows “a tour de force of inventive thinking and unique colour” ( Gramophone ).

To quote Dominick:

"I have endeavored to match Eleanor’s poem with music that is not too fast or too slow, with a piano part that never quite settles as it reaches back into the past, struggling to give form to memories that exist no longer as sharp images but as blurry clouds. With this ever-searching quality, I have layered a text setting that is forthright and clear, so that Eleanor’s words are front and center in the musical portrayal. Alternating between quiet and fervent, the music eventually dies away as the chorus sings in the very top of its range with the hushed sounds of falsetto."

DiOrio is currently based in Bloomington, Indiana, where he is an associate professor of music on the conducting faculty at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music

The inaugural performances of “Feeling Infinite” will take place May 18, 2019 at the First Congregational Church in Berkeley, and May 19, 2019 at the First Presbyterian Church in Alameda. We feel privileged and are overjoyed to participate in the birth of this beautiful work of art that ties our communities together.

Save your seat at our Pride of the East Bay 20th Anniversary Concert.

It's my Favorite Time of Year

Mon, 10 Dec 2018 23:44:18 GMT

Well it's my favorite time of year.

To me our Winter concert marks the beginning of the holiday season. After that weekend, I can shop decorate and generally get ready for Christmas.

I grew up as a military "brat". We decorated mostly the inside of the house, but did not do a lot for the outside of the house. The outside had lights and a wreath and not much more. This was because our house changed because we moved every 2-2 1/2 years.

The inside included a specific manger scene, music boxes, and lots of garland and usually a big Christmas tree. My favorite thing were Christmas balls that had a yarn string mixed with tinsel on the bottom. You pulled the string and they played Christmas songs music box style. We got the balls in Japan. My brother loved to pull the string on both balls.

My parents are gone, my brother is gone, but I have most of the Christmas stuff including the balls. They hang today in my house giving me memories of my family here and gone.

A Tribute to the Artists

Sat, 10 Nov 2018 01:44:34 GMT

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is beyond proud to be singing the Brahms Requiem with the Oakland Symphony Chorus in tribute to the victims of the Ghost Ship fire, and to collaborate with other like-minded artistic organizations in our community. It gives us an important opportunity to put music and expression to a pain and a sense of loss that many of us have been feeling, to take a step forward together, and to celebrate the art, lives, and dreams of those that were lost.

It’s been almost two years since the Ghost Ship fire in Oakland. Thirty-six lives were taken from our community that day. Many of us have experienced death and loss before, but to me, this was something different. It was more visceral. It felt more real, more terrifying. It was so close to home, and it was happening at an event I might have attended. I can’t remember ever feeling as helpless as I did then, knowing that people my age and younger were trapped and terrified.

The hours after seemed to unfold at a crawl as we all held our breaths, waiting to hear some good news about the dozens of people missing, but there wasn’t much good news to be had. I myself was waiting, heart in my throat, to hear about my friend Donna who, like so many others, hadn’t been heard from.

I was just walking off the stage after my first concert singing with OGMC, floating on a cloud of camaraderie and accomplishment, when I heard confirmation from a teary-eyed friend that Donna had died in the fire. I just stood there in the audience hugging him for a while, not exactly sure what to do with all of my confusing, conflicting emotions. I know now that with my choral family is the best place to be in the wake of something like that. It’s important not to shut down, to step out and embrace the community rather than shy away from it, and that’s what OGMC does everyday. We try to reach as much of that community as possible, and shine a light on the things that connect us, even when those things are rife with pain.

In a time of grief, Donna’s friends came together and celebrated all that she had given us, just as I am doing as I write this, and just as the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus will do on November 16th with the Oakland Symphony when they acknowledge what was added to society by these thirty-six souls, as well as what was taken away from it in the fire. As if to comfort her friends in the middle of all that grief, a video of her played at that gathering of friends. It was footage from a documentary about the switch from film projection to digital in theaters across the country, something that she and I and our friends had experienced and lamented together. Her words on the subject still comfort and inspire me to this day, and perhaps they can do the same for someone else.

“I’m constantly teeter-tottering back and forth between sad and happy. It seems like I’m on the tail end of this dragon that’s been soaring through history, art history, societal expression, for ages. And at every turn, I just see the end of the tail. The end of the dragon. Now we’re going digital and film is ending—another part of this repeating cycle in my life that’s been happening since I was young. It’s gone. It’s over. Get used to MTV. Get used to digital. Analogue is a thing of the past, and why would you care about that? And it’s true; you can produce more with digital. That’s what our society is heading towards: we need more choices, more options instead of having quality. It’s all about the quantity of things. It’s all about the number of screens. It’s not just one stage, one performance of your lifetime. It can’t be an exact replica of the past, and so I have to think about the positives, the things it can do. I don’t think theaters will go away, I think people will still want to go out and experience something, whether or not it’s something that looks good on screen, as film purists love the imperfections. It will look perfect and cold and unwavering, but there will be a whole other emotion that’s brought about from that. Like the dragon—we’re all a part of this one long piece of expression. But it’s not over, that tail’s coming back around…and it’s time to eat the tail. Analogue in the USA.”

- Donna Kellogg

Holiday Concert Program Advertising Opportunities 2018

Thu, 08 Nov 2018 20:48:55 GMT

The Oakland Gay Men's Chorus is offering a unique way to advertise your business (or write a personal note!) in our 2018 Holiday Concert program. Your ad will be seen by hundreds of local Chorus supporters.

Time is of the essence!

Deadline for ad commitment: Monday, Nov. 12
Deadline for camera-ready artwork (in pdf format only): Friday, Nov. 16

Email: contactoebgmc@oegbmc.org

Brahms “A German Requiem”— The View from the Risers

Thu, 08 Nov 2018 20:00:00 GMT

Brahms “A German Requiem”— The View from the Risers

"Such a man, such a fine soul – and he believes in nothing! He believes in nothing !” So, wrote the deeply Catholic Antonín Dvořák in a letter, referring to his dear friend and mentor, Johannes Brahms. From the very beginning a lot of controversy about the German Requiem had to do with its lack of specific references to salvation through Christ. Jesus is never even mentioned in the verses Brahms chose from Luther’s Bible. He wrote "As far as the text is concerned, I confess that I would gladly omit even the word German and instead use Human; also, with my best knowledge and will, I would dispense with passages like John 3:16. [‘For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son…’] On the other hand, I have chosen one thing or another because I am a musician, because I needed it… But I had better stop before I say too much.”

At the age of 11, at his first solo piano recital, Brahms played a fugue by J. S. Bach. Even as a boy he was already fascinated by Baroque counterpoint. By that time “Old Bach” had been considered a pedantic drudge for generations. Everybody studied him, but nobody played him in concert.

The famous story goes that the 20-year-old Johannes showed up at the doorstep of Robert and Clara Schumann with a letter of introduction from the great violinist Joseph Joachim, played some of his own piano pieces for them, and forged an instant communion of four kindred souls that would endure until their deaths. Clara wrote in her diary that Brahms "seemed as if sent straight from God. “Robert (a noted critic as well as a composer) published an article about Brahms that launched his career, and seems to have planted a kind of terror in his young heart that he could never live up to all the hype. It only served to reinforce his natural perfectionist streak. After Robert’s attempted suicide in 1854 Brahms came to live with the Schumanns in Düsseldorf, where he dug into Robert’s extensive collection of early masters such as Bach, Heinrich Schütz, and Giovanni Gabrieli. Robert Schumann died in a mental institution two years later; these days he’d probably be diagnosed as bipolar. His death had a profound impact on Brahms. We can’t directly connect the Requiem to Schumann, but it certainly feels right.

We know from his letters that the idea of a Requiem in German had been stewing around in his mind for a while, then in February 1865 his mother died, and he started to write. He finished six movements by 1866, and added Movement V, with its lovely soprano solo, the following year. The German Requiem was his first big success, at the age of 33. He wouldn’t publish his First Symphony for another nine years.

As we noted, he chose scriptural verses from Luther’s Bible. We can tell something of his intentions in the first line of text, from the Beatitudes: “Selig sind, die da Leid tragen, denn sie sollen getröstet werden . ” (“Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted”) Contrast that with the opening words of the Latin Requiem Mass (so named for its first word): “Requiem eternam dona eis Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis.” (“Eternal rest grant to them, O Lord, and perpetual light shine on them.”) The funeral Mass is focused on the loved one who has died. The German Requiem is focused on the living , on those left behind, on “they that mourn.”

As a singer, one of the first things you notice is that you never, ever get to sit down! The piece lasts about an hour and ten minutes. That’s a lot of standing. Usually in a big choral orchestral work, like any of the well-known Masses and Requiems, there are times you get to sit. The soprano has an aria, or the solo quartet sings the Benedictus . The German Requiem has beautiful solos for soprano and baritone, but all three of those solos include the chorus singing as well. In both of the two baritone solos the chorus completely takes over the movement, which in both instances end up in magnificent choral fugues. In a way, the chorus represents the body of mourners, and since the work is about the mourners, we’re never far from center stage. (By the way, both of the fugues are notated alla breve , with the half-note getting the beat. A nod to music of the distant past.)

The other thing any singer will tell you is that the German Requiem is challenging to sing, to say the least, and not just the fugues. Brahms combines Bach’s mastery of counterpoint with his own audacious harmonies, and a breathtaking sense of internal rhythm. The first performances in Britain, in 1876, received glowing reviews, but critics said that the music was beyond what the singers could manage. It was only after the London Bach Choir began singing it that the truth shone through: To sing the German Requiem well you need to train to sing Bach. They’re rooted the same soil.

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus has the great privilege of joining the Oakland Symphony Chorus and Orchestra, under maestro Michael Morgan, in a single performance of this towering masterpiece , at the Paramount Theater, on Friday, November 16th, in honor of those who lost their lives in the Ghost Ship fire, and in “chorus” with their survivors. We hope you’ll join us .

It’s Time to Choose Our Future

Fri, 02 Nov 2018 02:53:43 GMT

It’s Time to Choose Our Future

I have always considered myself pretty lucky to be a Xennial. I grew up in the 80’s, enjoying a relatively safe and secure time in the world. I saw the Berlin Wall come down, and families and countries reunited. Although I would learn about it later, I was only a child during the height of the AIDS crisis, and relatively shielded from this scary and heartbreaking era. Ollie North meant nothing to me, and Nancy Reagan told me to “Just Say No” to the crack epidemic.

Then came the 90s. Even though the U.S. was engaged in the Gulf War, a wave of patriotism and support for our troops swept the country. I wasn’t really afraid, because by and large we seemed to stand tall together. As this decade marched on, I began to realize I was different. But the great thing was this was the “Gay” 90s. I saw lots of positive role models and TV shows emerge with gay characters. Ellen , and Roseanne and Will & Grace said it was ok to be who you are. This made coming out in college relatively easy for me. And I have to thank all those who came before me who suffered discrimination, violence, and even death to fight for our rights. Because of these heroes, I wasn’t afraid to be me.

When the 2000’s hit, I was ready to work and somehow survived the Dot.com Boom and Bust. But then on 9/11/01, possibly one of the most terrorizing moments I had experienced as an American occurred. This tragedy still seems surreal and impossible today. Yet we got through this because again, the country united and came together to support one another. And after a series of tumultuous economic crises ensured, like the recession, government bailouts and mortgage crisis, I was grateful and fortunate to come out of this period without any financial hardships.

By now, America was ready for change. My hope grew as our country, whose history saw too many dark moments of discrimination and racism, elected the first African-American president. Life got better. The LGTBQ community, of which I am a proud member, saw new rights and equal protection under the law. Healthcare was made available to all. This was the America in which I believe, the place where I wanted to live. And as fast as it came, it now is disappearing even faster.

And for the first time in my life, I am truly scared of what is happening to our country, and live in fear of what our future holds. I have survived rape, depression and a Meth addiction; as horrific as these events were, I find myself event more scared that Hate is thriving right now. There are those in power claiming to be patriotic Americans, yet they believe in taking rights away from citizens. They preach and praise hate, intolerance and violence towards others. They tell bold-faced lies. They seek to divide us and manipulate our emotions, counting on us to ignore their corrupt and criminal behavior. They want to hurt the people I love, and do so with a smile. And, they don’t want you to vote.

I see two Americas when I close my eyes. In one vision, I see an America that is forgiving and compassionate, but that fights against Hate with every last ounce of her strength. And in the second vision, I see a barren wasteland where we failed to act, failed to make a change. What future do you choose? I believe in humanity, so I will vote my conscience on November 6th.

Please help us choose the right future. Vote and make your voice heard.

Dave Woemmel

Tale as Old as Me

Thu, 19 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I grew up with my buddy Walt. So much so that I can’t remember a time in my childhood when Aladdin, Simba, and the Beast didn’t play critical roles in both what I watched and in my imagination. From the puzzles that I put together to my kindergarten Halloween costume, from the songs I sang in the car to our Florida family vacations—Mr. Disney was always along for the ride.

Returning to the Disney Classics this season has been a return to my childhood, but with an intriguing new lens.

This time, I know I’m gay.

When I was growing up, I bought into the heteronormative relationships that Disney espoused—the prince finding his princess and living happily ever after. I never questioned that narrative—nor was I shown different ones. I simply sang along as loud as I could. Until we started rehearsing for this show, I had no idea that the lyricist behind those songs I was belting out was gay.

I can’t help but wonder, what if I had known?

When I came out as gay, despite having an incredibly loving and open family, it took me a long time to accept it and even longer to share it. This was in part because the stories I watched and the narratives they perpetuated only had a space for me if I was going to play a handsome princess-chasing hero. For years, I grew up thinking I needed to want to be that. I had to be Aladdin luring women onto my carpet or Prince Eric kissing mermaids in gondolas if I was going to fit in. When I started having romantic feelings for men, I tried to push it away because that would force my story to be different. That would eliminate, “Prince Charming” from my list of possible futures.

Little did I know that Howard Ashman, the voice behind some of my favorite songs, represented a different possible future. What if someone had taken 6 year old Mitch and said, “By the way, one of the guys who wrote those songs you love so much is gay, isn’t that neat?”

It’s impossible to know the impact that question would have had now. Maybe I would have brushed it off as trivial, maybe I would have actively denied that it mattered, or maybe I would have responded with unbounded curiosity. Regardless, I like to believe that it could have planted a seed in me that recognized the presence, brilliance, and contributions of LGBT individuals. If it happened often enough, it could have made standing in and accepting my own identity decades later, just a little bit easier.

I’m incredibly proud of this production for many reasons. One of which is because it’s not simply a “Disney Show.” Instead, this show’s theme recognizes the importance of lifting up members of the LGBTQ community. Howard Ashman isn’t a footnote—he’s in the title.

With all this in mind, I’m continuing to ask myself, how can we make sure that today’s youth have access to stories of LGBTQ individuals—even when they are behind the scenes? How can we empower and promote empathy through building awareness of the vast contributions of the LGBTQ community? How can we help these ideas reach the next generation of Mitch’s, growing up in the Midwest? How can we make sure that becoming Hetero-Prince Charming is only one option on a list of many?

I’m sure there are several ways. Our upcoming concert is one of them. Bring your family. Bring your kids. Bring someone else’s kids. And join us, in celebrating these timeless classics that were brought to us by a member of the LGBTQ community, Howard Ashman.

by Mitch Zoelzer, Oakland-East Bay Gay Men's Chorus member

Photos from one of our biggest fans...at Disneyland!

Fri, 13 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Miss Caroline is among the most faithful fans the Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus has ever found. Caroline and her compadres from Oakland have been cheering us on for season after season and Caroline is always eager for whatever we might cook up next.

By some strange coincidence, Part of Their World leads directly to another of Caroline's favorite subjects: ANYTHING DISNEY! It's a miracle!

So when asked for a guest blog post from friends of the chorus, here's what Caroline proposed: a Pictorial Travelogue.

She's on her way to Disneyland for one of several annual visits. Here's a series shots as Caroline warms up for the concerts July 21 & 22. Enjoy!

Photos from one of our biggest fans...at Disneyland!

Ashman: Part of His World

Mon, 09 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

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Composer Marvin Hamlisch, right, is shown at the piano with lyricist Howard Ashman in New York City on Sept. 9, 1986. Hamlisch wrote the music for the new Broadway show "Smiles," and Ashman wrote the book, lyrics and directed the show. (AP Photo/Nancy Kaye)*[/caption]

"To our friend Howard, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul, we will be forever grateful. Howard Ashman 1950–1991."

The Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus’ summer season this year boasts a roster of songs that, at first glance, appear to tug at the heart of any properly Disney-obsessed child or former child. With “Belle” and “Gaston” from Beauty and the Beast , medleys including classics like “Under the Sea” from The Little Mermaid and “Friend Like Me” from Aladdin , and of course “Kiss the BOY” from The Little Mermaid , our program certainly represents the genre well. The theme of our upcoming concert, however, is not Disney, but specifically the songs of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman.

Menken, likely the better known of the two, has a long and illustrious list of credits and, at 68, is still every bit the composer he was at the beginning of his career. His resume boasts eight Academy Awards, eleven Grammys, and one Tony, among many other accolades, and shows no sign of slowing down. Ashman, too, has an impressive list of awards, among them five Grammys and two Academy Awards. The majority of his awards and nominations, however, were awarded posthumously, as Ashman passed away at the tragically young age of 40 from complications of AIDS.

Upon the receipt of Ashman’s posthumous second Academy Award, the audience was filled with celebrities wearing red ribbons on their lapels to recognize the AIDS crisis. Ashman’s partner, Bill Lauch, accepted the award on Ashman’s behalf, and spoke briefly about the home and life he’d shared with Ashman, before going on to note that the award he held was the first Academy Award to be given to someone who had died of AIDS. Even in what could be considered the height of the AIDS epidemic, Lauch’s speech was surprising in its directness regarding Ashman’s cause of death, an illness that still carried quite a bit of stigma and aroused fear in many. Yet both Lauch’s quiet words and the many red ribbons dotting the audience were a deceptively clear, unafraid display of the place that Ashman had held in the hearts of the musical and film communities, and of their ability to look beyond an illness that, for many sufferers, had ostracized them from their families and closest friends.

Our summer program, “Part of Their World,” can be seen as a throwback to childhood, but it is simultaneously a call to our adult selves, the ones who, whether due to being LGBTQ or due to being members of other marginalized populations, have too many times encountered the feeling of having been isolated and shut out from one’s own community. Our program taps into both who we felt we were as children and who we are as adults, and is both a set of sweet songs about love and a way to recognize those of us – both amongst the chorus and in our audience - who have fought through many trials and tribulations to stand where we are today. Thus, our numbers from The Little Mermaid stage the classic story of a mermaid infatuated with someone from a different land, trapped – voiceless – but forging on for love nevertheless, while Beauty and the Beast witnesses two lovers who have always felt alone in their own homes, but who find community with one another.

Howard Ashman passed away in 1991, four days after the first screening of Beauty and the Beast. Our summer program attempts to encapsulate his struggle, as a gay man dying of AIDS in the 1980s, and then magnifies it into all of us as we sing his music. This reflection of his life is perhaps best heard through a piece that comes in the middle of our program entitled “Sheridan Square,” a never-released number written by Ashman and Menken as a response to the AIDS epidemic, and named after the area in the West Village of New York where the Stonewall Inn is located. The third verse goes:

Some of the boys have panic
But none of the boys leave town
They say, We’re on the good ship Titanic
We’re gonna sing ‘til the boat goes down
And if it ended before it started
Well, no one told us that life is fair
And why is it still so quiet
Tonight, on Sheridan Square?

But despite the crushing isolation Ashman and other LGBT people must have felt in this time, the song ends on a hopeful note:

NED ROREM TELLS ALL!!!

Mon, 23 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Sixth in a series. Link to The Protégé—Stephen Sondheim, the fifth in a series .

"I conceive all music…vocally.
Whatever my music is written for—
tuba, tambourine, tubular bells—
it is always the singer within me crying to get out."
“Arguably no artist grows up: if he sheds the perceptions of childhood he ceases being an artist.”
— Ned Rorem

"If you want to know how much I love Lenny,
listen to my songs."
—Ned Rorem, speaking about his friend on Medal Day at the MacDowell Colony, 1987.

Larissa MacFarqujar interviewed Ned Rorem for The New Yorker in August, 2005.
It can’t be improved upon, so I’m lifting it whole:

“As a young composer, Rorem was famous for his beauty. When he lived in Paris, in the nineteen-fifties, he knew everybody—Cocteau, Picasso, Nadia Boulanger. No one could resist him. He boasted that he had slept with four Time covers: Leonard Bernstein, Tennessee Williams, Noël Coward, and John Cheever. These early conquests furnished the material for the first of his six published diaries, written in his arch, baroque prose (in the letters, “Swarthy James of the cranberry triceps” is a characteristic salutation). Inevitably, then, the passing of his youth was painful. “Now when entering a bar . . . no head turns,” he wrote in a long, unsent letter to Claude Lebon, a musical dentist who broke his heart in 1956. “To think: just two days ago I was always the youngest at parties…. I’ve no more time to lose with those who don’t pay me court.”

Well then…

It’s good to report that Rorem, born in 1923, is still with us at age 94. His musical output is considerable: three symphonies (the third of which was premiered by Bernstein and the NY Phil in 1959), a dozen concertos, two full-length operas, many other orchestral and chamber works, and dozens of wonderful songs. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1976, and the ASCAP Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. And yet today his place in music rests mainly on his deserved reputation as the foremost composer of American art songs. Mezzo-soprano Susan Graham released an album of his songs, written for her; and Thomas Hampson, Brian Azawa, and Judy Collins have recorded his songs. A few years ago, Festival Opera, in Walnut Creek, presented his opera, Our Town , based on Thornton Wilder’s play, which was first produced in 2005, when its composer was 81.

He is, if anything, even more famous—maybe notorious is a better word—for his frank and provocative diaries, which spare no details, and shed light on what it was like to be as out as you could be in the 1950s, when being gay was, after all, illegal almost everywhere. (Of course he spent years living in Paris! The French just don’t care about that sort of thing.) The Paris Diary of Ned Rorem was the first of the diaries. When it came out in 1966 it caused quite the scandal. Besides five more volumes of diaries, he has also published well-respected books of music criticism.

When Lenny won the MacDowell Medal in 1987 he chose his old friend (and lover), to deliver the address. Rorem said then, “… what really matters in music is that which can’t be imparted except through itself; even the composer isn’t always clear about how he makes things tick. Anyone can learn to write a perfect piece, but not how to make that piece breath and bleed. Bernstein’s pieces bleed and breath. Expressivity is their goal, simplicity their device.”

In 1988, in the depths of the AIDS crisis, the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus commissioned Rorem to write a piece for them. The words are from the gay poet and writer Paul Monette; the first poem from his collection, Love Alone, Eighteen Elegies for Rog . He wrote: “Roger Horowitz, my beloved friend, died on 22 October 1986, after nineteen months of fighting the ravages of AIDS. He was forty-four years old, and the happiest man I ever knew.” The overall title comes from Millay’s verses:

…many a man is making friends with death
Even as I speak, for lack of love alone.

Monette himself died from AIDS in 1995.

The Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus first performed “Love Alone” many years ago, and we’re proud to offer it up again, to remember and grieve for all those we have lost.

“Inspiration can be called inhaling the memory of an act never experienced.”
 Ned Rorem

Prairie Homo Companion - A Parody of Everyone’s Favorite Radio Show

Fri, 20 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Join the Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus for the whimsical and witty " A Prairie Homo Companion", a parody of everyone’s favorite radio show.

Artistic Director, William Sauerland, crafts a show that highlights a diverse repertoire, from opera hits of Giuseppe Verdi and Sigmund Romberg to popular tunes of Anne Murray and Sandi Patty, along with some blues, bluegrass, and American folksongs.

Classic radio drama-parodies are sprinkled throughout the show, including “Gay Noir, Private Eye,” “Days of Our Lives of the Cowboys,” and “News from Lake Merritt.”

The chorus will be joined by two guest soloists, soprano Shawnette Sulker and songstress Annie Herring.

Even if you aren’t familiar with the timeless radio show that has inspired our spinoff, you will love the hilarity, bravura, and exceptional artistry of the Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus!

The Protégé—Stephen Sondheim

Tue, 17 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The fifth in a series. Link to Lenny on Broadway, fourth in a series .

“Steve is the most important force
in the American musical theater.
He combines wit and intelligence
in a very special way,
and he’s willing to take chances.”
Leonard Bernstein

“Maybe you could show me
how to let go,
lower my guard,
learn to be free.
Maybe if you whistle,
whistle for me.”
From “Anyone Can Whistle,” reported to be Mr. Sondheim’s favorite of his songs.

As I write this, Stephen Sondheim has just celebrated his 88 th birthday. By now every acolyte knows the story of his early years: The child of a bad marriage, with a father who left his wife for another woman, and a cold, isolating mother whom Stephen openly detested. At the age of 10 he was taken in by the father of one of his friends, who became a substitute parent to him. That was Oscar Hammerstein II; he was working on South Pacific at the time. Steve asked the master lyricist to critique his early work. He did, quite harshly, but by the time they were finished years later the kid knew how to craft a lyric. British producer Cameron Mackintosh described Stephen Sondheim as “perhaps the greatest lyricist ever.” So, you’d think that music was a secondary interest. But if you thought that you’d be wrong. His first theater teacher at Williams College suggested he study music composition privately with Milton Babbitt. So, he did. This is the man whom John Adams called “the Yoda of American Serialism;” but they got along. It seemed the crusty old master had a taste for popular music. Steve said about Babbitt, "I am his maverick, his one student who went into the popular arts with all his serious artillery."

When Arthur Laurents approached Sondheim to be the co-lyricist for West Side Story, Oscar Hammerstein actually had to convince his young protégé that this was one hell of an opportunity to learn from the best in the business.

Sondheim had been hired on as co-lyricist, with Bernstein. When the out-of-town reviews didn’t mention him at all he fell into a funk. Lenny had grown quite close to him as they shopped the show for backers, playing piano four-hands. He removed his name from the lyricist credits, thereby launching his young friend’s career in one extremely magnanimous gesture. To this day there’s no record of who wrote what.

After the show opened to raves, he had another offer from Laurents to reunite with him and Jerome Robbins to write the lyrics for Gypsy , with the music by Jule Styne. Ethel Merman, the name-above-the-title star, making yet another comeback as Mama Rose, rejected the idea of a first-time composer. Again, Steve was stubborn in his desire to write the music, and again, Hammerstein told him not to be an idiot. Looking back, it’s hard to imagine Steve writing the songs for Follies , in 1971, without having internalized the musical language of both Bernstein and Jule Styne.

He finally got his chance to write the lyrics and the music for the 1962 riotous farce, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum , which, as you might expect with the benefit of hind-sight, has a score that’s surprisingly challenging.

Anyone who’s ever sung a Sondheim song will tell you that it’s never easy. Even when it’s relatively simple and straightforward, and sounds easy, it isn’t easy. This writer remembers being in a production of A Funny Thing… at Stanford in 1969. (I was Hero, the juvenile lead. Please don’t laugh…) The director ended up cutting the song “Pretty Little Picture” because the actor playing Pseudolus couldn’t handle the angular melody and the tricky rhythms. A difficult song, in a really silly comedy! It’s easy to imagine that Steve thinks that life isn’t easy, so why should his songs be? He’d probably agree with Aaron Copland, who wrote “… serious music was never meant to be used as a soporific. Contemporary music, especially, is created to wake you up, not put you to sleep. It is meant to stir and excite you, to move you--it may even exhaust you. But isn't that the kind of stimulation you go to the theater for, or read a book for? Why make an exception for music?”

Does it seem superfluous to review Stephen Sondheim’s remarkable career? Maybe, but just for the record, he won 7 Tonys for Best Musical or Best Score & Lyrics— A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum ( 1963), Company (1971), Follies (1972), A Little Night Music (1973), Sweeney Todd (1979), Into the Woods (1988), and Passion (1994). He also received a Tony for Lifetime Achievement in 2008. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Drama in 1985, for Sunday in the Park with George , and won the Best Original Song Oscar in 1990 for “Sooner or Later,” from Dick Tracy . He was the recipient of a Kennedy Center Honor in 1993, and the MacDowell Medal in 2013.

He and Lenny didn’t win the Tony for West Side Story. It lost to The Music Man ; a much safer show in 1957. Still it seems wrong…

Besides the songs from West Side Story , the Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus’s Lenny & Friends concert will include a luscious arrangement of “Send in the Clowns,” from A Little Night Music , as well as “Everybody Says Don’t,” from Anyone Can Whistle , a legendary flop from 1964 that closed after 9 performance, but left a couple of great songs.

Be there!

Interview with William Sauerland on Lenny & Friends

Mon, 09 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The Artistic Director of the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus, William Sauerland (known to the chorus as Billy), easily expresses his passion for the music of the 2018 spring concert, Lenny & Friends: A Centennial Celebration of Leonard Bernstein . His emotional connection to the music on the program stems from early childhood when he immersed himself in the music of the stage—both musical theatre and opera. One of the first shows he remembers listening to was West Side Story . As a child, he knew it was escapism; it was not until he was a teenager that he began to understand that West Side Story along with much of Bernstein’s work pointed a truth at life as a response to oppressive ideologies and social injustice.

Bernstein, Billy said, was first and foremost a conductor. Bernstein was also a great composer, and his music is part of the quintessential sound of the 20 th century musical theatre and even classical music. This was the starting place for the program—Bernstein at 100, and who influenced Bernstein, who was influenced by Bernstein, and how is his music still influencing composers.

Bernstein was gay, along with all the other composers on this program except for Edward MacDowell (“Midsummer Clouds”). (Yes, Bernstein was married to a woman and had three children with her; he also had many male lovers whom she knew about). sBilly feels that OEBGMC, an LGBTQ arts organization, has a responsibility to perform queer music. While singing some well-known music, the chorus is also exploring and performing music that few other groups may take on. Some of these pieces make the program both musically and emotionally difficult—some of the texts will have deep resonance with the performers and the audience--and Billy has a sense of responsibility for this music. He said that this music gives all of us a chance, not just to engage music as a form of entertainment, but to pause for reflection on what truth the art is pointing out.

Bernstein and his friend and fellow conductor/composer Aaron Copland (OEBGMC is performing “The Dodger,” “The Little Horses,” and “Zion’s Walls”) were at the upper echelon of composers, and they worked with excellent musicians to try these new musical styles. Their music is such a part of the American musical fabric that, because it is so recognizable, Billy said, it gives a weird feeling of being accessible; however, their music is challenging. Bernstein and Copland used a level of difficulty in their music in order to serve the text. While Copland captured rural Americana, Bernstein captured the rhythm and sounds of urban life, especially New York City.

In much of Bernstein’s music, the place—the setting—is as important as the text and music. New York City is prominent in West Side Story , as well as On the Town (about 3 sailors on leave in NYC before heading off to WWII), and Wonderful Town (about two sisters who leave their home in Ohio to make their way in the Big Apple) . Billy said that while some may claim that On the Town had a better musical score, he prefers Wonderful Town because there is something universal in leaving home. In the song, “Ohio” the sisters wonder, “Why did I ever leave Ohio?” (Check out a funny scene starring Rosalind Russell here .) Billy grew up on a dairy farm in western Ohio, and he has sung this song often in duet (he has a beautiful counter tenor voice!). Although he now has more emotional attachment to the singers with whom he has performed than to the sentiment of the song, and even though he has no intention of ever moving back, he can’t say that the longing to return to Ohio will ever go away. As a musician from Ohio, New York City was itself a draw, the place to go. He got to NYC for the first time when he was a senior in high school, and he said he had the feeling it was where life was happening. He has made his home in the San Francisco Bay Area, and there is something appealing, he said, about New York.

Bernstein wrote many pieces for the times. His Mass , from which OEBGMC is singing “Gloria Tibi”, was written in response to the death of President John F. Kennedy; the musical 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. , which later was reworked into the White House Cantata , was written for the 200 th anniversary of the US; it was also a response to Watergate. It is from the White House Cantata that OEBGMC is singing Billy’s favorite song on the concert, “Take Care of This House.” It is combined with “My House” from Bernstein’s version of Peter Pan, and the two house songs call for a house to be built of love and truth and peace, and to keep the dreams of the people alive. The moving text is a response to what our country is going through and a plea to the current inhabitant of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave to take care of OUR house.

Billy said that after exploring Bernstein, he wants to explore the works of one of the other composers on this program, Pulitzer winner Ned Rorem, who has piqued his interest. Billy is in love with the song “Love Alone,” which is sung by a small ensemble of chorus members. The text, from the poem “Here” by Paul Monette, reveals the agony of a man who has lost his lover to AIDS, and Rorem set it to music as a tribute to all who died of AIDS, reminding us, like Lenny and his Friends, that art can be both beautiful and political.

In response to the assassination of President Kennedy, Bernstein wrote, “This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.” After the 2016 election, feeling lost and confused, Billy wondered what he could do. His answer--make music, be out, be queer. He put the quote, “This will be our reply…” on his mirror and read it every morning for inspiration, unaware of the source. One day while driving he began singing the words, in a chant reminiscent of Gregorian chant, the yoga he used to practice, and a Catholic prayer his grandmother used to sing. He pulled over and recorded it on his phone. He then set the music, and then sought the source. With Bernstein’s text, Billy’s “This Is Our Reply: A Meditation” premiers with this program and opens the concert. It offers symmetry to the first half of the program that closes with the chant-like “Let Us Plant Our Gardens Now,” by the young modern composer, Dominick Diorio.

This concert is the reply of the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus to our time: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before. Please Join OEBGMC, and Artistic Director, William Sauerland, on April 7 @ 7 pm, Lafayette Christian Church; April 14 @ 7 pm, Montclair Presbyterian Church; or April 8 @ 5 pm, First Congregational Church of Alameda. Get your tickets here .

The Patron Saint—Edward MacDowell

Mon, 05 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Third in a series. Link to the second article in the Lenny Bernstein series.

"If my music has been connected in people's minds with America, if people find some reflection of the American spirit in my music, then certainly the Colony must have some of the credit."
—Aaron Copland, in his acceptance speech on Medal Day at the MacDowell Colony, 1961.

That’s right…

“So, how’s a guy that died, what, 10 years before Lenny was even born get to be in the concert?”

That’s a good question. And the answer involves a trip to Paris, a glee club, an abandoned farm in New Hampshire that turns into an artists’ colony, a horrible taxi accident, and a gold medal that Lenny was given. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves…

The American pianist and composer, Edward MacDowell, was born in 1860 in New York City. Since there weren’t opportunities for American-born composers at home, his mother took him to Europe when he was 17. He enrolled at the Paris Conservatory on a scholarship for foreign students, where he studied alongside Claude Debussy. It was there that he played a piano recital for Franz Liszt and Clara Schumann, who considered him a major talent. He stayed in Europe, teaching and performing, for several years. In 1884, he married a former American student of his, Marian Nevins, whom he’d taught in Frankfurt. She ends up playing a big part in this story.

They returned to America in 1888, and in 1896 he was asked to be the very first music professor at Columbia, where his task would be to create a Music Department virtually from scratch. For his first couple of years there he led the Mendelssohn Glee Club, and wrote several pieces for them. (One of those songs will be on our program.) He left Columbia in 1904, leaving in a huff after a nasty row with the new President.

Meanwhile, Marian knew that her husband needed a quiet place to compose. She found an abandoned farm on 80 acres in rural New Hampshire. They bought Hillcrest Farm, and made it their summer home. After being shown the door at Columbia, Edward fell into a depression, and his health deteriorated. Later that same year, 1904, he was run over by a hansom cab on Broadway, injuring him seriously and contributing to his advancing psychiatric disorder. His former students from the glee club led a campaign to raise money for his care. In 1907, the MacDowells deeded the farm to the newly established MacDowell Colony, the first artists’ residency program in America. Edward died in 1908, at age 47, and is buried at the Colony.

At the time of his death he was regarded as a great American composer with an international reputation. That reputation has diminished in the ensuing years, and now he’s known mostly for piano miniatures such as “To a Wild Rose,” surely his most famous composition. Bernstein conducted several of his orchestral pieces in his early years with the New York Philharmonic. (His Second Piano Concerto used to be played frequently; it deserves a revival!) Marian outlived her husband by almost 50 years, and was regarded as the foremost champion of his music, and of the Colony.

Since 1908 the MacDowell Colony has proven to be a priceless gift to American artists. Its resident fellows read like a who’s who of American arts, including authors Thornton Wilder, James Baldwin, Willa Cather, and Alice Walker. In music, the list has Aaron Copland (who wrote Appalachian Spring there,) Amy Beach, Virgil Thomson, Walter Piston, Samuel Barber, and Leonard Bernstein, who completed Mass there, in 1970. To bring it closer to home, Berkeley writer Michael Chabon finished The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay at the MacDowell Colony, and currently serves as the President of its Board of Directors.

In 1960, the Colony established the Edward MacDowell Medal, awarded annually for distinguished contribution to American arts and culture. Wilder won the first award; Copland, the second; Robert Frost, the third. Leonard Bernstein won the MacDowell Medal in 1987, and Steven Sondheim in 2013. Bernstein remarked that it was the first award he had received solely for his compositions. “Medal Day” is a major event at the Colony, with a huge tent for the presentations, along with picnics and tours of the 32 artist’s studios. From the beginning the ceremony has included an address by an equally worthy artist about the recipient. When Lenny received the award, the speaker was his old friend, the composer and diarist, Ned Rorem. We’ll have more to say about him in another article.

Oakland East Bay Men's Chorus is excited to be paying our small tribute to this true patron saint of the American arts. The MacDowell song that we’re performing is “Midsummer Clouds,” published in 1898, and written for his own men’s chorus at Columbia. It’s a lovely, literally dreamy, reverie; an American form of Impressionism akin to what he’d encountered in Paris, complete with exotic scales, parallel movement, and time seeming to stand completely still.

This is a concert not to be missed!

Lenny on Broadway

Thu, 01 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Fourth in a series. Link to The Patron Saint—Edward MacDowell, third in a series .

“The song 'Some Other Time' is full of emotion.

In wartime, it had a tremendously
poignant feeling.”
—Betty Comden

“To achieve great things two things are needed:
a plan, and not quite enough time.”
—Leonard Bernstein

Lenny was 19 when he met Adolph Green in the summer of 1937. Lenny had just finished his sophomore year at Harvard, and was working as a music counselor at a camp in the Catskills. Adolph, a self-described “aimless bum” at the age of 22, was hired on to guest star as the Pirate King in the camp’s production of The Pirates of Penzance . They became best friends, and remained close until Bernstein’s death in 1990. (Adolph was Lenny’s choice for Dr. Pangloss in the “definitive” 1989 recording of Candide .) Later on, they shared an apartment in New York. A mutual friend introduced them to Betty Comden. The three of them, along with Judy Holliday, formed a comedy troupe called “The Revuers,” and performed often in Greenwich Village. Bernstein played piano in lots of late-night jam sessions, absorbing the language of popular songs and jazz.

In 1944, while Bernstein was building his career as a conductor and “serious” composer, he collaborated with choreographer Jerome Robbins on a ballet score, Fancy Free , which they then decided to expand into a Broadway musical, On the Town . They brought in the new writing team of Comden and Green for the book and the lyrics, and to lead the cast. The show, which opened in wartime, and put the war itself front and center, was a huge hit. Critic Henry Simon wrote: “Bernstein bridges the gap between the Tin Pan Alley idiom and Copland-Stravinsky so successfully… The highly expert ballet music and the smart Broadway songs seem to be all of a piece. The lyrics belong to the tunes, the tunes to the orchestration, the dancing to both, and all of them to the high-spirited, youthful vitality of a swift-moving show.” Clearly the young team was on its way! An interesting side note— On the Town was the first time that a fully integrated “mixed cast,” including six African Americans, was seen on the Great White Way.

The same team repeated their triumph in 1953, with Wonderful Town . In what was to become a pattern, the show featured a fantastic score, dancing as a central part of the narrative, and a feisty woman in a central role. Ruth Sherwood (played so memorably by Rosalind Russell) is smart, and she’s proud of it! Like its predecessor, Wonderful Town also didn’t hold back from some not-so-subtle politicizing, at a time when “self-expression” and “Greenwich Village” were code words for lefties and Commie-pinkos.

Lenny’s next venture on Broadway was the operetta Candide , in 1956, which proved a disappointment in its relatively short run, and ended up being edited and reedited by its composer through the years, with several lyricists. It lives on, though, with numerous revivals and concert performances, and the effervescent overture is an orchestra staple around the world. Candide was, if anything, even more political than Wonderful Town , complete with an Inquisition scene. (“What a day! What a day, for an auto-da-fé!” )

By that time, the team of Comden and Green were at the top of their game, writing, among other things, the book and lyrics for Bells Are Ringing , with Jule Styne, and the screenplays for Singin’ in the Rain and Auntie Mame .

While Candide was in the works, Bernstein was busy simultaneously with Arthur Laurents and Jerry Robbins on an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet , reimagined as gang warfare on the streets of New York— West Side Story . He’d signed on to write the music and lyrics, but, to no one’s particular surprise, Lenny found himself overextended. (Imagine that! He still maintained his busy schedule as a globetrotting conductor, pianist, and celebrity.) He ended up taking Laurents’ advice and bringing on a fresh, young lyricist named Stephen Sondheim, launching a legendary career. We’ll have more to say about that wünderkind in another post.

After that, Lenny mostly stayed away from Broadway for quite a while. His return did not go well! In 1976, he teamed with lyricist Alan J. Lerner ( My Fair Lady , Camelot , etc.) on a musical to celebrate the Bicentennial; a sort of “Upstairs, Downstairs,” centered on the White House through the 19 th Century, and focusing on race relations. 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue closed after 7 performances. The show had gone through extensive revisions in tryouts, none of which involved Lenny, and by the time it got to Broadway it was a colossal mess. Only Lenny’s score—what remained of it— got good reviews. It left at least one good song, “Take Care of This House,” (which we’re performing), as well as a bitter taste in its composer’s mouth. He never returned to Broadway. He reused the music in the years that followed, but he, and then his estate, have refused permission to publish, perform, or record it in its original form.

In the cracks of his busy life he wrote songs for a performance in 1950 of Peter Pan , starring Boris Karloff as Captain Hook. He also contributed French songs in a quasi-medieval style in 1964, for a production of Jean Anouilh’s The Lark , starring Julie Harris as Joan of Arc, and adapted by Lillian Hellman, who’d worked with Lenny on Candide .

Berkeley composer John Adams has written “Bernstein the composer is at his best when the music is choreographic and suffused with sensuality. West Side Story is, to my mind, by far and away his masterpiece. None of the “serious” symphonic works can come near it for spontaneity, verve, sheer sexual energy, and the power to move the listener emotionally and physically.”

“Lenny & Friends,” presented by the Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus, will include selections from On the Town , Wonderful Town , and West Side Story , of course. But we’re also performing great songs from Peter Pan and 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue , as well as two French Choruses from The Lark .

Have you bought your tickets yet? This is a concert not to be missed!

Mentor—Aaron Copland

Mon, 19 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Second in the series. Link to Bernstein at 100. An appreciation. - the first in a series .

“You compose because you want to somehow summarize in some permanent form your most basic feelings about being alive, to set down... some sort of permanent statement about the way it feels to live now, today.”

“If a literary man puts together two words about music one of them will be wrong.”

“'Is there a meaning to music?' My answer would be, 'Yes.' And 'Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?' My answer to that would be, 'No.'”

Aaron Copland

Leonard Bernstein first encountered Aaron Copland while he was studying at Harvard. They met at Copland’s birthday party, in 1938. He knew nothing about Copland, who was ten years his senior, but loved his Piano Variations, a particularly difficult piece, and played it at the party. Aaron said, “I wish I could play it like that.” From that point on Lenny would seek advice from Aaron about his own work, and later referred to him as his “only real composition teacher.” They remain close friends for the rest of their lives, and died in the same year, 1990.

As a young man, Copland went to Paris in 1922, studying with the hugely influential teacher, Nadia Boulanger. He’d only planned to be there for a year, but stayed for three. It was tin Paris that he first met fellow American composers Virgil Thomson, Walter Piston, and Ned Rorem. He was swept up in the heady culture of Paris between the wars, hanging out at Shakespeare & Co. with the likes of Ernest Hemmingway, Gertrude Stein, Pablo Picasso, and Marc Chagall.

After returning to America he wrote in the thorny, modernist style that was expected at the time. But as the Depression approached he became more intellectually and emotionally involved in the socialism that was the rage among the left. By 1933 he began to find ways to make his stark musical language accessible to a surprisingly large number of people. Having encountered the move toward more populist music in Europe, he found a language for American music that reached out to the people. Pieces from the 1930s such as Appalachian Spring, Rodeo, and Fanfare for the Common Man define the American sound better than anything before or since, and have remained part of the repertoire to this day.

Ned Rorem wrote, "Aaron stressed simplicity: Remove, remove, remove what isn't needed...Aaron brought leanness to America, which set the tone for our musical language throughout [World War II]. Thanks to Aaron, American music came into its own."[ Born the son of Russian Jewish immigrants, he was Jewish, but only culturally. He was also gay, but kept it under wraps, as so many had to in those difficult times. He was called before McCarthy’s hearings, but stood firm in his opposition to militarism and the Cold War. When they tried to accuse him of being un-American, the musical community came to his defense. After all, how could the composer of Appalachian Spring be un-American? He defined the very soul of American music.

Later in his life Copland concentrated on conducting, mostly his own music and that of his contemporaries. Ironically, he turned to Lenny for coaching! In 1950, he published his first set of Old American Songs, followed by a second set two years later. (A gay history side-note: the first set was premiered by tenor Peter Pears, accompanied by his life partner, Benjamin Britten.) We sang “The Boatman’s Dance,” from the first set, in 2013, and this spring we’ll be performing three more: “The Dodger (Campaign Song)”, “The Little Horses (Lullaby),” and “Zion’s Walls (Revivalist Song).” Come join us for Lenny & Friends, and hear just how wonderful these songs are!

Bernstein at 100. An appreciation.

Mon, 08 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

First in a series.

“Darling, I have gone mad over your back muscles.

You must come and have dinner with me.”
Tallulah Bankhead to Leonard Bernstein, after he conducted a concert at Tanglewood.

“To be a success as a Broadway composer,
you must be Jewish or gay. I’m both.”
Leonard Bernstein

“West Side Story is not only a classic musical, it is also one of only a handful of landmark shows that fundamentally changed the form of musicals.”
Library of Congress website

"One of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history.”
Music critic Donal Henahan.

Leonard Bernstein was fabulous before fabulous was a thing. He looked exactly like what a dashing young conductor should look like. He hung around with the Kennedys, and was a frequent White House guest. He was named Music Director of the New York Philharmonic in 1957, the first American-born conductor ever to reach that plateau. He was the first American to conduct at La Scala — Cherubini’s Medée , with Maria Callas. His Young People’s Concerts on CBS gained him an enormous following and made him a TV star. He was a prolific composer in a variety of forms, including, of course, the Broadway musical. He was much in demand all over the world as a pianist. He was also a life-long champion of liberal causes, and it was common knowledge that he was gay. This was the era of McCarthy’s witch hunts, when it was both illegal and very dangerous to be homosexual.

J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI kept a dossier on Bernstein.

In 1951, on the advice of friends, and to put a halt to the gossip that could have destroyed his career, he married the Chilean-born American actress Felicia Montealegre. We know from her letters to him that they had … an arrangement. They also had three children, and by all accounts a happy marriage. When Felicia died in 1978 he mourned her deeply. But as Arthur Laurents said years later, "(Lenny was) a gay man who got married. He wasn't conflicted about it at all. He was just gay."

According to his obit in the New York Times: “He pronounced the name in the German way, as BERN-stine, and could no more abide the pronunciation BERN-steen than he could enjoy being called ''Lenny'' by casual acquaintances.” A life-long chain smoker, he had suffered from emphysema from his mid-50s. His friends begged him to quit, but he wouldn’t, or couldn’t. He died in October 1990, at the age of 72, five days after announcing his retirement. On the day of his funeral procession through the streets of Manhattan, construction workers removed their hats and waved, calling out "Goodbye, Lenny."

It was recognized from the start that the four men who created West Side Story —composer Leonard Bernstein; director and choreographer Jerome Robbins; Arthur Laurents, who wrote the book; and the young lyricist Steven Sondheim were all Jewish. What took longer to seep into the general consciousness is that they were all gay. But it wasn’t all that unusual if you think about it. Virgil Thomson was gay; Cole Porter, Marc Blitzstein, and Billy Strayhorn were gay; so were Ned Rorem, John Cage, David Diamond, and Samuel Barber and his partner, Gian-Carlo Menotti — and that’s just in the U.S.

Aaron Copland was his friend and mentor; Ned Rorem was his great friend and former lover; Steven Sondheim was his friend and protégé; Betty Comden and Adolph Green were his friends and collaborators for more than 50 years. This is excellent company to keep!!

Another of Lenny’s protégés, Michael Tilson Thomas, wrote recently, “… it’s unquestionable that some of these perfect songs… strike us as iconic, stake out a territory that we recognize as important to our inner lives. Some of these slow major-minor things in dance sequences in On the Town or Fancy Free ; a song like ‘Some Other Time’ or ‘There’s a Place for Us.’ It’s music that haunts all of us.”

We’ll be singing “Some Other Time,” from On the Town , as well as four songs from West Side Story : “Something’s Coming,” “Tonight,” “I Feel Pretty,” ( What! But… Because we can; that’s why! ), and, of course,

There’s a place for us,
A time and place for us,
Hold my hand and we’re half-way there.
Hold my hand and I’ll take you there,
Somehow,
Someday,
Somewhere.

Lenny & Friends will be a kaleidoscopic trip through some of the most exciting, fun, moving, and beautifully crafted songs in the American Songbook, drawing from Bernstein in all his moods, and featuring songs by his hugely talented friends. It’s not a concert to be missed!

“It is the artists of the world, the feelers and the thinkers who will ultimately save us; who can articulate, educate, defy, insist, sing and shout the big dreams.”
Leonard Bernstein

We are Nearing the Holiday Season | Part 3

Wed, 29 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

This Year, Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus (OEBGMC) is working hard on some classic tunes that remind me of my roots. This is the third blog in my series, “Whatever happens or what may be, here is what Christmas time means to me…”

My father was a musician, our neighbor was a dance choreographer, my mother loved the arts. I saw lots of dance and theatre when I was a kid, and I fell in love with the performing arts. Maybe it was the tights and the dance belts, or maybe it was the stories set to music and told by flowing arms, legs and jumps. By the time my mom took me to see the Nutcracker, I was already aware of the form, but like most kids when they see it, I was enthralled, not by the mice or the nutcracker (although, those tights!!!), but by the dancing sweets and treats in the second act. Sugar plums, though? Why do they pop up here, and not only here, but also in “A Visit from St. Nick,” which my father would read to us every December (“while visions of sugar plums danced in their heads…”)? Why do Sugar Plums get their own Fairy ? Is she anything like the Tooth Fairy? I don’t know, but these are the things running through my head as OEBGMC rehearses our version of “The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.”

I also did some acting, not really any major parts--I’m a solid chorus member. One of the shows I did in high school was “ Scrooge .” I had read the book A Christmas Carol along with other Dickens, Stevenson, and other 19 th century authors. I love the scary ghost stories and the way Scrooge gets to revisit his life and reimagine a kinder way to live, much like Jimmy Stewart does in It’s A Wonderful Life. But how to capture the whole story of Scrooge in two minutes? Ah, come to our concert, Dec 2, 9, 10 , to hear OEBGMC’s rendition of “Ebenezer the Miser.”

I can’t get through the Holidays without remembering my mother. My Christmas memories will forever be mingled with her death; she died about 3 weeks after Christmas of a brain tumor in January, 2000. Her last Christmas was spent in my home in Columbus, Ohio, in our front parlor where the hospice folk had set up her hospital bed. Her tumor torsed her body into a fetal position and we had to turn her bed so she could see the tree. My sister and I, who shared Mom’s power of attorney, had to decide how to buy Christmas presents for our mother, who loved Christmas, and whom we knew would die soon. How much is appropriate to spend when it will only be enjoyed for days or weeks?

I know my mother would have loved OEBGMC’s Holiday Show. It captures the sentiments of Christmas: the quiet darkness, the snow—she loved how it squeaked after a cold dry snow, the joy, the songs, the yearning for home and the longing for happier days, even as we are living the happiest days we know. She would have loved the schmaltzy, “Silver Bells,” and “Sleigh Ride,” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” She would love the haunting “Yuletide Fires” and “There is Faint Music in the Air.” She would have bounced with the jubilant “Gaudete (Joy)” and “Cantate Hodie! (Sing, Today!)”. She would have laughed at “Jingles Bells” and “Ebenezer, the Miser.” She would have cried at “Let There Be Peace on Earth.”

I have often worked on or around Christmas. One year right after college, I was working nights in Milwaukee, and my mother and sister drove up from Ohio for Christmas. It was a meager feast, of Cornish game hens, but it was family. “Spread pure white linen for a feast, perchance some guest may share,” OEBGMC sings in our opening number, “Yuletide Fires.” Christmas means to me setting the table for the guests who have gone before, the ones, like my mother, who died too young, and the ones, like my Grandfather and Grandmother who died after living long, lovely lives. And Christmas is about new traditions with new loved ones; since moving to the East Bay 7 years ago, my husband and friends have made it a habit to go to the Dickens Faire every year right after Thanksgiving. And now I’ve added the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus as part of my Christmas memories.

OEBGMC sings, “Christmas makes you feel emotional. It may bring parties and thoughts devotional. Whatever happens, or what may be, this is what Christmas time means to me.” Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus Holiday Concert is guaranteed to bring up memories and make some new traditions. Hope to see you in Fresno, Clayton, or at Freight and Salvage!

OEBGMC Gives Back!

Wed, 22 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Did you know that the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus uses part of all ticket sales for a community cause? For the Summer 2017 Concert, “Come Swing With Us,” the chorus Board decided to support a cause close to our hearts, and one with which we have partnered for more than three years, the music program at the Willard Middle School (Berkeley Unified School District) afterschool LEARNS program. This music program is run by member of Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus, Billy Lawley (Bass), and this summer, I sat down with Billy, to discuss his career and how he got interested in this kind of teaching.

Billy was trained as a Music Therapist at Southern Methodist University, and in his practice he saw the effect that teaching music could have on kids with a variety of special needs. He then became an elementary music school teacher in the Dallas, TX, Independent School District under a grant from the Wallace Foundation, and he worked with underprivileged kids for 5 years there. From this background, Billy knows that this kind of work takes patience to build long-time relationships, and it takes flexibility. He says that it takes someone who is willing to step back and look at the big picture, especially to avoid getting stuck in the details.

Billy approached OEBGMC Board to provide funding for him to teach piano and music lessons to 6-8th grade kids in the afterschool program. These lessons have been, for the last three years, group lessons with stations to rotate through, including hands-on keyboard and computer games to teach music literacy. This was to enhance the music program at Willard—traditional orchestra, concert band, jazz band—with piano and music reading skills. Because of variability in attendance and skill level, as well as the difficulty in tracking improvement, the group lessons are being discontinued and private lessons are beginning this summer and fall. The after-school program considers Billy a volunteer and does not offer any funding; the grant provided by the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus allows Billy to receive a living wage for his professional work with these kids, and allows underprivileged kids to receive professional music training.

The initial seed funding for Billy’s work was given to the chorus by a generous donor, Jeff Parrett, a long-time supporter of the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus, who wanted to form a scholarship for music education, said former OEBGMC President, Lawrence Turner. As ideas began to percolate, the Board selected Billy’s idea in part because Billy’s skill was known as a teacher, instructor singer, soloist, and small group ensemble performer within the chorus (He was most recently seen as Gay Noir in the Spring 2017 concert, “Prairie Homo Companion”).

When asked about his dreams for the new format of individual lessons, Billy said he wants to see students grow from basic skills to learning to play piano, gain confidence, grow as an individual, and have a positive influence on society. These lessons offer more than music—they also offer guidance on behavior issues, and Billy told of times when he saw himself as a positive influence on youth whose fathers are not in their lives, or who are facing difficult times in school or home. Billy periodically holds a “Showcase” of his students, and he invites both his private self-paying students and his Willard students to play, and all of them receive a certificate of performance. As his relationship with the community grows, he hopes the program might expand, and with more fundraising, the program might go to other schools.

The Director of the Willard LEARNS program, Kemal Stewart, wrote this about Billy and his work, “Working with Billy has been great. He continually finds ways to teach our students with limited space and resources. When we first started, I warned him that we only had one piano, a few miniature keyboards and 4 outdated Mac Books. Billy was able to combine his materials with ours and offer small group instruction to 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students on a weekly basis. Some of the students had experience, while some were beginners. Billy has showed and proved that he has the ability to work with kids on all levels.

“By having Billy be a part of the team, we are able to attract students that would not have been interested in our program before we added piano lesson to our course offerings. He's also helped us keep our more music oriented students enthused about coming to after school and learning more about piano and song writing. With individual teaching, I am hoping this will help both the teacher and students get more out of their time. I also hope that this encourages students and parents to stick with the course throughout the semester and/or school year.”

Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus and City Swing raised $800 at the Come Swing With Us concert for these scholarships. We continue to celebrate Billy’s success, and we look forward to seeing this relationship with Willard afterschool program flourish and grow. If you would like to donate to this program, go to the giving page on the OEBGMC Website, click on the donate button and designate it for the Scholarship. To learn more about Billy, check out his website, www.lawleylessons.com . To learn more about lessons offered through the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus, go to http://oebgmc.org/communitymusicschool/

We Are Nearing the Holiday Season | Part 2

Wed, 15 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

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This Year, OEBGMC is working hard on some classic tunes that remind me of my roots. As we sing in “Silver Bells,” “Whatever happens or what may be, here is what Christmas means to me…”

Thanksgiving at our house always began the seemingly interminable Christmas Season. It began with the smell of turkey roasting on that often overcast Thursday morning. My grandmother cooked the Turkey in a roaster in her basement, and even though it smelled like it was freshly roasting, I was always pretty sure she had started it sometime around Halloween. Like the turkey in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation , it was dry as dust, and required much gravy to get through. I learned early on that dark meat was moister; the breast was almost useable for sandpaper. The rest of the meal was equally enjoyable: cottage cheese and Jell-O salad, green bean casserole made with cream of mushroom soup, canned green beans and Durkee onions on top, brown-and-serve rolls, cranberry sauce that had those slicing-guide rings from the can imbedded in them, and pumpkin pie from the freezer section in the grocery store. Nowhere near the “happy feeling nothing in this world can buy, when they pass around the coffee and the pumpkin pie,” (words from “Sleigh Ride” that OEBGMC is singing). My grandmother was a woman who thoroughly loved the ease of instant food that 1950s manufacturing gave to middle America. However, a meal to honor the harvest with nothing fresh on the table always felt odd to me.

As an adult, I escaped the inedible family meal by fleeing to New York City for the Thanksgiving weekend with my partner at the time. Mom was devastated, but I got to see some great shows in those years (“Jelly Roll’s Last Jam” with Felisha Rashad, post-car-accident Ben Vereen, and a very young Savion Glover, “Miss Saigon,” and always the Rockettes). I also got to see the Macy’s Parade up close and personal (it’s better on TV), and the balloons blown up the night before and tied down around the Natural History Museum (they are awesome!! And someplace I have an almost erotic picture of flying Superman tied up behind crawling Spiderman…). We always took a handsome cab through Central Park, thought of Barbara Streisand who lived on the east side (“j-j-j-j-j-j-Jingle bells, j-j-j-j-j-j-jangle bells!”), and we made sure to stop in FAO Schwartz and play the giant piano that was in the Tom Hanks movie, Big .

Although my current husband’s family does the day-after-Thanksgiving-shopping thing (if we are there, I choose to sleep in that Friday), my family didn’t go shopping. However, I do remember going to the downtown department store in Columbus during December to see the Animatronic window displays, and thinking about “city sidewalks, busy sidewalks, dressed in holiday style.”

Mom wanted to get a live tree up as soon as possible after Thanksgiving. As we brought the tree into the house to decorate, mom would put her favorite Christmas albums on the record player. I always loved the album of music box Christmas songs, one of which was “Silver Bells;” to this day, when bell choirs play Christmas hymns in church, I have an emotionally laden memory of the smell of pine, the stickiness of pinesap, the rash on my forearms from the pine needles poking me, tightening the screws to hold up the tree, the musty smell of opening the ornaments boxes for the first time 9 months, decorating the tree, and arguing with Mom over whether we had to hang the reindeer I made in kindergarten. (She always won, and it had to go prominently on the tree, so that everyone in the world could see it). We had the old kind of lights, the big bulbs that heated up, and we tested them every year, plugging them into an outlet, and replacing the burned out or broken ones. We drank eggnog if it was available that early, or Hot Toddies. Alcohol was a big part of my family growing up.

And then there was the Fruitcake. Our high school band (go Golden Eagles!) sold Ruby River grapefruits and oranges, as well as fruitcake for fundraising. Near the end of November or early in December the shipment would come in, our band room was filled with boxes, and we had to pick up and deliver all the goods we had sold over the last few months. Although no one ever claims to like fruitcake, we sold lots of fruitcake; once, I delivered the fruitcake to someone in their mailbox, and then got a call form the family that they didn’t get their fruitcake; the mailperson had thought it was her Christmas gift from the family and took it home for herself ! I had to give up one of the fruitcakes we had bought for our family, a sadness because I loved the sticky cake made of chopped citron, nuts, and spice. And the rum (well, that was my family’s enhancement).

With those fruitcake memories, I agree with the words we are singing, “when it comes to Christmas time can anyone dispute, that when you bake a Christmas cake it really should be…made with fruit?” However, I’m jealous of the high tenors who get sing “add some rum but just a drop…” because it reminds me of a family tale about my mother’s first foray into Christmas cooking. When she made chocolate rum balls the first Christmas she was married to my dad, she hardly put any rum in, so they were mostly dry chocolate balls. No one said anything, but the next year, she recognized her mistake and added extra rum. Dad also remembered the mistake and added extra rum. My grandparents also added some, and by the time Christmas came, the balls were swimming in rum, and the fumes pretty much bowled them all over when they opened the tin. I imagine that was a good Christmas, and certainly set up what was to come in my family holidays.

Our concerts on Dec 9 and 10 (Dec 2 has already past) is meant to bring out your memories, as well as give you gift of some new songs. I hope to see you in Clayton (Dec 9) or Freight And Salvage (Dec 10). Have you bought your tickets yet?

Artistic Director, William Sauerland

Wed, 01 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Our Artistic Director, William Sauerland, maintains a busy schedule of teaching, singing, and conducting. He is currently the Director of Choral and Vocal Activities at Chabot College and Artistic Director of the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco. He is a former Associate Music Director for the world-renowned Pacific Boychoir Academy, and served as Director of Vocal Music at Lick-Wilmerding High School in San Francisco. Recent solo appearances as a countertenor include the American Bach Soloists, Festival Opera Company, Folger Consort, Handel Opera Project, Long Beach Camerata Singers, Musica Angelica, and the Oakland Symphony Orchestra. As a former member of Grammy Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer, Mr. Sauerland has sung throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. Mr. Sauerland received his Master’s degree in Advanced Vocal Performance from the Royal College of Music in London, and is currently a doctoral student in Music and Music Education at Teachers College, Columbia University.

Mr. Sauerland has performed extensively throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. Recital appearances in the United Kingdom have included St. George’s at Hanover Square for the London Handel Festival, the concert series at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, and a special concert for His Royal Highness Prince Charles at St. James’s Palace. For two seasons he was a member of the Grammy Award-winning vocal ensemble, Chanticleer, and performed in over 150 concerts in many of the world’s most prestigious music venues, including the Vienna Musikverein, the Concertgebouw, Tokyo Opera House, and Disney Hall. He has performed twice on NBC’s Today Show, numerous times on National Public Radio, and recorded two albums with Chanticleer for Warner Classics™.

We Are Nearing the Holiday Season | Part 1

Wed, 01 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

We are nearing the Holiday Season, a time, as the opening of the song “Silver Bells” says “makes you feel emotional; it may bring parties or thoughts devotional.” It may also bring music by your favorite chorus, Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus (OEBGMC). It’s not too early to get your tickets !

This Year, OEBGMC is working hard on some classic tunes that remind me of my roots. As we sing in “Silver Bells,” “Whatever happens or what may be, here is what Christmas means to me…”

The Holiday Season is one with mixed emotions for me. My family was fairly loving, but very small, and it had its own set of dysfunctions. It wasn’t quite as bad as the Saturday Night Live skit “ Dysfunctional Family Christmas ,” but it sure has made for great stories now in my adult life. I always wished for a larger family, perhaps to dilute the boredom of being with Grandma and Grandpa, Mom and my sister in often-snowless Ohio. Now I’ve married into a much larger family, and the holidays are fun, filled with laughter, Northern Minnesota snow (and cold), and a daily recommended dose of dysfunction. Ah, but what family doesn’t have its share of dysfunction enhanced by the need for the Holidays to be perfect?

The Holidays, seeming to start earlier and earlier, had strict rules about start and end dates when I was a kid. Christmas, by maternal fiat, ran from Thanksgiving through Valentine’s Day. The beginning of the Holiday Season was Mom’s insistence, since she loved Christmas and wanted it to last as long as possible; the end date was my requirement, since my birthday is the week after Valentine’s Day, and I wanted Christmas to be done by then. By February, the tree was more than a fire hazard, most of the needles were in a circle around the base of the tree, the cat was bored with trying to swallow the tinsel, and the dog had started to lift his leg on it.

Two-and-a-half months earlier, at the beginning of Christmas, was Thanksgiving. It was often at my mother’s parents’ house, a mid-century ranch in Columbus, Ohio. It was the middle of everything—the middle of an early subdivision of tract housing, the middle of the circle off the main road through the neighborhood, the middle of the state, the middle of the country (well not really, but it sure seemed like it when the ocean was more than an 8-hour drive away). Pretty much the middle. My mom was an only child, so no cousins, just me and my sister, and the three adults: Mom, Grandma, and Grandpa. It was rare to have snow—more often it was brown dead grass--but we always sang “Over the River and through the Woods” on our way there. At least by the exit off the highway (we could see their house from the highway) we were singing it. The song was originally about going to grandfather’s house for Thanksgiving; it has since become a Christmas song, but we stuck to the tradition and sang it for Thanksgiving.

OEBGMC, is singing “Over the River and Through the Woods” this holiday season, and I’m reminded of the disconnect I always feel at Christmas time. As I kid, I remember thinking how odd it was to sing a song about horses and sleighs when we were driving 55 mph down I-77 in a late 1970s AMC Concord hatchback. It was odd, too, that a song originally about a visit to family for Thanksgiving became a song about Christmas, and I recognized that our country conflates Thanksgiving with Christmas, which are really two different things. We have a weird sense of time in our culture, revealed by a palpable longing for the better times when Christmas was “authentic” like Victorian London (can’t you just imagine being there in the thick smoky pollution, the stench of horse and human manure, and the threat of cholera or gangrene?). We also venerate the beautiful Christmas of a New England “picture print by Currier and Ives,” which would have been bitter cold, and included eating the last of the season’s now rotting potatoes, lutefisk, or some other food meant to get through the winter. (Yes, we’re singing the tongue-tying “SleighRide” complete with the whip sound—see how I snuck that in?) There are other odd things we do with time In December; we hype up for parties and long nights awake to celebrate Chanukah Harry, Santa, or the New Year; yet our natural world, with shorter days and longer nights, is calling me to sleep more, cocoon, and rest by a fire (ah, if only there were fewer Spare the Air days!!!). Our desire for a perfect holiday, as well as the rush to get everything decorated, bought, wrapped, baked, and sent, makes for hurried craziness, adds to the desire to escape with your favorite inebriant, increases the stress on our bodies, and adds to the dysfunction.

I am now a Christian pastor, and I have the privilege of shepherding a congregation through the Holiday season. The emotions of franticness and stress at home are also brought into the church as we prepare for the season. With all this rushing and worrying and fretting and fussing, I have wondered for years if we miss the actual point of the Holidays. Perhaps it is really the plaintive request that OEBGMC is singing near the end of our concert, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.” It is a year that we all need to hear this, yes; and it is something we need to hear every year at this time.

I’m grateful for the chance to sing with OEBGMC this year’s Holiday Concert (did you get all this way without buying your tickets yet?). The music is emotional, devotional, with wonderful things to remember all through your lives. We’re looking forward to sharing these sound-emotions with you in Fresno at the Big Red Church on Dec 2, Clayton at Clayton Valley Presbyterian on Dec 9, or Berkeley at Freight and Salvage on Dec 10.

Julie Andrews Sing-Along With William Sauerland

Thu, 05 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

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The sound of Julie Andrews is one of the most beloved in the history of musical theatre. A phenomenal star of stage and screen, Dame Julie is “practically perfect in every way.” Inspired by the enormously popular movie sing-alongs, join William Sauerland and a cast of friends, including Sara Ganz, Paul McCurdy, Jefferson Packer, Joe Rosenmayer, and the phenomenal pianist Brandon Adams for “A Julie Andrews Sing-Along” guaranteed to be a fun-filled evening of her most beloved repertoire including songs from The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins, My Fair Lady, Camelot, and Cinderella. It is going to be supercalifragi… well, you know the rest!

TICKETS HERE

William Sauerland enjoys a varied career of teaching, singing, and conducting. Currently Director of Choral and Vocal Activities at Chabot College in Hayward, California, Mr. Sauerland also serves as Artistic Director of the Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus. He is a former Associate Music Director for the Grammy Award-winning Pacific Boychoir Academy, former Artistic Director of the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, for six years taught music at Lick-Wilmerding High School in San Francisco.

As a countertenor, Mr. Sauerland’s recent solo appearances include the American Bach Soloists, Festival Opera Company, Folger Consort, Handel Opera Project, Long Beach Camerata Singers, Musica Angelica, and the Oakland Symphony Orchestra. Recital appearances include the London Handel Festival, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, and St. James’s Palace for His Royal Highness Prince Charles. As a former member of Grammy Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer, Mr. Sauerland has sung throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia.

Currently a doctoral candidate in Music and Music Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, Mr. Sauerland is writing a dissertation on the teaching of transgender singers. He received his Master’s degree in Advanced Vocal Performance from the Royal College of Music in London under the auspices of a Marshall Scholarship. Originally from a small dairy farm in southwest Ohio, Mr. Sauerland completed the Bachelor of Music from Miami University.

Venue Information:

Feinstein's at the Nikko

222 Mason Street

San Francisco, CA, 94102

TICKETS HERE

Invited To Our Summer Concert!

Tue, 04 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus and City Swing cordially invite you to a fun-filled night of swing music and dancing at our summer concert, “Come Swing with Us”, with guest artist Leanne Borghesi!

Watch as Woody gets ready for his date with Wally, sure to be a night filled with toe tappin’, finger snappin’, hands clappin’ and swing dancin’! We encourage our audience to dress up in 40s-60s era attire. Not sure what to wear? See costume ideas in the video, then pick out your outfit and get ready to dazzle us and participate in the best costume contest for prizes!

BUY TICKETS HERE

Join us on Saturday, July 15 @ 7:30 pm or July 16 @ 4:00 pm

at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center

388 9th Street #290, Oakland 94607

Inspiration :

When asked for ideas of how to market our concert, Woody suggested a simple storyline of someone getting ready for a great night of singing and dancing, excited to be going on a date to the concert, and wearing his most dapper zoot suit! We filmed at our star’s Berkeley home, and then cut some scenes during rehearsal. This hour’s worth of shots and scenes kept us laughing and having a good time. Our marketing team brought the story to life through editing and music, and we were excited with the final product. We hope you enjoy it, too!

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Video Credits :

Script/storyboards : Woodrow Thompson

Director/ Camera Operator : Dave Woemmel

Actors : Woodrow Thompson, Walter Bishop, Steve Smith

Editing/Sound : Alison Stripling – SPARQ Marketing

Music : “Come Fly With Me”

Swing History

Thu, 29 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The Oakland-East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus is pairing with City Swing to perform a Concert of Swing right out of the Great American Song Book. So, what exactly is swing?

Swing is a quintessential 20 th century American sound, and it reflects all of our nation’s joy and struggle. Swing is inherently intertwined with class, race, the Great Depression, World War II, and the nostalgia that looked back to those eras in the later 20 th century. Swing itself rose out of the 1920s African-American jazz scene of New Orleans, which influenced the jazz scene in Chicago, and then the scene in New York City during the Harlem Renaissance of the ‘30s and ‘40s. Swing comes out of several styles, notably blending the more formal structure of syncopation found in ragtime (here is “ the Maple Leaf Rag ”, note how structured this is), and the improvised overlay of Dixieland, which has multiple soloists improvising together or in call and response with other sections; one of the most recognizable songs of Dixieland style is “ Oh When the Saints Go Marching In ” (Louis Armstrong performing a later version—note the multiple lines of melody, overlapping solos, and band sections including vocals playing off each other.)

Swing is recognizable by a strong downbeat in the drums and bass with a looser off-the-beat syncopation in the brass and woodwinds. Structured, written sections alternate with individual solos, which allows for a sometimes frenetic, sometimes chill sound. The most iconic of this style is, perhaps, Duke Ellingtons’ 1931 “ It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing )”. This 1943 Duke Ellington Band version starts with a solo violin, then gets moving with on-the-beat left hand piano (later adds drums) and an off-beat syncopated melody in the right-hand piano, winds and vocals. It exemplifies that the written-out structured sections alternate with free-form solos including the vocalists. Often the formally written sections are intricate, harmonic, fast, and well-rehearsed. The lyric, “Makes no difference if it’s sweet or hot, just give that rhythm every little thing you’ve got,” alludes to the fact that swing is often described as “sweet” (more laid-back) or “hot” (more frenetic), and gives rise to dancing of both styles. Sweet Swing dancing (check out this 1946 “ Swing Dance ”), although employing rapid foot work and a body that is always in motion, uses more sway and more body connection than hot swing, which includes, jumps, kicks, running, and tossing your partner, as shown in this film version of “ Sing, Sing, Sing.”

With the back drop of the Great Depression and the US entry into WWII, Swing also represents the US’s long struggle with segregation and integration. Louis Armstrong, who was instrumental in moving New Orleans jazz to Chicago and then to New York, brought his solo trumpet style to the Fletcher Henderson Band, which is credited with experimenting with the specific Swing form in the ‘20s. Armstrong’s characteristic trumpet sound gave Big Bands the swing form of a structured written section that alternates with improvised solos. While Swing rises from the African-American Fletcher Henderson Band with Louis Armstrong, it was the white Benny Goodman’s weekly radio show that gave Swing wide public popularity and made Swing the sound of the ‘30s and ‘40s. Benny Goodman’s band was one of the first to integrate; Goodman employed Henderson to arrange and perform, and Goodman hired other African-Americans; yet many other band leaders, as well as the movie industry, theatres, and hotels had problems showing integrated bands.

Swing is the sound of travel by train, and notably, Glenn Miller’s “Chattanooga Choo-Choo”, which we are singing, reflects the implicit yet rarely acknowledged racial division of the era. In the era of Swing, southerners, mostly African-Americans, moved north and west, as the story of George Swanson Starling shows, in Isabel Wilkerson’s The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration , (NY: Vintage Books, 2010). George, who fled Florida because he angered the crop owners when he tied to unionize the citrus workers, moved to New York and became a railroad porter who travelled back and forth to the south. He tells of integrated train cars in the north and the regulations that required segregation at the Mason-Dixon line, meaning blacks had to all move to the front of the train. After President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964, the trains were not to be segregated, yet the practice continued. George helped people understand their rights, even if it sometimes meant standing up to the violent dying gasps of the Jim Crow south. Chattanooga would have been below the line, yet this sweet Swing song barely acknowledges race; the lyrics, “Pardon me, boy,” and “Boy, you can give me a shine,” are understood as the racial epithet, “boy,” (We’ve changed the lyrics to “boys”, alluding to gay chorus members), but there is nothing else about segregation in the song.

Swing also took note of the new form of travel, flying, as in our version of “Come, Fly with Me.” That song marks the ease of travelling quickly somewhere, and the exhilaration of the being up with the birds. Compared to today’s extreme concern with security and over-packed airlines, the song seems incredibly naïve, when we sing the lyric, “just say the word and we’ll beat the birds down to Alcapulco Bay.”

Swing’s sweet naiveté is often balanced by it’s hot innuendos to sex or violence. As a subtle soundtrack to the issues of race and economics, offering joyful dance tunes into a period of violence, hunger, poverty and war, Swing and the iconic uniform of swingers, the zoot suit, was at the center of cultural wars. Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, in this 1997-written hot Swing number “ Zoot Suit Riot ”, refer to the Zoot Suit Riots of 1943, which pitted white servicemen against zoot-suit wearing Latinos, African-American and Filipino-Americans across the country.

The Swing sound is ubiquitous throughout the Great American Song Book, in movies, on the radio, and leading toward other genres. Swing, which lost some popularity after the war, was revived in the ‘50s and ‘60s by Sinatra, Nat King Cole, and other Rat Pack performers. Later orchestras like those of Ray Coniff (whose version of “On the Street Where You Live” we are singing) and Lawrence Welk, used the sweet sound of Swing in their big bands, adapting newer songs into the older swing form. Hot Swing had a nostalgic revival again in the ‘90s and early 2000’s with groups like the Big Bad Voodoo Daddies, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Brian Stetzer Orchestra (check out this 1999 version of “ Jump, Jive an’ Wail ”). More recently the Post-Modern Juke Box takes modern songs and makes them swing (check out this sweet Swing version of “ All About That Bass ”).

So what is Swing? Sweet, hot, American rhythm, syncopated, laid-back and off-the-beat, reflecting our racial struggles, a soundtrack to eras of financial struggle, and a nostalgic look at times when music hid all our troubles. Join us for this toe-tapping excursion.

Come Swing with Us!!!! July 15 & 16, 2017 at Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 338 Ninth St, Oakland CA.

Pride

Tue, 20 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

This is the first year that I’ve celebrated Pride Month in any way, and so it’s the first time I’ve really felt a bit of the importance it has in the world. I don’t believe fear and hatred are more present in our society today than in the past, however I do believe those feelings are now largely unrestrained. People are raw, weary of each other, and I will admit to being a part of that when I walked out onto the field. In my mind, I was entering the world of “jocks,” a world I have feared and felt unwelcome in for as long as I can remember. I was worried I wouldn’t feel support or acceptance. Perhaps I even felt an instinctive pang of anger at the thought of being seen only for my suddenly very public sexual orientation, rather than for any of the things I feel make me an individual. I will forever be profoundly proud to stand side by side with my OEBGMC mates, however I find it much more challenging to summon feelings of personal pride than pride for the people I stand with.

I am pleased to say that on that day, my fear was not necessary. These feelings were coming from inside me, not from the crowd around us. Within seconds of starting our first song, I was able to shed the fears I brought with me. It didn’t feel as much like a performance as I expected, but rather like a shared experience with everyone in the stadium. We were a welcomed part of the evening, proof to me that people can come together and celebrate despite their fears and differences. Walking back through the stands, shaking hands with complete strangers who were smiling and thanking us, I started to think about those feelings I had brought with me onto the field—in a word, I would call it inadequacy, a belief that others see me as inadequate and so therefor I must be.

This was by far my most public appearance as an openly gay man, and I don’t think I really understood what Pride meant to me before that. It’s a reminder that we are not inadequate, that no one is less deserving. It’s a reminder of both our similarities and the things that make us unique, of our strengths and our faults as a people. While there may be those who would condemn us, there are also those who would celebrate us and each other, who understand that our pride, love, and concern for our country is as real as anyone else’s.

So as we move on from Pride Month, it’s important to remember the progress that has been made. The chorus will be participating in Alameda’s 4th of July parade, and I for one am thankful to live in a time and place that allows us to walk in this event and feel relatively safe doing so. Especially in the recent political climate, now is the time to come together and hold fast, to keep reaching for equality. I hope that one day Pride Month will be an obsolete concept, that the necessity of holding fast in the face of fear and hatred will fade away as society evolves to let ignorance be replaced by acceptance. Until then, I am proud to stand with you all.

Come Swing with Us

Thu, 01 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus is proud to partner with City Swing to bring you Come Swing with Us - a night of lively music and dancing! Featuring special guest artist Leanne Borghesi, who joins the chorus to bring some beloved jazz and swing-era favorites to the stage!

We encourage the audience to join the fun as we transform the Oakland Asian Cultural Center into a night club, complete with cocktail tables, thrilling big band music, and a dance floor to show off those moves! We encourage the audience to join the fun as we transform the Oakland Asian Cultural Center into a night club, complete with cocktail tables, thrilling big band music, and a dance floor to show off those moves! We encourage the audience to dress-up in period costumes (think Zoot Suits, WWII or 50's Hollywood Glamour)...and will be awarding prizes for best outfit!

Meet Bradley Connlain, our Guest Conductor for our Summer Concert!

Thu, 01 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Since 1984, City Swing, an 18-piece big band, has dazzled audiences and dancers by bringing to life the sounds of big band jazz. Conducted by featured trumpet soloist Bradley Connlain, City Swing has cherry picked the best charts from the books of swing era greats like Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Stan Kenton and Glen Miller.

In 1986, the band was honored to be declared the City of San Francisco’s “Goodwill Ambassadors” to the ‘86 World Expo in Vancouver, B.C., by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. In 1988, City Swing performed at City Hall for the Mayor’s Inaugural Ball, and in 2000, City Swing was flown to Palm Springs as the centerpiece of a gala benefit for the AIDS Assistance Program. In 2001, City Swing performed on the top deck of the S.S. Jeremiah O’Brien, providing WWII-era music for this National Liberty Ship Memorial on its annual Fleet Week cruise on the Bay. In 2005, City Swing performed as the house band for the Imperial Court of San Francisco’s 40th Anniversary Ball at the Gift Center Pavilion.

City Swing starts a new chapter in 2007 with jazz singer Joyce Grant. The great-great-niece of famed ragtime composer Scott Joplin, Grant has been singing jazz in Bay Area venues like the Plush Room and the Donatello Hotel for 20 years. A mezzo-soprano with a voice like dark honey, Grant has a performance resume includes a wide range of venues including the Empire Plush Room and the Donatello Hotel (9 years) in San Francisco, the Ledson Hotel in Sonoma, Cetrella in Half Moon Bay, the Liberty Hotel in Pittsburg, Slates in Walnut Creek, Joe’s of Lafayette, the Woodminster Amphitheater, and the Zingari Ristorante (5 years) in San Francisco.

www.entireproductions.com

Also with Guest Artist, Leanne Borghesi

www.leanneborghesi.com

Behind the Scenes: In Writing The Skit For “A Prairie Homo Companion”

Tue, 02 May 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Six years ago, my Husband and I moved here from Minnesota, where Prairie Home Companion takes place and Garrison Keillor lives. I have seen the show live twice, and I listen to it most Sundays on my way home from church. Minnesota has embraced Prairie Home Companion as its own; there is a Lake Woe-Be-Gone State Park in central Minnesota; near our house in St. Paul was a bar called Chatterbox Pub; the show is broadcast live annually from the Minnesota State Fair. A radio variety show, which seems anachronistic, makes sense when the winters nights and the summer days are long, and the jokes about Lutherans and hot-dish (called casseroles by the rest of us) are funnier when you have spent significant time in Minnesota. When Billy announced that our spring concert would be a parody of the show, I began to wonder what I have to offer to our concert.

I am excited in the way we at OEBGMC will both honor and parody the show with our own gay stylings. The music we are singing in this concert, called “Prairie Homo Companion”, could easily be on a radio variety show. We are singing fun songs, big songs, gay anthems, a song based on the words of President Obama, a musical setting of Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass, a piece by Verdi, and a song from the musical The Student Prince called “Let’s All Be Gay, Boys.” Although we definitely bring our own Oakland-East Bay point-of-view, these songs could easily be sung on the famous Minnesota-based radio show; we just need some skits to break up the music and draw the show out—skits that remind us of the radio show if it were just a bit more gay.

When Billy suggested that one of the skits could be a mash-up of the Garrison Keillor cowboy skit and Broke Back Mountain, I volunteered to write it. “The Days of our Lives of our Cowboys,” stars Rusty and Hefty, who just can’t seem to quit each other. As they approach retirement, Rusty and Hefty must decide where they will settle down, and where they might take the cattle they have been herding all these years. Rusty and Hefty decide to take the cattle to the Cow Palace, because, well, don’t the cattle deserve to live in something called the Cow Palace? With an invitation from their long-time female friend, who recently came out, Rusty and Hefty visit their home in the East Bay Hills, and decide to settle down with a view over the hills and pastures of the East Bay, staying visually close to cattle. They realize that they may be more than friends, and they can finally be the Broke-Back Mountain cowboys they’ve secretly fantasized about.

In writing the skit, I thought about how our culture looks at men. While some in our culture laugh at the intimacy of men (for example, the buddy movies of the 50s and 60s poked fun at gender and sexuality by caricaturing men who desired to be around other men), art and advertising use the hyper-masculine stereotype of cowboys to sell products like cigarettes, trucks, and alcohol. And then there is the homoerotic art that uses the cowboy type as a fantasy man. What is it about men of the land, the Marlboro Man, camping and fishing with other men, rodeos, and men working together to rope and herd cattle that both captivates our culture and creates some discomfort in us? Although it very dirty, sweaty and dangerous work, it’s also hard, active and athletic work. That may be what lends the romantic air of rugged individualism to being a cowboy. Roping cattle and riding horses is almost the ultimate definition of masculine (butch) gender expression and sexuality. There is also this gay fetish/fantasy around uniforms, pointed to by The Village People, which placed a Cowboy along with the (politically incorrect) Indian, Policeman and Construction Worker, all of whom objectified the gay culture’s fixation with uniforms that reflect our ideals of men as objects of desire. And, then there is Broke Back Mountain, which played society’s view of the masculine cowboy against the stereotype that men who love men are somehow soft.

Garrison Keillor himself understands this; his cowboy segments are parodies of both older cowboy radio shows and the buddy films. One cowboy is grizzled and rough while the other is well-read and perfect-mannered, and he gets teased by the rougher one for being a bit too soft for the trail. There is a sense that the two cowboys deny any male intimacy; yet because they share time and space with another man as 24-7 coworkers, intimacy cannot be overlooked. Like Garrison, I had fun playing with that notion.

I also had fun thinking about the segment and how it is always bookended by a fake commercial. I chose Sharon’s Sure Shine Saddle Soap and Shoe Polish as the sponsor, to also play on the leather scene within the gay community. The tag line is “Wear your harness with pride to Pride, when you shine it up with Sharon’s Sure Shine Saddle Soap and Shoe Polish.”

In writing this, I am reminded of the saying, “The sincerest form of flattery is parody.” I hope my parody flatters the original by honoring it while making it our own brand of gay. I hope you like our version, our Prairie Homo Companion!

Tony Clark, Second Tenor

New Member Story | Joey Raven

Thu, 13 Apr 2017 00:00:00 GMT

I’m proud to say that I’ve been with the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus for over seven months, about to perform my second set of concerts. It has been an amazingly rewarding experience, and for some time now I’ve been thinking about a way to express how important this chorus has been to me.

Before I started singing with OEBGMC, I didn’t know many gay people (aside from myself). I found it pretty easy to feel disconnected from society. Watching the news, or seeing the inescapable political threads on social media, sometimes makes me dispassionate, like the world caters to interests other than my own. It’s frightening, to set out into that world as a young person carrying the feeling that I won’t be accepted for who I am, that there are people out there who hate me for something I cannot and would not change.

Perhaps the intolerance I was feeling was internal, ingrained in me as much as the rest of society. Either way, it drove me to seek shelter from a storm. I decided to find a group of people that, at least in this one way, were like me—somewhere I could feel safe. It didn’t take me long to find the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus.

It was as difficult as anything I’ve ever done, writing the email to schedule an audition and showing up in a room full of strangers to sing. Everyone from the chorus was of course incredibly welcoming and helpful, and the audition itself was more about placing new singers in their proper vocal section, but even so, I was completely terrified. I had no choral experience whatsoever, didn’t know how to read sheet music, had never sung in front of strangers before.

Something about the experience, a feeling about what it might become, compelled me to stick with the chorus for a time, even though my nerves begged me not to. I stumbled through my first few rehearsals feeling very much like the music was over my head and that I had just found yet another place that I didn’t belong.

But then something started to change. I put in some solid practice a few times a week, and I started to get the hang of some of the songs. And when that happened, I realized I was starting to read music. The chorus offers a ton of help to its singers, rehearsal tracks to practice to, a compendium of information and a strong, connected presence online. My chorus mates were all so fun and friendly and made me feel at home.

By the time our concerts rolled along, I was absolutely in love with my new family. I realized at some point, gearing up for our winter shows, that we weren’t just weathering a storm together. We weren’t walling ourselves off from the world, making a safe haven for ourselves to block out intolerance and cruelty; we were stepping out, smiling, singing, loving, connecting, and facing the world while wearing silly hats. Our concerts were full of laughter and tears and all that good stuff you want a concert to be filled with. And the joy it brought me to be up on stage with my friends, literally watching happiness spread through our community, was indescribable.

As I was considering how best to express what this organization has meant to me, I decided that this thing I’m writing really had three points. The first, to convey my deepest, eternal gratitude to OEBGMC and each and every one of its members for making me feel like I have a place in the world. I have no doubt that this is the most wonderful group of men in the universe and I am honored to be a part of it.

The second, as a message of encouragement to anyone thinking about joining this chorus, or any other group like it. As I was going into my second concert season, I realized something that, to me, was pretty significant: in the beginning, nobody knows what they’re doing. No one that I’ve ever met walks into a rehearsal, looks at a piece of music for the first time and nails it on the first try. We are all stumbling and bumbling together, and we all put in an incredible amount of work and we all somehow manage to put on a terrific show at the end of the season. While the chorus is filled with amazingly talented people and is privileged enough to work with some truly talented musicians and soloists, it’s really our passion for what we do that makes our shows so amazing.

And the third, as an example of the impact this organization can have. Joining OEBGMC quite literally changed my life, added to my purpose and continues to this day to make me feel more whole. The passion that we all have for our music, the drive of our group, isn’t something we keep to ourselves. Not everyone in the chorus had the same experience when they first joined, to be sure, but the love and dedication for what we do is something we all share, and it’s something we bring with us each time we step out into our community.

Easter Sunrise Service | Easter Sunday, April 16, 2017

Sat, 08 Apr 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Back in 2009, Reverend Laurie Manning of the Skyline Community Church invited the Oakland East-Bay Gay Men’s Chorus to join her congregation for a rather spectacular event: Easter Sunrise Service at the top of Skyline Ridge. The only challenge was to convince a reasonable number of gay men with a fair distribution of voice parts to make it up that hill by 5:30AM. Oh yes, with an accompanist and an Artistic Director, too!

Thus began an annual tradition, satisfying in so many ways to this UCC congregation, their guests, and the OEBGMC singers involved. Early on, our pastel dress shirts were identified as the Easter Egg outfits, and after coffee upon arrival in the dark, the singers learned to yearn for the Hot Crossed Buns that would always follow Services. Warmth and friendship develops this way, and the tradition gains momentum year after year.

A word about the weather: that perfect light upon which these services depend is not always exactly as anyone might expect. Perched high in the Oakland Hills, a huge expanse of glass frames the view East into Contra Costa County. Sometimes right on cue, the sun rises over clear green hills, nearly dazzling the celebrants; sometimes mist and mystery swirl, presenting a subtle experience of growing light.

In every case, the inspiration is magical. To be singing for such purpose, to be welcomed with such vigorous joy, to be guided through the resurrection experience; all these factors combine to make family and to raise songs of glorious celebration. Do join us this year; all are welcome!

Join us Easter Sunday at 6:30 AM, Skyline Community Church 12540 Skyline Blvd., Oakland.

Our Retreat at Walker Creek Ranch

Tue, 28 Mar 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Early this March, the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus took to the woods for our annual retreat, which has been held for the last few years at the beautiful Walker Creek Ranch in Petaluma. More than just a series of intensive rehearsals, the retreat is a way for the chorus members to connect, to welcome our newer members, and to become more bonded. For the weekend, we all lived together like a family.

The facilities were absolutely amazing. We all stayed in two-person rooms spread over three cabins across the ranch. We had everything provided for us, including three meals a day in their dining hall, and all the while could look out our windows at the rolling green hills, the dense woods, and even some of the creeks running through the area. It was a beautiful spot for a vacation, and made all the singing we did that much more enjoyable.

We spent a good portion of our days rehearsing for our upcoming show in April, Prairie Homo Companion. It was quite a change of pace from our normal Oakland rehearsals. In addition to our workshops like music theory and sign language, there were four practices that weekend, instead of our normal schedule of once per week, so we were really able to dig into the music in a new and deeper way. As we sang we would watch families of deer stroll by the windows, and we even seemed to summon a torrential bout of hail with our last song on our last day—fitting, somehow.

Sharing the Ranch with us was another group, the Moonlight Quilters of Sonoma County, whom we would see several times each day during our meals in the dining hall. These were some of the nicest people we have ever met. Twice they popped in to see us rehearse, they showed us their absolutely gorgeous quilting projects, and at the end of the weekend they gave us a quilted coaster for each and every member of the chorus (we even had enough for the guys who couldn’t make it to the retreat). It was such an amazing gift that we decided to sing them a farewell song during our final lunch together. What a blessing it was to be sharing the space with such a great group.

However, the highlight of the entire weekend was undoubtedly our talent show. Our three lovely hostesses, Melania, Kellyanne, and Michelle, added a much needed dose of hilarity to our weekend, and set the stage for our talented members brave enough to perform in front of a room full of performers. Beautiful songs were sung, amazing dances were danced, and it’s safe to say that we all felt closer after sharing our talents with each other. One member sang a wonderful song with piano accompaniment and included some expert tap dancing, another performed a mezmerizing rainbow flag dance (the word “wow” could be heard uttered from the audience about a hundred times during that dance), and three of our guys gave us a preview song from their upcoming cabaret show. It was a very special evening, and makes moving forward in this group bursting at the seams with talent all the more exciting.

All in all, this retreat was an amazing experience. This chorus continues to shine by utilizing the creative expertise of its members. From the writers who wrote out the hilarious skits featured in our spring concert, to our resident expert in sign language, to the incredible movement skills of our more agile preformers, this has come to be about so much more than the songs that we sing. Our sense of togetherness and love for each other and what we do permeates our live preformances, and indeed everything we do, and we are absolutely thrilled about our next opportunity to bring that love to our community.

Check out everything we’ve been working on at our next concert, Prairie Homo Companion, April 29-30 at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center.

Written by Joey Raven for Then Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus.

Gratitude through Community Service

Tue, 03 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The all-volunteer board of directors is proud to support the Oakland-East Bay Gay Men's Chorus. Our board comprised of singers, friends of the chorus and community members is primarily responsible for the fiscal stewardship and well-being of this community-based arts organization in the East Bay. The board regularly participates in fundraising events, collaborating with other community organizations, providing guidance and overall direction for the strategic management of The Chorus and sets an example for our community by living our core values.

Community
We create and maintain a bond of friendship and family by affirming individuality, mutual respect, and trust.

Kindness
We uplift and support each other; we believe in and expect the best of one another, exercising patience, understanding, and empathy in our interactions.

Integrity
We are accountable to ourselves and to each other. We are honest and forthright with our motives and actions, striving for excellence.

Trustworthiness
We believe in the reliability of each other, and commit ourselves to supporting and providing a safety net for those in need.

Courage
We embrace peace and overcome fear. We create a space in which we are able to do more together than we could do alone.

Joy
We delight in sharing fun and laughter.

Giving Back
We foster social justice and oppose discrimination through inclusion and education. We are generous in our support of local non-profit organizations.

2017 Board of Directors:

Jeff McEwen - President
Denis Whitaker - Vice President
Steve Hardy - Treasurer
Steve Smith - Secretary
Lawrence Turner
Jeff Ray
Bill Peter
Mel Terry

Principal Accompanist, Lynden Bair

Wed, 28 Dec 2016 00:00:00 GMT

Lynden is a pianist, singer, and actor who has worked for a variety of organizations, schools, and theater companies around the Bay Area.

Originally from Utah, he attended the University of Northern Colorado on a musical theatre scholarship. He has been the Associate Accompanist for The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus since 2009 and has appeared onstage with them as a featured soloist as well.

photo credit: Shawn Northcutt

Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus Brings “Fairy Tales” to Lafayette

Sat, 17 Dec 2016 00:00:00 GMT

The Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus performed the opening night of “Fairy Tales” at the Lafayette Christian Church on Saturday, December 3 at 7:30pm. A sold-out show, the audience was packed with eager attendees excited for the concert to begin.

Pastor Steve Borgard welcomed the audience, introducing OEBGMC’s Artistic Director, William Sauerland. William took the stage and welcomed the crowd, requesting first a moment of silence for those affected by the tragic loss of life in Oakland’s Ghost Ship warehouse fire on December 2. Some of the young musicians and artists were students and friends of Chorus members.

Mr. Sauerland also let the audience know that 10% of the ticket proceeds for all three OEBGMC concerts will be donated to the Rainbow Community Center in Concord, which has been vandalized repeatedly in recent weeks. RCC provides social, health and advocacy programs for the LGBTQ community, and their representatives were in attendance.

Mr. Sauerland then welcomed in the Chorus, a line of 50 burgundy-vested gentlemen who proudly processed down the aisles and took the stage. The crowd cheered, then quieted in anticipation.

Sounds of Christmas piano filled the air as narrator “Melvin the Elf” began storytime, guiding us through choreographed scenes that wove a musical journey. Baby Bear was on a quest to find the BEST holiday song, and Papa Bear and Daddy Bear were there to help. The Three Bears started by asking Goldilocks, then found Little Red Riding Hood, the Fairy Godmother, Snow White, the Tooth Fairy and the Three Little Pigs. Each shared their holiday favorite!

The Chorus performed an astounding variety of almost two dozen holiday favorites, woven together ingeniously by Sauerland’s creation. The show included traditional songs like “Frosty the Snowman,” “Jingle Bells,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” and “O Holy Night,” as well as more modern additions like “The Dreidel Song,” “Turkey Lurkey Time,” and “Believe,” from the Warner Bros. movie, The Polar Express . The audience was invited to sing “Let It Go” from Disney’s Frozen , and “Silent Night” gracefully ended a beautiful performance.

Saturday’s concert and the Sunday show at Montclair Presbyterian Church sold out in advance, with standing room only. Tickets for the third and final performance of “Fairy Tales” on Saturday, December 10 at 7:30 at the Clayton Valley Presbyterian Church are available at www.oebgmc.org/tickets

800-706-2389
contactoebgmc@oebgmc.org

All photo credits: F. Reber Brown

FairyTales 2016 Official Press Release

Tue, 06 Dec 2016 00:00:00 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: DEC 6 2016

Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus
1.800.706.2389
manager@oebgmc.org

FAIRY TALES 2016: A HOLIDAY CONCERT
Musical Theater, light reception following concerts

Oakland CA — Dec 6 2016 — The Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus announces its Annual Holiday Concert 2016 titled Fairy Tales: A Holiday Concert .

Join us as we journey through some of the best loved tales and visit some of your favorite characters. This family friendly concert combines classic tales with seasonal music that will fill audiences with the spirit of the season!

The Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus donates 10% of ticket sales from each of its concerts as part of giving back to the greater East Bay community. This season, the chorus is proud to donate to the Rainbow Community Center of Concord, who experienced a series of hate crimes in the past weeks.

A reception, immediately following the concert, will feature light snacks and organic Fetzer wines.

Who: Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus
What: Fairy Tales 2016: A Holiday Concert
When: Three different times and locations below

Saturday, December 3rd at 7:30pm - Lafayette Christian Church, 584 Glenside Drive, Lafayette
Sunday, December 4th at 4:00pm - Montclair Presbyterian Church, 5701 Thornhill Drive, Oakland
Saturday, December 10th at 7:30pm - Clayton Valley Presbyterian Church, 1578 Kirker Pass Rd., Clayton

Cost:

$25 General Admission
$10 Seniors and Students with a valid ID
Kids 12 and under free

Saturday’s concert and the Sunday show at Montclair Presbyterian Church sold out in advance, with standing room only. Tickets for the third and final performance of “Fairy Tales” on Saturday, December 10 at 7:30pm at the Clayton Valley Presbyterian Church are available at www.oebgmc.org/tickets

Purchase tickets

www.oebgmc.org/tickets
call 1.800.706.2389

###

For more information
oebgmc.org
manager@oebgmc.org
1.800.706.2389

About the Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus

The Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus, under the direction of William Sauerland, is a 50-voice gay men’s chorus that performs a wide variety of original and popular music, provides music education for local youth and adults, and donates concert proceeds to other East Bay nonprofits of all kinds.

About William Sauerland, Artistic Director

San Francisco-based countertenor and educator, William Sauerland enjoys a varied career of teaching, singing, and conducting. Mr. Sauerland is currently the Artistic and Music Director of the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, Director of Vocal Music at Lick-Wilmerding High School, and Associate Music Director of the Grammy Award-winning Pacific Boychoir Academy.

Giving Tuesday 2016

Tue, 29 Nov 2016 00:00:00 GMT

Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus for #GivingTuesday

Global Day of Giving Takes Place this Year on November 29

[Oakland, CA] [November 29, 2016] – [The Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus (OEBGMC) is planning to promote #GivingTuesday, a global giving movement that has been driven by individuals, families, organizations, businesses and communities in all 50 states and in countries around the world. Since its founding in 2012, millions of people have come together to support and champion the causes they believe in and the communities in which they live.

Please donate here .

____

After two days for getting deals – Black Friday and Cyber Monday –#GivingTuesday is a day for giving back. In dozens of towns, cities, regions and states from Alaska to Maine, and Charlotte NC to Dallas TX, people are embracing this day as an opportunity to raise money for local nonprofits, schools and arts organizations; run food and clothing drives; teach children about philanthropy; encourage acts of kindness; collaborate with their neighbors; and celebrate generosity.

In 2015, nonprofits raised more than $117 million online on #GivingTuesday to help make the world a better place in countless ways. Much more was generated offline and through donations of time and other resources. People participated in #GivingTuesday activities in 71 countries around the globe last year, and this year, participating countries include Australia, Brazil, Kenya, Slovenia, Tanzania, the UK and more.

#GivingTuesday was born at 92nd Street Y (92Y), a community and cultural center in New York in 2012. Since then, people from different backgrounds, cultures and regions around the world have helped to create a global day of giving that reflects 92Y’s commitment to strengthening communities and repairing the world.

“The tremendous response to #GivingTuesday over the last five years has been both humbling and inspiring,” said Henry Timms, Executive Director of 92Y. “We have seen countless examples of communities coming together to address challenges. Giving is a powerful reminder of our shared humanity, and the willingness of so many to participate and elevate giving is reason for celebration – even with lots of work still to be done.”

Those who are interested in joining OEBGMC’s #GivingTuesday initiative can visit the donation page . For more details about the #GivingTuesday movement, visit the #GivingTuesday website ( www.givingtuesday.org ), Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday ) or follow @GivingTues and the #GivingTuesday hashtag on social media.

About #GivingTuesday

#GivingTuesday is a movement, built by people around the world, to celebrate giving of all kinds. It is celebrated on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving (in the U.S.), Black Friday and Cyber Monday; this year it falls on November 29, 2016. This movement is the result of the collective power of a unique blend of partners—nonprofits large and small; businesses and corporations; schools and universities; civic campaigns in cities, states and regions; and families and individuals—to inspire people to take collaborative action to improve their local communities and contribute in countless ways to the causes they believe in. Everyone has something to give.

To learn more about #GivingTuesday participants and activities or to join the celebration of giving, please visit:

Website: www.givingtuesday.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday
Twitter: twitter.com/GivingTues

The Oakland Gay Men's Chorus sings the National Anthem for the Oakland A's

Wed, 15 Jun 2016 00:00:00 GMT

The Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus sings the national anthem before the Oakland Athletics play the Texas Rangers in a MLB game at the Coliseum in Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday, June 14, 2016. The A's dedicated Pride Night to the victims of the Orlando, Fla. shooting.

(Jane Tyska/ Bay Area News Group )

Farewell Stephanie

Wed, 01 Oct 2014 00:00:00 GMT

The chorus is bid a fond farewell to outgoing Interim Artistic Director Stephanie Smith during her last official concerts November 30 - December 2. The chorus and new pianist Grace Renaud surprised Stephanie with a farewell rendition of "You've Got a Friend" where the audience clapped and sang along. Stephanie then introduced the final set of songs that she hand selected from her favorites of the Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus repertoire. "I pride myself in my programming. However I was having trouble finishing this holiday concert, and then I thought, 'this is my last concert so I get to pick my favorite songs to close.'" said Smith during the show.

"It sounded like they were going to blow the doors off the theater when they sang I Sing Out!" said Jessica Turner-Garcia, a chorus volunteer who was in the lobby.
For her final official concert piece, the chorus sang What a Wonderful World, arranged by the former accompanist Thaddeus Pinkston. All was well until middle of the song during the verse "I hear babies cry" and suddenly there was not a dry eye on the stage.

Stephanie will continue to lead the group through the end of December for community outreach concerts.

You will be missed, Miss Smith.

_____________________

Born and raised in Wichita Falls, Texas, Stephanie Lynne Smith is an active pianist, conductor, clinician, vocal coach, worship leader and chamber musician in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her qualifications include a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from the University of Colorado at Boulder (1998) and a Master of Music degree in Chamber Music Performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (2001). Her professional experience of more than a decade includes performing in master classes for Menahem Pressler and Emmanuel Ax, working with renowned composers such as Alden Jenks, David Garner and David Conte, and providing accompaniment for such luminaries as Sharon McNight, B.D. Wong, Franc D'Ambrosio and Tony Award winner Alan Cumming.

Stephanie is founding music director of New Spirit Community Church in Berkeley, co-founder of Gay, Lesbian and Allied Musicians (GLAM) Youth Choir, and pianist for Shari Carlson Studio in San Francisco. After serving as Artistic Director and Conductor of the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco for 8 years, she stepped down in July 2010 to focus on her comedy duo, “Fifi & Fanny”, and to intentionally return to the concert stage as an actor, pianist and chamber musician. This past year, Stephanie co-produced and performed in the original productions of "Wise Up!" and "Nothing in Common", and presented her original show "High Anxiety: My Journey with Performance Anxiety" to a sold-out room. She can be seen on the Fifi & Fanny YouTube Channel and co-hosts a weekly internet-based talk radio show on blogtalkradio.com .

She particularly enjoys working in teams, presenting original compositions by Queer composers living in the Bay Area, organizing and hosting fundraisers and variety shows, and specializes in program re-vitalization. Stephanie has served as music director and worship team member for MCC General Conference 2007 in Arizona, MCC Region 1 Conference 2008 in Hawaii, and most recently for the Earl Lectures at Pacific School of Religion (Berkeley) in January of 2011. Her upcoming worship leading engagements include worship leader for the Coalition of Welcoming Congregations of the Bay Area clergy conference “Bringing Spirituality Out of the Closet” and music director for the first ever conference for the Asian Pacific Initiative (MCC) in Manila, Philippines in August 2012.

On her 32nd birthday, Stephanie married full-time dogwalker Jen Brown in San Francisco City Hall. They live happily ever after in the Mission District of San Francisco with their dogs with rhyming names, Mackie and Jacky.

Every Voice Counts

Mon, 01 Sep 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Fundraiser and Luncheon - September 13, 2014 - Scott's Seafood, Oakland

Join the Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus at our first annual fundraiser at Scott's Seafood in Oakland. Enjoy a complimentary lunch while enjoying a performance by small ensembles. Learn more about how the Oakland East Bay Gay Men's Chorus is a well-respected arts organization in the Oakland and East Bay, community and, serves the community by giving back.

Meet the new Music Director, Carl Pantle, and find out why he came to this chorus. Be one of the first to hear an announcement on how the chorus is giving back to the community like no other chorus in the area does.

When: September 13, 2014 - noon - 2:30 pm

Where: Scott's Seafood Jack London Square- 2 Broadway, Oakland CA

Cost: $50.00

RSVP: send your rsvp to rsvp@oebgmc.org

oaklandgmc

Voices from Our Chorus Andre Sean Gary-Mack on Feeling at Home in Harmony

Voices from our Chorus

Holding the Light, Together Finding strength, joy, and connection as we prepare for spring

Holding the Light, Together

Finding strength, joy, and connection as we prepare for spring

Voices from our Chorus Meet Joseph, Jonathan, and Ryan: The Three Choreographers

Voices from our Chorus Meet Joseph, Jonathan, and Ryan: The Three Choreographers

Joseph Bahlman: Motion, Music, and a Scientist’s Eye

Jonathan Leavy: A Life in Music, Movement, and Heart

Ryan Justus: Dance, Community, and Creativity for the Joy of It

Three Artists, One Vision

In Concert LGBTQ+ History Month

In Concert

LGBTQ+ History Month

Honoring Our Legacy: October Is LGBTQ+ History Month

In Harmony Honoring Hispanic Heritage Month Through Music, Memory, and Community

In Harmony

Honoring Hispanic Heritage Month Through Music, Memory, and Community

A Tapestry of Musical Roots

﻿

Diaspora and Memory

From Past to Present

Why This Matters at OaklandGMC

Voices from our Chorus David Guerra on Sewing Costumes, Singing Truths, and Finding Family

Voices from our Chorus

Voices from our Chorus Fred Rogers Reflects on His OaklandGMC Journey

Voices from our Chorus

Conducting Change: A Chat with Bruce Southard, D.M.A.

Conducting Change:

A Chat with Bruce Southard, D.M.A.

Pride Giving Month

Support the Oakland Gay Men's Chorus this Pride Month!

A Celebration with the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus

What does Pride mean to you?

Si, Se Puede!

African American Library, a Little History of Oakland

The Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus is Representing The East Bay at GALA!

Aaron Hughes Interview with June Kamerling

True Colors Concerts: Oakland Gay Men Chorus Featuring New Voices Bay Area TIGQ Chorus

Seth Frost & Kelvin Ellis Interview with June Kamerling

Tribute from OGMC to Curtis Marsh

Oakland GMC Honors Black History Month with “My Heart Be Brave”

Wally Bee Interview with June Kamerling

Members Out in the World: TA Dunn

Members Out in the World: Bruce Carlton

Response to Community Attacks

Sondheim & Company: Broadway Our Way

Change Is Good

Members Out In The World: Ethan Solomita

Members Out In The World: Ron Correll

Dustin Bankston Interview with June Kamerling

Members Out In The World: Steve Smith

Members Out In The World: Mel Terry

Members Out in the World: Joe Rosenmayer

Members Out in the World: June Kamerling’s Braided Rugs

The Injustice of Kyle Rittenhouse

Members Out in the World: Dave Burdios-Woemmel

Members Out in the World:

Dave Burdios-Woemmel

Members Out In The World: Brian Tognotti

Members Out In The World: Gaelynn Sparker

Special Gifts for Platinum and Gold Ticket Holders

Denis Whitaker Interview with June Kamerling

OGMC Mourns a Friend

We’ve lost a friend and collaborator, and the whole community has lost a treasured musician. Our hearts go out to all of our brothers and sisters in the East Bay musical family.

Happy Juneteenth!

Shawn Simon Interview with June Kamerling

A STATEMENT OF SOLIDARITY FROM THE OAKLAND GAY MEN’S CHORUS

Interview with Joe Rosenmayer

A holiday gift from the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus

Make Good Trouble!

Just go! Register! Vote! | Choral Collage

Giving Back & Getting Involved | League of Women Voters of Oakland

Interview with James Berglund

Rhymes with Witch! | Choral Collage

It's September | Choral Collage

Art Isn't Easy | Stephen Sondheim Choral Collage

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Bayard Rustin | Choral Collage

Voices from our Chorus
Meet Joseph, Jonathan, and Ryan: The Three Choreographers

Important Update Oakland Gay Men's Chorus' Response to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Public Health Alert 🌈