Oakland Gay Men's Chorus

We have a new interview about our member James Berglund. He is the membership chair of our chorus. #blog #interview #OGMC... https://www.oaklandgmc.org/interview-with-james-berglund

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

Happy Birthday to our member Frederick Rogers What part do you sing in the chorus? :I am a member of the Upper Baritone brigade.... How did you learn about OGMC? :I had been reading about the OEBGMC (back then) and yearning to sing again after a 50 year hiatus. I saw a Meet Up posting online and it said there were auditions that very night in February 2016. I figured that after sitting on the sidelines for half a century it was time to give it a go and I also felt a strong desire to become a part of the LGBTQ community in Oakland. What's your role in the chorus? : 2016 was a GALA year and while only a member for about 5 months, it was off to Denver. In a festive mood with margaritas, I asked a Board member what more I could do than just sing? Next thing I knew, I was the Production Chair and learning the many facets of what it takes to get a performance together with the invaluable help of some of the chorus veterans. Aside from this Leadership role, I was elected to the Board with the hopes that I could be a positive contributor to this thriving arts organization as it adapts and grows in its next twenty years. My joining the chorus coincided with the death of my sister here in Oakland. She had been encouraging me for years to sing again (she was a dancer, not a singer) and she passed the day of my second rehearsal. Though she never got to hear me perform, I dedicate every performance to her knowing that she would have been front and center of every show cheering us on. Is there anything else you want people to know about you? :I know we are all experiencing the pandemic in many ways, but not being able to rehearse and perform has been particularly hard. I look forward to the time when this 2020 experience is in the rearview mirror and we can once again be the voice of this diverse and talented community. Again, Happy Birthday to Fred. #happybirthday #OGMC

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. #collage #quote

Happy Birthday to our member T.A. (Thomas Dunn) What part do you sing in the chorus? :1st Tenor... How did you learn about OGMC? :Signup sheet at SF Pride What's your role in the chorus? :Member of Production committee What's a good memory you have of OGMC? :Setting up for concerts. Is there anything else you want people to know about you? :Big Sci-Fi fan Again, Happy Birthday to T.A.. #happybirthday #OGMC #oaklandgmcbirthday

Happy Birthday to Michele Tiernan What part do you sing in the chorus? :Tenor 1 - the melody!!!... How long have you been involved in the chorus? : Just joined, bummed our April concert didnt happen. Attended a Lavender Seniors event and knew I HAD to join the group. Is there anything else you want people to know? :That's one 'L', one- elle Again, Happy Birthday to Michele with only ONE L. #happybirthday #OGMC #oaklandgmcbirthday

Art Isn’t Easy 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. #art #collage #musical #quote #inspiration

New blog/interview published today by our member June Kamerling - https://www.oaklandgmc.org/interview-with-lorenzo-ramsey

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 th...e 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:

Happy Birthday to Jeffrey Gillman What part do you sing in the chorus? :I sing baritone... How long have you been involved in the chorus? :since Jan. 2019; learned about the chorus from a friend. What's your role in the chorus? :I’m a member of the marketing committee. I see the chorus as so attractive and effective that it must play a role in awakening its audiences to the triumph of human diversity. What's a good memory you have of OGMC? :I loved singing the prisoner’s chorus from Fidelio with the Oakland Symphony and chorus. I loved the two songs we had commissioned last year. Is there anything else you want people to know? :I am hideously old, used to be the oldest chorister until my great age was exceeded by another member. Once again, Happy Birthday to Jeff!! #happybirthday #OGMC #oaklandgmcbirthday

Happy Birthday to Guy Burns What part do you sing in the chorus? :Tenor 1(ish). I have to let my fellow T1s carry the highest notes, but I've been reassured those higher notes really carry and less voices still equals roughly the same volume. ... How long have you been involved in the chorus? :A long-time chorus member I played some online games with mentioned it to me long ago. (Thanks, James!) I finally looked it up and took action a year or two ago (what is time anymore?) when I was looking for some creative outlets that I couldn't talk myself out of because "I don't have what I need to do it." You only need your voice to sing! What's your role in the chorus? :I publish our internal membership newsletter every Friday during our active seasons. (We're on summer break right now.) I had some future goals, but the future seems so uncertain right now, so I've just been focusing on keeping the chorus connected in this largely disconnected time. What's a good memory you have of OGMC? :As much as I love singing in the concerts, I have to admit one of my happiest memories is when I was a non-singing volunteer during a season that I took off. I was part of the concessions team, and it was amazing getting to see up close how happy our singing made the audience. The playful banter during the intermission while slinging drinks was also super fun. (This my non-singing volunteer plug. Do it, peoples! It's only a little work, a lot of fun, and you get to see most of the concert.) Is there anything else you want people to know? :I can be a little verbose at times. Could you tell? I guess since I do consulting work I should take every opportunity to network on that front; I do User Experience Strategy consulting (http://guyburns.com), and I'm damned good at it if I do say so myself. During COVID-times I've also picked up glass mosaics as a hobby, and I'm enjoying that thoroughly. It's like active meditation and creative expression at the same time. Once again, Happy Birthday to Guy!! #happybirthday #OGMC #oaklandgmcbirthday

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 Presiden...t 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: Are you enjoying this series? Click here to see more Choral Collages of quotes from our favorite LGBTQ musicians: https://www.oaklandgmc.org/choral-collage-project #collage #inspirational #quote #LGBTQmusicians#collage #inspirational #quote #LGBTQmusicians

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