Vancouver Men's Chorus celebrates all things sunny with Sizzlin' Summer concert series
Canada’s first gay choir sings custom-arranged music by artistic director Willi Zwozdesky
Vancouver Men’s Chorus. Photo by Mark Burnham Photography
Vancouver Men’s Chorus presents Sizzlin’ Summer on June 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17 at 8 pm and June 17 at 3 pm at Granville Island Performance Works
THE VANCOUVER MEN’S CHORUS has a lot to celebrate. The country’s first gay choir, it has been performing for more than four decades, focusing on the creation of new repertoire for male and mixed voices. Filmmaker Mark Halliday made a documentary-style release about the group, with We Are The Vancouver Men’s Chorus: The Movie debuting at the 2018 Out on Screen and later screening on OutTV. Most importantly, the VMC has helped establish a long-standing, welcoming family for queer and gay men.
“Looking back over our 42-year history, it’s quite clear that the VMC has built a community through longevity, consistent leadership, concert performances, recordings and broadcasts, and regular outreach in our home and national queer communities,” Willi Zwozdesky, the ensemble’s long-time conductor and artistic director, shares in an interview with Stir. “When the VMC started, the sky was the limit; everything was a first. The first gay men’s chorus, the first concert, the first Pride Parade... The importance of the VMC in the early years was as a gathering place and organized activity for gay men at a time when there were few community spaces other than gay bars.
“Later, during the height of the AIDS epidemic in the ’90s, the VMC was a very visible and affirmative public face of the gay community, a progressive force of gay men who did not shy away from the horrors inflicted on the community by the epidemic,” he says. “Today’s VMC proudly carries the legacy of its past history in its current activities. The VMC is an intergenerational society in which all ages thrive and are welcome. In that specific way, the VMC is a wonderful model with a clear public face—a positive image of the gay community, as our mission statement notes.”
Vancouver Men’s Chorus. Photo by Mark Burnham Photography
The 85-plus voice choir is now getting ready to celebrate the season of the sun, with the return of Sizzlin’ Summer!, its annual summertime concert series. The performance aims to transport people to pool parties and lazy beach days through a selection of pop hits and contemporary anthems that highlight love, pride, nostalgia, and all things sunny. Think everything from classics like Gershwin’s “Summertime” to tunes by Katy Perry and Rina Sawayama to mashups like “Girls Just Want to Have Fun Medley”.
The chorus will perform with a seven-piece orchestra in a cabaret setting, with intimate small tables and a bar, meaning audiences get right up close to the singers, creating “amazing reciprocal energy that sometimes can’t be contained!”, Zwozdesky says. “We dip into glorious sunshine and the beach; we delve into romance and sex; and we keep it all going with dance and movement throughout.”
Part of what makes the VMC distinct is that Zwozdesky arranges much of the music himself. (The group works with other arrangers as well, including Absalon Figueroa, Stephen Smith, Ira Rogers, and Nico Rhodes.) Elsewhere, Zwozdesky’s choral pieces have been featured in concerts and recordings across Canada and abroad and performed by groups such as Vancouver Chamber Choir, Elektra Women’s Choir, the Seattle Men’s Chorus, Turtle Creek Chorale, MUSE – Cincinnati Women’s Choir, Pandora’s Vox, and Chor Leoni Men’s Choir. His most recent commissions include an extended suite of traditional and original Ukrainian New Year carols for the Ukrainian Male Chorus of Edmonton. He’s the founder of Rhythmic Trident Music Publishing, which focuses on his own and new Canadian work, and he has trained in arts management at Simon Fraser University and The Banff Centre School of Management. He has received the BC Choral Federation's Willan Award, GALAs (Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses) Legacy Award; and, just last month, the Unison Choruses Canada: Legacy Award, among other honours.
“The VMC mainstage performances offer choral entertainment that cannot be heard or found in any other venue,” Zwozdesky says. “Our music is custom-arranged for our 85-plus voices, making our ticket unique in the city.”
The lifelong musician, who has also worked as a singer, conductor, producer, publisher, administrator, and educator, says that VMC concerts have had a profound impact on many people’s lives, in unexpected ways.
“I love their sincerity and absolute willingness to go to the edge and try anything, musically speaking,” Zwozdesky says. “They also have a very refined sound, which makes weekly rehearsals very pleasurable.
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