LGBT History Month is starting on Tuesday, so now’s a great time to reflect on our past. In 1996, the Pinkies were in Tampa to perform at the GALA choruses festival, and some of them are still singing in the choir today! Janine very kindly shared a whole treasure trove of photos from 1995 to 1997 with us – thank you so very much. The Pink Singers really want to record our history before it is forgotten, so if you have material you’d like to share, either publicly or privately, please do send it our way. Find out more about the Pink Singers archive here.
Tag: history
The Pink Singers archive – can you help?
We often say that the Pink Singers
are the oldest lesbian and gay choir in Europe, but how do we illustrate our boast? What did the choir do in the 1980s and ‘90s? What did we do five years ago, come to that? There are some very interesting historical articles on our website, but detailed, enduring history has to be based on records – and that is why we are setting up a Pinkie Archive.
The archive will be a multimedia affair. We are collecting sound and video recordings, photographs (both digital and old-style) and documents. All storage will be electronic, so printed materials will be scanned. Audio files and documents are to be kept on-line, while video will be stored on two portable hard drives owned by the choir. All three repositories are password-protected, of course. The records will include concert programmes, repertoire lists, rehearsal tracks, choreography videos, concert videos and anything else that records the history of the Pink Singers. Continue reading “The Pink Singers archive – can you help?”
Being in an LGBT choir is great!
Our very own Philip Rescorla is turning into a bit of a radio celebrity. After a successful stint a few weeks ago, he picked up the phone and appeared on the Joel Kafetz show on JNET Radio last night.
The programme focussed on the LGBT choir movement in the U.K. and featured interviews with the Pink Singers and our fellow choristers in Diversity, the London Gay Men’s Chorus, the Brighton Gay Men’s Chorus, Gay Abandon, Loud and Proud and Rainbow Chorus. Every choir is slightly different, but everyone agreed that being part of a group like ours is a fulfilling experience, even more so when combined with a sense of Pride.
Joel complimented the Pinkies on the quality of our sound and played a recording of Vivaldi’s Gloria from our summer concert (listen to it from the 5:52 mark). As he suggests, we’re not just about Dancing Queen! Here’s the edited segment – enjoy! Continue reading “Being in an LGBT choir is great!”
The Pink Singers yearbook 2009-2010
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH_0JVMAtb8
The Pinkies are on our summer break at the moment, so now’s the perfect time to sit back and take brief rest. It is also a chance to look back on the year and review what the Pink Singers got up to in winter season 2009 and summer season 2010. It starts at the end of October with the anti-hate-crime vigil in Trafalgar Square and ends in the same place in July with the Pride London rally. En route? Hats, choral competitions, Eurovision, a volcano and lots and lots of singing.
Putting together the yearbook was the joint effort of all the photographers who have helped to capture the Pinkie magic through the seasons, so a really big ‘thank you’ goes to Al, Ben, Hsien, Oskar and Peter. With so many images it was hard to pick the two or three which perfectly encapsulated any one event. Stephen Sondheim’s Send In The Clowns as performed by the Pink Singers helped, of course, as did Michael Derrick’s masterful piano playing. So kick off your shoes, relax, and relive the last year with us.
Tampa, Pride marches, hand in hand
In case you missed it, here’s an 8 minute extract from Philip Rescorla’s hour-long stint as a guest on Rosie Wilby‘s show on Resonance FM the Monday before Pride London 2010.
Pinkie tenor and resident Pink Singers historian, Philip was invited to talk about what it was like to be in the Gay Liberation Front. He discusses the role music plays in the Pride movement, the motivations for the Pink Singers’ trip to Tampa, Florida in 1996, and the meaning behind the song Hand In Hand (excerpt included from the 3:52 mark). Just hit play! Continue reading “Tampa, Pride marches, hand in hand”