Golden Gate Men's Chorus

Golden Gate Men’s Chorus

San Francisco, California (2013)
Background information
Also known as GGMC
Origin San Francisco, California, United States
Genres Choral
Occupation(s) Men's Choir
Instruments 50 voices
Years active 1982-present
Labels Self-produced
Website www.ggmc.org
Members Music Director
Joseph Piazza
CEO
Richard Rosser
CFO
Randall Kikukawa
Secretary
Seán Foley

Golden Gate Men's Chorus (GGMC) is a gay men’s chorus located in San Francisco.[1] The GGMC is a group of 50 men, that are ethnically and socially diverse. The GGMC presents spring, summer and winter programs annually, in addition to numerous guest and community benefit performances throughout the year. Founded in 1982, the Golden Gate Men's Chorus is dedicated to giving voice to the gay community through song.

Early years

In August, 1982, GGMC founder Dick Kramer put out word (and posters) that he was forming a new group, to be called the Dick Kramer Gay Men's Chorale.[2][3] He envisioned a small men's ensemble of around 40, reminiscent of university men's choruses of 19th century Europe. The new chorale rehearsed at Dick's home for its first couple years, before finding a home, first at St. Francis Lutheran Church in San Francisco, and in 1996 at St. Matthew's Lutheran Church, where it now rehearses and performs. The chorale performed three sets annually, with each set consisting of 3-4 performances in San Francisco, San Mateo, Marin, Alameda and/or Contra Costa counties. The chorale also did regular joint performances with the Temescal GMC (Oakland), Liedermann Chorus (now Silicon Valley GMC), Contra Costa Chorale, VOICES Lesbian Chorus, Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, and San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus, as well as participating in the annual Pride Concert. The DKGMC was also a founding member of the new organization, GALA Choruses (Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses), in 1983 (and has been represented in every GALA festival to date).[4]

From its first performances in 1982,[5] the DKGMC was well received by the local press and San Francisco audiences, and received favorable reviews for its programming and performances. In addition, the DKGMC was featured regularly at the Cable Car Awards, both as performer and award recipient, and sang for the opening of Harvey Milk Plaza in San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood.

Early performances

Major performances of the period include: full-scale production of Benjamin Britten's "The Burning Fiery Furnace" (1984), Giuseppe Verdi "Requiem (Verdi)" (1985, with the Contra Costa Chorale), Carl Orff "Carmina Burana (Orff)" (1986, with Contra Costa Chorale). The Britten performance was rebroadcast nationally, as well as in Europe and Australia. The DKGMC was among 17 choruses at the second GALA Choruses festival in Minneapolis in 1986,[6] and shared the stage with the Denver Women's Chorus in a special joint performance of Schubert's "Mass in G," the first large mixed choral performance at a GALA festival.[7] After almost six years as music director, in April 1988, Dick Kramer conducted his farewell concert of Kurt Weill's "Berliner Requiem."

The GGMC

The DKGMC was reorganized as the Golden Gate Men's Chorus, in 1988. After several interim directors, William Garcia Ganz was appointed in 1991.[8] During his four-year tenure, the GGMC produced three full concerts of all-American composers, as well as two concerts in conjunction with the Society of Gay and Lesbian Composers of new works by local lesbian and gay composers.[9] The GGMC also performed joint reciprocal holiday concerts with the Sacramento Gay Men’s Chorus in San Francisco and Sacramento (1990,1991) and with Slavyanka Russian Chorus in San Francisco and Santa Clara (1994, 1995).

In 1996, Joseph Jennings (then Artistic Director of Chanticleer (ensemble) was appointed as music director.[10] During his 13-year tenure, the GGMC achieved a high level of artistic quality, attracted a steady flow of musicians as new members, and expanded its audience and donor base.[11]

The GGMC has released four CD recordings, Loving Again (2000), recorded at Skywalker Ranch in Marin; MASS (2003), Tidings of Comfort and Joy (2006), and 30 (2012) all recorded at Saint Ignatius Church (San Francisco).[12] Since 1999, the GGMC has been supported by annual grants from the San Francisco Grants for the Arts.[13] Included among its regular season performances, the GGMC has produced two major staged productions of cabaret music "Love Changes Everything" (1997,1998), a three-month tour of San Francisco historic sites "Now We Sing the City" (including SF City Hall) (1999), a joint performance to a full house at Grace Cathedral, San Francisco with the London Gay Men's Chorus and Le Choeur Int'l Gai de Paris (2000),[14] six major orchestral sacred concerts, and hosted the Harvard Glee Club in its first joint performance with a gay men's chorus (2004).

In May 2010, the Golden Gate Men’s Chorus announced the appointment of Joseph Piazza as music director. Under his leadership, the GGMC celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2012 with the recording "30"; has presented collaborative performances with the Peninsula Women's Chorus, Singers Marin, the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, the San Francisco Choral Society,[15] the Piedmont East Bay Children's Choir, and Na Lei Hulu I Ka Wekiu; and has premiered commissions by David Conte, Steven Sametz, David Del Tredici, Eric Whitacre, William Hawley, Josu Elberdin, Vytautas Miškinis, Leonard Enns, Ivo Antognini, Kirby Shaw, Ēriks Ešenvalds, and Stephen Main. The GGMC's small ensemble, Counterpoint, was invited to perform at the American Choral Directors Association(ACDA) Western Division conference in Santa Barbara in February 2014.[16] In July 2014, the Golden Gate Men's Chorus participated in the 8th World Choir Games in Riga, Latvia, where the chorus was awarded gold medals in the "Musica Sacra with accompaniment" and "Male Choirs" Champions Competitions, and a silver medal in the "Spiritual" Champions Competition.[17][18]

Discography

Music Directors

Affiliations

References

  1. ↑ "The Golden Gate Men's Chorus". Ggmc.org. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
  2. ↑ Kosman, Joshua (June 5, 2007). "San Francisco Chronicle, June 5, 2007". The San Francisco Chronicle.
  3. ↑ "Bay Area Reporter, June 7, 2007".
  4. ↑ "glbtq.com "Choruses and Bands," from glbtq: an encyclopedia of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, & queer culture".
  5. ↑ "San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus history: 1982 Dick Kramer forms Dick Kramer Gay Men's Chorale". sfgmc.org.
  6. ↑ Authority and Freedom: Toward a Sociology of the Gay Choruses by Paul Attinello, in: Queering the Pitch: the new gay and lesbian musicology, ed: Philip Brett, Elizabeth Wood, Gary Thomas, 2006, pp. 332, 340-341
  7. ↑ "Gay choruses: a matter of quality, image" (PDF). Minneapolis Star and Tribune, July 4, 1986.
  8. ↑ "UC Choral Ensembles".
  9. ↑ "The Society of Gay and Lesbian Composers". micropromusica.com. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
  10. ↑ "Chanticleer.org".
  11. ↑ "San Francisco Classical Voice". San Francisco Classical Voice. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
  12. ↑ "ggmc.org".
  13. ↑ "San Francisco Grants for the Arts/Hotel Tax Fund".
  14. ↑ "MeloMen.com".
  15. ↑ "Rachmaninoff's All Night Vigil".
  16. ↑ "ACDA Conference".
  17. ↑ "World Choir Games Participating Groups United States of America".
  18. ↑ "World Choir Games Riga 2014 results".

External links

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