June 15, 2019
Program Notes
Fifty years later, we remember the Stonewall riots and take inspiration from the advent of LGBTQ+ equality. More than ever, living authentically with love in our hearts remains the lifeblood that binds our community, gives us strength, empowers us, and affirms our bravery. Inspiration is the prism that projects our true colors and captures the excitement and gratitude of our community for how far we’ve come and the unlimited potential of our future. Join the Windy City Treble Quire and Windy City Gay Chorus for our annual pride celebration. We’ll perform an evening of music that will touch your heart and reassure you of your cherished place in our community. As we prepare to celebrate forty years as a transformative organization in the Chicagoland community, we’re excited to offer hope and a message of positivity during Chicago’s world-renowned, month-long celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride.
Welcome – From the Artistic Director
Good evening, and welcome to the Windy City Gay Chorus’ and Windy City Treble Quire’s 2019 Pride Concert, Colors of Us. We’re so delighted you have joined us for an evening of inspirational songs that are sure to make your heart sing. The LGBTQ+ community and our allies face daily challenges. With the rise in hate crimes, trans deaths and discrimination, it’s easy to become dispirited and lose heart. Tonight’s concert is intended to inspire all of us to remain vigilant, hopeful, to take action and live proudly. We hope that you will leave us tonight refreshed and inspired.
Eric Esparza, Artistic Director
• WINDY CITY GAY CHORUS •
Founded in October 1979, Windy City Gay Chorus (WCGC) is the oldest gay chorus in Illinois and the Midwest, and one of the first gay choruses organized in the United States, its first performance dating back to December 1979’s “Don We Now” holiday concert at Stages Music Hall. WCGC is a founding member of the Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses (GALA) and has performed in cities throughout the country. The ensemble has been lauded by the Illinois House of Representatives, the Mayors’ offices of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn., Denver, Colo., Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Calif., Seattle, Wash., and Chicago Mayors Rahm Emanuel, Richard M. Daley and the late Harold Washington. WCGC is committed to performing music that is as challenging as it is entertaining.
• WINDY CITY TREBLE QUIRE •
Windy City Treble Quire (WCTQ) is WCPA’s treble chorus. Taking shape in 1996 as Aria: Windy City Women’s Ensemble, it was originally the women’s ensemble associated with Unison: Windy City Lesbian and Gay Singers. It quickly became an audience favorite at concerts and special appearances, and performed to rave reviews at the GALA Festival 2000 in San Jose, Calif. Under its current name, WCTQ reflects today’s reality for a chorus that comprises singers who self-identify as female, male, straight, gay, trans or bisexual. WCTQ embraces its role as a totally inclusive chorus. ‘Quire’, an old-English spelling of ‘choir,’ also gives voice to chorus members who self-identify as queer. WCTQ performs music that entertains, reminds us of our diversity, and is poised to make a lasting impact on the mainstream, as well as LGBTQ music scene.
• WINDY CITY PERFORMING ARTS •
Windy City Performing Arts (WCPA), incorporated in 1983, is the independent, not-for-profit umbrella organization that comprises WCGC and WCTQ. Each chorus performs a variety of musical styles from classical to pop. As an organization with nearly four decades of history in the Chicago community, we pride ourselves on musical excellence regardless of the style of music we’re performing, including major choral works and specially commissioned pieces. We are particularly proud to have been the first LGBTQ choral organization to sing the U.S. national anthem at a professional Illinois sporting event, opening for the Chicago White Sox back in 2003. The choruses of WCPA have performed on a broad range of regional and local stages, from the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago, Ill., to Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Windy City Performing Arts 