Mikey

On Saturday 14 April I attended the Pink Singers 29th anniversary party.

The evening had a Hollywood theme and we were asked to dress accordingly, either for a smart Oscars party, or in fancy dress. As usual, my instinct told me to reach for the costume box! I spent time considering my options for dress but soon had the ambitious idea to go as an Avatar. I spent hours in preparation for the evening. I was wearing painted leggings and body paint, and was apprehensive about going out in so few clothes, but on arrival at the party I was given such a warm and friendly reception by everyone that my nerves dissipated. Many people who hugged and greeted me were left with a blue mark, which as the evening progressed was to be seen everywhere!

I joined the Pink Singers in late August 2011, and then moved here in October, so this is my second season. Originally I had few friends in London, but the choir has enabled me to develop that process.

The evening was full of laughter, conversation, dance and of course singing. Some members performed on stage and their voices were amazing. I won first prize for my costume! Added to the fact it was my birthday, I was overwhelmed. This was a wonderful opportunity for me to say to everyone how welcome they’d made me feel in the choir. Alas, I became emotional.
An incredibly enjoyable evening, great costumes and excellent planning. A night I won’t forget for some time.

The Pink Singers support equal marriage and believe that equality before the law is a basic principle in any democratic society. Loving and committed relationships between two people should be recognised in the same way by the state regardless of the gender or sexual orientation of those involved. There is no justification for treating equal members of society differently. As a choir we celebrate the love between our members and their families and in this video we have spoken to three couples about their relationships. Love does not discriminate and nor should the state!

For more information on equality in civil marriage, please visit the Coalition For Equal Marriage.

Sally-Anne

During the first weekend in March, the Pinkies demonstrated versatility with not one, but two shows in two days.

On the Saturday we were at the Black Cap in Camden. We had an amazing and varied evening with everything from a salsa workshop to a very energetic run-through of one of our old favourites, Proud Mary – well, I certainly felt very proud to be part of the show.  There are some very talented people in the choir, but what was particularly brilliant was that some of our “newbies” performed solos barely a few weeks after joining.

That night the Pinkies were very much showcasing the variety tradition, presenting a wide range of really high calibre entertainment. We had music, dancing and laughter and a very successful time – so thanks everyone for all the hard work!

Although we love performing the show-stoppers and dance routines (thanks Artistic Team, I do appreciate your hard work), as well as some pretty funky pop songs, we also have a broad classical repertoire and I think that we demonstrated our versatility in the show the following day.

On a wet Sunday afternoon, we were delighted to be part of ‘Voices Now’ – a choral festival organised by Making Music and the BBC Singers at the Roundhouse in Camden.  We performed a cappella, and received a particularly fantastic response for our rendition of Rimsky-Korsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee.

Our set also included two pieces which have been beautifully arranged by two of our members – Kiss from a Rose and Make You Feel My Love. The audience were wonderful and really getting into it – it is always beautiful to see people of all ages, from little toddlers on their dads’ shoulders to elderly folk, all enjoying the wonderful gift of music!

Hsien

Who would have thought it? Who would have thought that when Mark Bunyan and Brian Kennedy got together (I like to imagine over a pint) in the winter of 1983 and decided to create a gay and lesbian choir, that the group would not only still be around but thriving three decades later? That choir didn’t even have a name at its first rehearsal on 7 April of that year, but shortly afterwards, “the Pink Singers” became a synonym for London’s LGBT community choir.

Looking back thirty years, it isn’t hard to see that the London into which the Pink Singers emerged was very different from the city we know today. 1983 marked the transformation of the U.K. Gay Pride Rally into Lesbian and Gay Pride, an event for which the Pink Singers was originally formed to add music. There was a lot to protest in the 1980s: the reality of homophobia, AIDS and Section 28 demanded a response from the LGBT community.

Pinkies in rehearsal in 1987

Today, many of these issues have lessened, and some have disappeared entirely, only to be replaced by other, more subtle challenges. While the U.K. and London in particular is a lot less homophobic than it was three decades ago, homophobia in schools is still a problem and intolerance and hate crime persists.  Over time the Pink Singers has adapted to reflect this change, fighting stereotypes and bringing a message of inclusiveness to places where calling yourself gay or lesbian can be a problem. And whether the LGBT community emphasizes protest or celebration, the Pink Singers has kept on making its own kind of music in support.

The Pink Singers at Pride 1997

We also celebrate the fact that we are also all Londoners, and a part of the wider U.K. and LGBT choral community. At its heart, the Pink Singers has always been about the power of great music to move people and bring people together. By collaborating with charities and other choirs we hope to bring the magic of song to ever more people. It helps that our audiences engage with our performances, due in no small part to the successive brilliance of the choir’s inspired leadership and the hard work and sweat of its members.

Indeed, the dedication of the “Pinkies”, as our members fondly refer to ourselves, is the choir’s greatest strength. It is the choir’s internal community – a safe, inclusive and supportive space – which keeps the choir so cohesive. The Pink Singers is a place where everyone knows your name and you are always welcome. Pinkies work hard and play hard, and here is where your friends (and more often than not your partner!) will be found.

Christmas 2001

In 2013, the Pinkies will be celebrating the 30^th anniversary of the Pink Singers, so now is a good time to acknowledge the contribution of Pinkies over the years who have given their voice to the choir’s song. But we are also looking forward to the future: to paraphrase Bob Dylan’s words from Make You Feel My Love, “you ain’t seen nothing of us yet!” Here’s to another glorious 30 years.

We are always looking for material on the Pink Singers to add to our archive, so if you have photos, videos, programmes or stories you want to share, please get in touch with us.

Do you miss us already? Well, you have two opportunities to join us next week as the Pink Singers will be performing on Saturday AND Sunday.

At 7pm on Saturday, 3 March, we will be at the Black Cap (171 Camden High Street, London, NW1 7JY). Tickets on the door.

And you can continue your fabulous Pink weekend on Sunday, 4 March at ‘Voices Now’ – a day showcasing some of the UK’s best choirs – in association with the BBC Singers and Making Music at the Roundhouse, Camden (Chalk Farm Road, NW1 8EH).

From our recent concert, ‘Comparing Notes’, here’s a reminder of why you should make us part of your weekend…

Jules

On a freezing Wednesday last week a group of intrepid Pinkies made their way through biting winds to Glaziers Hall on the south bank of the Thames by London Bridge. The date was the 1st February and our mission was to sing in the start of LGBT History Month in Southwark. This was one of many events taking place across the country, that day and over the coming month, celebrating the lives and histories of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people – ordinary and extraordinary – who have left their mark on the history of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. LGBT History Month has become a fixture on the Pink Singers’ calendar since its launch in 2005, and we have watched it grow and reach out to people everywhere.

It was my fourth time singing at this event and for me it was special for a number of reasons. It was our first gig after our big winter concert and a real tonic to the bleak weather, bills and New Year’s resolutions that I’d already broken. Not only was it a chance to get a shot of Pinkie magic during our post-season break, but also a great opportunity to catch up with other Pinkies over a couple of sweet sherries in a very cosy pub after the show.

I always find smaller gigs challenging as we usually don’t know the venue, where we’ll be performing, how close we’ll be to the audience or how many will be there, and this was no exception. In addition to all that, I was singing the solo in Sit Down You’re Rockin’ The Boat….. gulp! It had been performed brilliantly by Larry in our concert two weeks earlier, and was my first solo performance (not in the shower) for nearly 20 years! With our lovely Alice at the helm for a solo conducting flight across an entire gig and me not wanting to cause a crash of any sort, I was feeling the pressure somewhat.

I’m not sure which is worse and I’ve experienced both – the gigs we do in cavernous town halls where we are up on a huge stage looking down on the audience who are just a tiny dot in the distance, or the ones where we are actually in the front row with them, on their laps! Well, this one was the latter and it was quite an experience for them and us.

When the time came I think I can safely say that we managed to pull it out of the bag and gave a performance that, although it may not go down in Gay History, was worthy of the Pink Singers and certainly gave our audience something to warm to on a very cold February night.

As we exited stage left and made our way to that cosy pub I mentioned, we were congratulated by Peter Tatchell who said his favourite part of our performance was the basses ‘bums’ in Constant Craving. Now there’s a compliment!

With our new singing season getting ever nearer, here is a reminder of one of our favourite moments from the last concert, Eric Whitacre’s beautiful Lux Aurumque. If you would like to sing with us in the summer, you still have a couple of weeks to let us know by emailing  joining@pinksingers.co.uk

Did you enjoy our winter concert, Comparing Notes, as much as we did? Would you like to experience a small part of that elation again? Then why not join us as the Pink Singers celebrate the start of LGBT History Month 2012 in Southwark next week? We have the privilege of opening the evening, which will also include Queer Question Time, featuring human rights campaigner, Peter Tatchell among others.

This is the eighth year that LGBT History Month has been marked across the UK. It is an annual celebration of the lives and achievements of the LGBT community, with a special theme this year of ‘tackling homophobia and transphobia in the world of sport’. Queer Question Time will cover this topic and the Olympics and Cultural Olympiad, as well as broader issues facing the LGBT community.

Sit down!

The event will be held on Wednesday 1st February 2012 at Southwark Council’s Atrium, 160 Tooley Street, London, SE1 2TZ. Admission is FREE but advance booking is strongly advised as places are limited. To book, contact Helen Laker on 020 7525 0848 or email Helen.Laker@southwark.gov.uk

Paul

It’s often said that the middle Monday in January is the glummest day of the year. Marooned between paydays, together with the combination of plummeting temperatures, seemingly endless dark mornings and the twinkling festivities of Christmas all but a distant memory, “Blue Monday” is always a struggle to get through. This Blue Monday however is proving a little easier as I’m still grinning from ear to ear at the memory of my full-length debut concert with the wonderful Pink Singers, ‘Comparing Notes’ that took place on 14 Jan 2012. And as Magic radio blares out I Don’t Feel Like Dancingacross the office this morning, let me sum up for you what a fantastic weekend it was to pop my pink cherry…….

After hours of intense rehearsal, the day we’d been waiting for finally dawned, sunny and crisp, and as we gathered hesitantly outside the stage door by the imposing facade of Cadogan Hall, there was a real buzz in anticipation of what we were about to embark on. Having been lucky enough in my previous life as an actor to perform at some great venues, walking out on a new stage is always exciting and today was no exception. Murray, our Musical Director, was quick to put us at ease though, taking us through a gentle warm-up and getting our bodies and minds focused for the job at hand. The first few bars of Lux Aurumque sounded a little hesitant as our ears adjusted to the new environment, but it wasn’t long before we were in full voice, enjoying the gorgeous acoustics that Cadogan Hall provides.

Seeing the show gradually coming together throughout the afternoon, lights, projections and the fantastic addition of the beautiful string quartet, all added to the excitement and news that ticket sales were heading towards record levels, made us all the more determined to make that night’s show all the more memorable. Finally the arrival of the wonderful gentlemen of the South Wales Gay Men’s Chorus, our guest choir, made sure that the Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves would be a highlight of what was to come.

The final countdown soon began backstage and the dressing rooms were a flurry of hair and makeup, last minute choreography checks and preening of pink roses and feathers. Kate, our Chair, took a few moments to thank everyone who had worked so hard to make the night possible (with the help of some black and pink M&Ms!) and it really struck me then how hard so many people had worked behind the scenes to make what we do run so smoothly.

Before we knew it, the clock had swung round to 7.30pm and we were on. Lux Aurumque set the scene perfectly, its shimmering chords sending us well on our way. It was amazing to spot so many friendly and familiar faces in the audience and you knew they were with us when you could hear a pin drop during The Blue Bird, holding their breath as the final soprano note rang beautifully through the auditorium. The effervescent energy and incredible voice of Larry Newman made Sit Down You’re Rocking the Boat (already going down as a Pinkies classic) a chance for us to start showing off our finely honed choreography before SWGMC joined us. As we came off stage to watch the boys from Cardiff strut their stuff, the energy felt amazing and we knew that the second half could only get better.

The SWGMC opened part 2 brilliantly with a medley from Chicago, followed by – amongst others – a great arrangement of Bohemian Rhapsody (BSL interpreter Zane, resplendent in his pink gloves, did more than justice to the stylings of the great Freddie Mercury with his signing!). Then it was the turn of our string quartet, (the Pink Stringers?!), to enjoy their moment in the spotlight with beautiful contrasting Dvořák and Gluck pieces.

Finally the Pink Singers returned to the stage for the last few songs – including Pinkie Chris’s stunning arrangement of Make You Feel My Love before we busted a collective move to Scissor Sisters and The Black Eyed Peas. Murray asked the audience, by now on their feet, if they wanted more so we duly obliged with Katy Perry’s Firework, our sparkling rings working to perfection creating a stunning final firework image for the audience to take home with them.

After a few drinks in the bar with friends – none of whom had been to a Pink Singers concert before and who all promised to become dedicated groupies in the future – it was on to the after show party at Bar 229. Gary, our Social Secretary, had, as ever, come up with a real find of a venue and it was great to celebrate a brilliant night with the rest of the group knowing that our hard work had really paid off. The DJ certainly knew her crowd, spinning the cheesy pop until the wee hours and throwing in a few tracks from the concert which we couldn’t resist singing at the top of our voices.

Finally to finish off the weekend in style, I couldn’t miss the traditional Pink Singers end of season brunch at the Retro Bar. As we got stuck into the various goodies that people had brought, we compared notes (geddit!) on the previous night’s events and got to know the gents of SWGMC before bidding them a fond farewell with promises to visit in the future.

So all in all, I’ve had a fantastic first concert weekend with the Pinkies. It’s been a huge honour to be able to work with such a dedicated and talented group of people who genuinely love what they do and I can’t wait to do it all over again with them. So, never mind “Blue Monday”, here’s to “Pink Monday” and may there be many more…

Jess

Never let it be said that being in the Pink Singers is all about work. Our Social Sec, Gary, is dedicated to the cause and the choir’s fantastic social events keep us entertained, enriched and off the streets. They are also a brilliant way of getting to know other choir members better.

The Pinkies theatre trip in November to see Matilda the Musical at the Cambridge Theatre was a delight. The full quota of tickets was rapidly filled and more than 20 of us met to see this show based on Roald Dahl’s tale of unrecognised child genius. By some small miracle, not unlike those in the show itself, we were upgraded to stalls seats and were within touching distance of the characters as they stalked, skipped or, in the case of one unfortunate schoolgirl, were hurled through the auditorium. This five-star show, with music by the unparalleled Tim Minchin, was just that: a funny, inventive, macabre, moving, jaw-droppingly good theatrical night out that was only improved by sharing it with other Pinkies, even if Murray, our MD, did start to channel Miss Trunchbull and threaten to fling us by our pigtails over the playing field if we committed any musical misdemeanours.

 Our Christmas party in December was another highlight of a busy social season. Packed into the Harrison pub after our last rehearsal before Christmas, it was an evening of feasting and festive fun, the mulled wine freely flowing and the party well and truly going. Christmas dinner with all the trimmings, including that prince of batter-based foods, the Yorkshire pudding, was delicious, and speedily placed before hungry choristers by the gracious staff of the Harrison. But it was the music that truly lifted this evening to great heights of loveliness. The ever-popular open mic yielded some amazing performances of everything from classical piano duets to Jason and Kylie, and the a cappella numbers by some of the choir’s small groups were fabulous. A ukulele-accompanied ditty had us laughing, while a beautiful performance of ‘Out Here on My Own’ moved us to tears. We couldn’t help getting in a little extra practice with some group sing-a-longs either, all of which added up to the best Christmas party of the season.