Brighton Festival
Tina C in the Udderbelly
17/05/08 21:00
Did we have a great time? Hell
Yea!
In a new collaboration
for the Rainbow Chorus we joined country pop icon
Tina C.
on her campaign trail
to the White House on the 15th, 16th and 17th of May! The images
below are from the final Saturday night.
The picture below was actually taken before the Friday night performance when one of our newest members (the bearded Steve, background left) conducted the choir because Matt, our MD was away conducting his Hangleton Band! Well done Steve for stepping up to the podium ...
We opened the show with a cracking new version of the little known Stephen Sondheim song "Someone's Coming" - and yep, Tina was that someone and she arrived to tumultuous applause and the unveiling of huge banners of her wrapped in the stars and stripes on either side of the stage.
It would be impossible to recount all the nuggets of political insight shared with us by Tina, but be assured, they were many.
She next invited us to join her with a rousing rendition of her campaign song, the title track from her new album "Tick My Box" and as you can see below, we certainly did ...
Our next musical collaboration was "I Am America" on which Tina took the lead and we backed her whilst everyone admired "her perfect formation and her damn fine Grand Canyon". After that we gave a rendition of a 'Patriotic American Song' namely the Shaker song, Simple Gifts giving Tina the opportunity to make an emotional speech to her supporters. Next we we enacted a scene between Tina and her campaign advisers as "America" but with a new set of lyrics followed by a gentle exit from the stage to let Tina spread the love on her own.
From the 180News Fringe Review: "ABLY SUPPORTED by the Rainbow Chorus, Tina C ran for president in a spectacular show at The Udderbelly. Looking fabulous in sequinned hotpants, Tina involved the audience at every turn, from inviting them to check out her legs to demanding they storm the stage."
We came back at the end to help out with the final song "Ain't nobody do me like Tina" which involved audience participation on stage, a lot of balloons, clapping, swaying and general exuberance - it was a great one with with to finish the evening and you can get a feel from the picture below.
Angela Goodall, one of our Tenors, said: “I guess all I could say is that I wasn't intending to do any of these nights, and ended up doing all three - I laughed so much, I just had to keep going back! Definitely ticked my box - as in funny bone!”
Secretary of the choir Stephen Watson, also a Tenor, said: “I really enjoyed the opportunity for us to let our hair down and have some good fun, combined with a quality performance - yes, we can do both! I really appreciated Tina's warmth and kindness to the choir both on and off stage - she made us really feel at ease"
It's safe to say that Tina, the audience and the choir enjoyed the 'campaign roadshow'. Let's hope we don't have to wait until the next US Presidential election to work together again. Hell Yeah!
You can see more and larger images in the photo gallery.
The picture below was actually taken before the Friday night performance when one of our newest members (the bearded Steve, background left) conducted the choir because Matt, our MD was away conducting his Hangleton Band! Well done Steve for stepping up to the podium ...
We opened the show with a cracking new version of the little known Stephen Sondheim song "Someone's Coming" - and yep, Tina was that someone and she arrived to tumultuous applause and the unveiling of huge banners of her wrapped in the stars and stripes on either side of the stage.
It would be impossible to recount all the nuggets of political insight shared with us by Tina, but be assured, they were many.
She next invited us to join her with a rousing rendition of her campaign song, the title track from her new album "Tick My Box" and as you can see below, we certainly did ...
Our next musical collaboration was "I Am America" on which Tina took the lead and we backed her whilst everyone admired "her perfect formation and her damn fine Grand Canyon". After that we gave a rendition of a 'Patriotic American Song' namely the Shaker song, Simple Gifts giving Tina the opportunity to make an emotional speech to her supporters. Next we we enacted a scene between Tina and her campaign advisers as "America" but with a new set of lyrics followed by a gentle exit from the stage to let Tina spread the love on her own.
From the 180News Fringe Review: "ABLY SUPPORTED by the Rainbow Chorus, Tina C ran for president in a spectacular show at The Udderbelly. Looking fabulous in sequinned hotpants, Tina involved the audience at every turn, from inviting them to check out her legs to demanding they storm the stage."
We came back at the end to help out with the final song "Ain't nobody do me like Tina" which involved audience participation on stage, a lot of balloons, clapping, swaying and general exuberance - it was a great one with with to finish the evening and you can get a feel from the picture below.
Angela Goodall, one of our Tenors, said: “I guess all I could say is that I wasn't intending to do any of these nights, and ended up doing all three - I laughed so much, I just had to keep going back! Definitely ticked my box - as in funny bone!”
Secretary of the choir Stephen Watson, also a Tenor, said: “I really enjoyed the opportunity for us to let our hair down and have some good fun, combined with a quality performance - yes, we can do both! I really appreciated Tina's warmth and kindness to the choir both on and off stage - she made us really feel at ease"
It's safe to say that Tina, the audience and the choir enjoyed the 'campaign roadshow'. Let's hope we don't have to wait until the next US Presidential election to work together again. Hell Yeah!
You can see more and larger images in the photo gallery.
Our Brighton Festival Fringe concert
03/05/08 19:30
Over the past ten years, we have
performed music encompassing many genres and eras, from popular to
classical and from the 17th century to the present day. Our
identity as a gay and lesbian community choir informs much of our
programming, and in this concert we explored music from a specific
period – the mid-20th century – written by composers who were
gay.
There are interesting parallels to be drawn between the six composers (from three countries) who were represented. Not only were they all gay, they all reacted against the prevailing modernism of the avant-garde that was the dominant musical ideology of the time, and sought to preserve an emotional expressivity in their music. Direct and profound communication of ideas and emotions is found in the socially and politically-aware music of Britten and Tippett, the nostalgic sound world of Barber and Copland, the jazz and Latin influenced works of Bernstein, and the populist approach to religious ritual so brilliantly displayed by Poulenc in his Gloria.
This concert provided us with the opportunity to explore our own gay cultural heritage through the performance of some of the most moving and powerful choral music ever written. To allow the exploration of this theme, all ticket holders were invited to attend a pre-performance discussion with Matthew Pollard, our Musical Director. It was very interesting and although we don't have a transcript of the Q&A session which followed it, we hope soon to post the text of Matthew's talk here.
You can download a PDF of the programme here.
Just before the performance there are those few moments to either squeeze in a little extra rehearsing or just relax. Here's a few of us doing just that.
Here's Liam, Anthony, Darren and Vijay ...
and Caroline, Sharon and Jen ...
... and finally, Anna and Tanya.
Here we were waiting to come on stage
After a beautiful first half and some lovely wine in the interval the highlight of the evening was Poulenc's Gloria which was accompanied by both a guest orchestra and solo soprano Elisabeth Wingfield.
Performing in St George's Church in Kemptown was quite a change from our usual Festival venue of St. Michael's - this building is much smaller and has a wooden roof. The acoustic was warmer and more intimate and people we spoke to afterwards found that the sound very enjoyable. It was a lovely warm evening too so our audience (and a few of the choir too) had time to enjoy some delicious organic wine outside under the trees.
It was also lovely to have Marco Nardi, who provided sign language interpretation for our World AIDS Day concert last year, with us again.
There are interesting parallels to be drawn between the six composers (from three countries) who were represented. Not only were they all gay, they all reacted against the prevailing modernism of the avant-garde that was the dominant musical ideology of the time, and sought to preserve an emotional expressivity in their music. Direct and profound communication of ideas and emotions is found in the socially and politically-aware music of Britten and Tippett, the nostalgic sound world of Barber and Copland, the jazz and Latin influenced works of Bernstein, and the populist approach to religious ritual so brilliantly displayed by Poulenc in his Gloria.
This concert provided us with the opportunity to explore our own gay cultural heritage through the performance of some of the most moving and powerful choral music ever written. To allow the exploration of this theme, all ticket holders were invited to attend a pre-performance discussion with Matthew Pollard, our Musical Director. It was very interesting and although we don't have a transcript of the Q&A session which followed it, we hope soon to post the text of Matthew's talk here.
You can download a PDF of the programme here.
Just before the performance there are those few moments to either squeeze in a little extra rehearsing or just relax. Here's a few of us doing just that.
Here's Liam, Anthony, Darren and Vijay ...
and Caroline, Sharon and Jen ...
... and finally, Anna and Tanya.
Here we were waiting to come on stage
After a beautiful first half and some lovely wine in the interval the highlight of the evening was Poulenc's Gloria which was accompanied by both a guest orchestra and solo soprano Elisabeth Wingfield.
Performing in St George's Church in Kemptown was quite a change from our usual Festival venue of St. Michael's - this building is much smaller and has a wooden roof. The acoustic was warmer and more intimate and people we spoke to afterwards found that the sound very enjoyable. It was a lovely warm evening too so our audience (and a few of the choir too) had time to enjoy some delicious organic wine outside under the trees.
It was also lovely to have Marco Nardi, who provided sign language interpretation for our World AIDS Day concert last year, with us again.
This Way for the Gas, Ladies & Gentleman - Brighton Fringe Festival
22/05/07 19:00
We were invited again to perform
the piece in which we took part for Holocaust Memorial Day earlier
this year - see item in January 2007 on this page. The difference
is that this time we performed in the UdderBELLY tent (I kid you not) and we
performed for 5 nights which was a first for the choir.
There were lots of interesting battles with the sound and lighting. On Friday the video projection was disrupted by a message proclaiming that "Your anti-virus subscription has expired" - still, the show must go on... Then, on the final Sunday performance there was the exciting addition of an evening of torrential rain resulting in water running off one of the main stage lights onto the back of the drummer during the performance!
There were lots of interesting battles with the sound and lighting. On Friday the video projection was disrupted by a message proclaiming that "Your anti-virus subscription has expired" - still, the show must go on... Then, on the final Sunday performance there was the exciting addition of an evening of torrential rain resulting in water running off one of the main stage lights onto the back of the drummer during the performance!
Concert with Hazel O'Connor during the Brighton Festival
26/05/06 19:30
Hazel O'Connor's
first album, Breaking Glass, inspired a movie of the same name
which she co-wrote and in which she played the lead. The soundtrack
with its three hit songs, including Will You?, made her famous in
the 80s; the movie brought her to Cannes and she also won the Best
Film Actress of the Year award from the Variety Club of Great
Britain.
The concert took place at The Old Market in Hove, where we performed a solo spot followed by Hazel and Cormac alone and then an interval. After that we all came on stage and backed her for some of her most well-loved songs.
Hazel was a real treat to work with and we all loved performing with her during the Brighton Fringe Festival at The Old Market in Hove. We had backing from Cormac de Barra on Harp (and vocals), Joss Peach on keyboard, Adam Boshell on percussion and Josie Owens on saxaphone. Her stepdaughter accompanied her on vocals for 'Driftwood'. Hazel had said that she'd always wanted to sing with a choir and we were more than happy to co-operate. So, the women in the choir backed her on Loveable and all of us joined together for another 6 of her songs: Blackman, Eighth Day, D-Days, Driftwood, Strong, and of course, Will You?
The concert was a sell-out - we had two encores, two standing ovations and people dancing in the aisles. Truly an enjoyably memorable evening for everyone involved as you can clearly see here.
Here are some photos from the rehearsal:
The concert took place at The Old Market in Hove, where we performed a solo spot followed by Hazel and Cormac alone and then an interval. After that we all came on stage and backed her for some of her most well-loved songs.
Hazel was a real treat to work with and we all loved performing with her during the Brighton Fringe Festival at The Old Market in Hove. We had backing from Cormac de Barra on Harp (and vocals), Joss Peach on keyboard, Adam Boshell on percussion and Josie Owens on saxaphone. Her stepdaughter accompanied her on vocals for 'Driftwood'. Hazel had said that she'd always wanted to sing with a choir and we were more than happy to co-operate. So, the women in the choir backed her on Loveable and all of us joined together for another 6 of her songs: Blackman, Eighth Day, D-Days, Driftwood, Strong, and of course, Will You?
The concert was a sell-out - we had two encores, two standing ovations and people dancing in the aisles. Truly an enjoyably memorable evening for everyone involved as you can clearly see here.
Here are some photos from the rehearsal:
Hazel O'Connor on BBC Southern Counties Radio
25/05/06 18:51
We performed three songs live in
their studio near Brighton station: Strong, Driftwood and Eighth
Day. The BBC recorded all of them and interviewed Hazel as
well.
You need Real Player to watch & listen - you can get it free from here if you don't already have it:
For Windows then click 'Download Now'
For Mac OS X
N.B. The following assume that the BBC links are still live.
So, you can listen to Eighth Day here and then look under "See also"
To watch us performing Driftwood (sadly the sound is not nearly as good):
Click here.
Click the 'Loud and Live' tab and there we are at the bottom.
Afterwards the show presenter Heather Driscoll said “Well what can I say to that……. I’m sitting here with goosebumps, which I’m sure you are too.”
You need Real Player to watch & listen - you can get it free from here if you don't already have it:
For Windows then click 'Download Now'
For Mac OS X
N.B. The following assume that the BBC links are still live.
So, you can listen to Eighth Day here and then look under "See also"
To watch us performing Driftwood (sadly the sound is not nearly as good):
Click here.
Click the 'Loud and Live' tab and there we are at the bottom.
Afterwards the show presenter Heather Driscoll said “Well what can I say to that……. I’m sitting here with goosebumps, which I’m sure you are too.”
Handel's Coronation Anthems
12/05/05 19:30
A selection of Handel's well loved
Coronation Anthems plus other celebratory tunes were there for the
listening during our Brighton Festival Fringe performance at the
Church of St. Michael and All Angels.
Vivaldi's Gloria for the Brighton Festival
10/05/04 17:46
We had performed two movements a
capella from this piece in 2003 and when Matt (our Musical
Director) said he reckoned that we could perform the entire piece
there were indeed doubts amongst the ranks. However, next May there
were were accompanied by the Brighton String Quartet with Ellie
Blackshaw & Ester Ward-Caddle and performing the whole piece!
This was the first time that Rainbow Chorus had performed with an
orchestra - and it was a new experience for us and one which we
very much enjoyed, setting the pattern for a number of our future
concerts.
Some other pieces we performed were the beautiful Locus Iste by Bruckner, Ave Verum Corpus by Mozart and Ave Maria by Mascagni. You can hear a couple of tracks from this performance here.
Some other pieces we performed were the beautiful Locus Iste by Bruckner, Ave Verum Corpus by Mozart and Ave Maria by Mascagni. You can hear a couple of tracks from this performance here.
Brighton Festival Fringe Concert
12/05/03 19:30
Took place at Church of St.
Michael and All Angels, Victoria Road, Brighton
Choir members performing at this concert were:
Sopranos
Jen Green, Rowena Killick
Counter Tenor
Michael Gough
Altos
Angela Goodall, Hannah Latham, Tanya Izzard
Tenors
Russell Brewerton, Adam Clarke, Iain Fleming, Damian Kirwan, Sé Lynch, Basil Richmond, Dave Pitts, Stephen Watson, Paul Woodland
Baritones
Matthew Cook, Frederick Corneby, David Lilly
Basses
Rick Graebner, John Hood, Liam O'Shea, Craig Thomas
Choir members performing at this concert were:
Sopranos
Jen Green, Rowena Killick
Counter Tenor
Michael Gough
Altos
Angela Goodall, Hannah Latham, Tanya Izzard
Tenors
Russell Brewerton, Adam Clarke, Iain Fleming, Damian Kirwan, Sé Lynch, Basil Richmond, Dave Pitts, Stephen Watson, Paul Woodland
Baritones
Matthew Cook, Frederick Corneby, David Lilly
Basses
Rick Graebner, John Hood, Liam O'Shea, Craig Thomas
Singing in Spring
13/05/02 19:30
Held at St. Michael and All
Angels, Victoria Road, Brighton
Streets of Brighton during the Festival
11/05/02 12:30
The 'Streets of Brighton' takes
place every year as part of the Festival Fringe. Street performers
run riot all over The Lanes and the North Laine. We 'busked' in
both Duke Street (shown below) and at the end of Kensington
Gardens.
We're off on the Chatanooga Choo-Choo!
Relaxing in the pub between performances
We're off on the Chatanooga Choo-Choo!
Relaxing in the pub between performances
An entertaining evening of songs as part of The Brighton Festival
14/05/01 19:30
Our regular performance featured
special guests 'Marimba' - five Brighton women singing lyrical and
political songs a capella; sadly no longer performing as far as we
know.
The programme can be seen here.
The programme can be seen here.
Sea Sound Sing
21/05/00 15:23
As before.
Sea Sound Sing
10/05/99 18:16
This was the first performance of
Brighton's a capella music festival; firstly busking on our own in
the streets, later followed by a performance along with all the
remainder of the day's other participants at a church in
Brighton.