Two community singing groups will join together for a concert celebrating queer spaces and LGBTQ identity.
The Eugene Gay Men’s Chorus and Soromundi Lesbian Chorus perform at the Shedd on Sunday, March 23. KLCC’s Rachael McDonald spoke with Evan Miles, founding Artistic Director of the Eugene Gay Men’s Chorus, about the show, “Everyone is Gay."
Evan Miles: It's going to be really fun. It's the first time since before the pandemic that these two choruses have gotten together to sing together. And actually, the last time we did sing together, it was in late February of 2020, just to give you an idea of what happened exactly after that moment. So, this is a big reunion for us and a celebration of community for us to come together in these times to make music together and celebrate queer spaces and LGBTQ identities.
Rachael McDonald: Well, the title, ‘Everyone is Gay’ says something. Can you talk a little bit about, is it in some sense a reaction to the climate right now where the Trump administration is really trying to roll back the rights of LGBTQ people?
Miles: Yeah, so the name of the concert, ‘Everyone Is Gay’ was in a list of three or four names that the leadership at Soromundi sent over to me, to help them decide on the finalization of that name.
And I said ‘Everyone is Gay’ was a great name choice because of course we know that not everyone is gay. We do know that going into this. But we wanted to take this time to celebrate this diversity, and we wanted to take this time to sort of look inside of ourselves and, and say, well, there are parts of us that are individual. There are parts of us that we don't always embrace or your culture doesn't always embrace, certainly this administration doesn't embrace. And so we're looking at that. No matter if you identify as gay or queer or trans or non-binary. However you self-identify, this is a moment to celebrate the parts of yourself and ourselves that are othered by what we're seeing and experiencing in the larger world.
McDonald: And are there new songs? Is there a theme? What will we hear?
Miles: Yeah, so EGMC, we have our own set and Soromundi has their own set. So the themes are a little bit different, but, for our set, we're focusing a lot on trans rights and we're focusing a lot on community and supporting one another and helping each other through really hard times. One of our songs is called Band Together, and the first line of that song is, “I will fight against a ban on your life.” And the other lyrics go, “we will band together, we'll be banned together.”
So, it's a call to action, but it's also a support network, saying you're not alone, we're here with you. We're experiencing this all together. And that is juxtaposed with campy fun stuff that, of course, gay choruses are known for. Like we have a song called “Pirate Song” that's going to be showcasing some of our gay pirates.
So, you know, we're really gonna run the gamut of themes here from uplifting and fun to empowering, strong, and community-focused music.
McDonald: Well, anything else you think is important to mention?
Miles: I want our audiences to walk away from this concert feeling uplifted and feeling supported, and feeling a little hope because it's so easy to feel hopeless and isolated right now. So, my hope is that people walk away from this concert feeling connected to a broader community and uplifted and more motivated to fight back and to come together.
EGMC and Sorumondi Lesbian Chorus perform the concert “Everyone is Gay” Sunday, March 23 at 2:30 pm at the Shedd in Eugene.
