And So It Begins - Winter 2007

The new season started on Sunday. I hadn't been away to Helsinki, so for me the break from choir really was a break, and I was very keen to get back into the swing of things. Having been in the choir now for a number of years, and having missed just one season in all that time, I can safely say that one of my favourite times of the year is the start of the winter season. It is almost like being back at school again after the long summer holidays - you get to catch up with friends who have been away, see your old (double entendre) "teachers" again, and meet a whole slew of new faces.

In the last few years our little choir really has been growing. When I joined the Pink Singers were probably about 30 members, which would mean between 7 and 8 members per section. This year I think we are aiming for 8 members per voice. With 8 voices, that means a total of 64! Of course, the reality is that when it comes to the concert we will not have all 64 members on stage, but it does give us room to accomodate the inevitable cold or food poisoning on the night. At the same time, it is my strong belief that we should not get any bigger than that. At the moment everyone knows everyone else, and there is a strong sense of community in the Pinkies. The larger you get the more fragmented the choir becomes and we will lose the very element which makes us such fun to sing with.

On Sunday the first group of newbies came along. This is basically a chance for potential new members to get a feel for what the choir is about and whether they feel they would fit in. There was a tenor and several basses - which is a good thing because that section needs a bit of a boost, especially in the bass twos - and there were several women as well, a couple of new sopranos and altos. I hate to be an old fogey, but I remember when I first joined just how downright frightening it was, especially since I didn't know anyone. Things are quite different now, because everyone new joins at the same time, so they at least have each other in common, and the oldies are also much friendlier once they know a member is committed.

At the pub after rehearsal I had a chat with a guy who sang with Gloria in Ireland, and Andrew F found a compatriot in a guy who also hailed from Malta. Who would have thought it? They both professed to loving the Pink Singers, so here's hoping we will see them again.

One thing I was concerned about the last time was how terrifying an initial rehearsal can be. Last season we started off with Big Band Bash which is a complex piece with rather odd rhythms and harmonies. Needless to say, by the end of that first session we still sounded pretty painful. If I had joined for the first time I would have been put off. I am pleased to say that on Sunday, however, we started off with When I Fall In Love, a simple song which we pretty much nailed straight off. Then again, we also tried our hand at Come What May which has potential, but which we still managed to utterly slaughter. Can't let the newbies, or the oldies, get too complacent!

The Power of Pink

It is hard to imagine that in this day and age people still associate the colour pink with gay. Well, I guess kids still do, especially in the provinces. That said, here is a wonderful story from Canada about some salutory behaviour from two kids and how they combatted bullying.

Two Nova Scotia students are being praised across North America for the way they turned the tide against the bullies who picked on a fellow student for wearing pink.

The victim — a Grade 9 boy at Central Kings Rural High School in the small community of Cambridge — wore a pink polo shirt on his first day of school.

Bullies harassed the boy, called him a homosexual for wearing pink and threatened to beat him up, students said.

I won't give away the ending, but it is really quite heart-warming!

From Helsinki With Love

What? No post since Pride - time to rectify that...

We kicked off our winter season in style by performing in Helsinki with Europe's youngest gay choir - Out 'n loud. While most Pinkies flew there directly to take in the best of Helsinki, some of us took the scenic route by flying to Tallinn and catching the ferry to Helsinki. From all accounts, the night before the show was one to remember with Pinkies exercising their vocal cords as only the Pinkies can - by singing all night in a karaoke bar (gay, of course).

The day of our concert (Sat 15 Sept)dawned wet, dull and cold. Our rehearsal reflect the weather with Mladen tearing his hair out as we were all flat. But as the day brightened to reveal a sunny blue sky, so did our voices so by the time of the show we were raring to go.

Our host choir provided the warm up act by performing in the first half. Stepping onto the stage to rapturous applause, we knew we were onto a winner. We kicked off with Fancies, and followed up with the classical section.

After a brief interlude of Nathalina and Carol provided the audience with an amusing take on a Brit learning a foreign language, the rest of the concert flowed effortlessly. "Love Song For A Vampire" hit new peaks and "This Woman's Work" was a treat especially for one of the Helsinki choir members who declared this his favourite song. "Abba Pink" brought the house down and we closed the event singing a joint song in Finnish with Out 'n loud (a song about ducks and being by the water). The audience was hugely appreciative and the reception we received was heart warming.

We trooped off to a bar-come-sauna afterwards for some entertainment. While some Pinkies warmed themselves in the sauna, others were dancing to the perpetual stream of Eurovision songs blasting from the speakers. As Adam said "...all the songs sound the same..."



However, Andrew F seemed to know every word to every song... What more could a Pinkie want except to go clubbing afterwards - so while Hercules was being explored by the men, DTM was being invaded by the women.

The next day found just Ben and Liang accompanying our single Finnish host Jaakko (hope I spelt this correctly) on the proposed city tour. I guess everyone else was just too tired or partied out... Later on, a number of bleary eyed Pinkies were seen at the airport checking in and waiting for their flights home.
We had enjoyed marvellous hospitality, experienced a Finnish sauna and tasted a Finnish sandwich (chemical) cake.

Thank you Nathalina for getting the ball rolling and thank you Tanya for completing the organisation. Roll on Paris...

PS. I mustn't forget to thank Lynne for her endless organisation energy, Mladen for conducting us fabulously, Michael for his tireless nimble fingers and Andy for his wonderful arrangements.