The Gay Gotham Chorus Holiday Concert The Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew December 10, 2005 Written and Photographed by Terry Maloney

Although some might consider the Gay Gotham Chorus to be "that other gay singing group," this 35-member chorus boasts a far more eclectic multi-lingual repertoire and a classical sensibility. And there is never a drag queen, a Santa Claus or (heaven forbid) a female in sight.

From the moment the candle-holding chorus proceeded from the rear of the church to the altar, singing the hymn "Intonent Hodie", the sacred space was filled with the music of worship in many tongues - all beautiful and all uplifting the hearts and souls of the audience who filled every pew of this fine old church on the Upper West Side.

GGC's music is less about the glory of being gay and much more about glorious music, which on this special evening ranged from the Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen", to "Betelehumu" (a Nigerian nativity song sung in the Yoruba dialect).

"Exultemus et Letemur", from a 13th-century British source, was performed with great fervor and was a fanfare-like call to attention. It was followed by four texts from the Jewish sabbath: "Yom Zeh M'chubad"; "Yism'chu"; "Yih'yu L'ratson" (solo: Edward Enrique); and "Adon Olam". The chorus then returned to the Latin idiom with "Gaudens in Domino", a song of 13th-century German origin.

Three interpretations of the Roman Catholic prayer "Ave Maria" by de Victoria Bruckner and Bieb were performed with featured soloists Danton Bankay, Anthony Del Tufo, Jeremy Ritz, Keith Slusser and Todd Swavey.

A rousing version of "Welcome! Sing Be Merry!" by the late Dean X. Johnson, opened the second half of the concert. It was followed by two Latvian carols: "Ziemas Svetki Sabraukusi" and "Balts Sniedzins Snieg Uz Skujinam."

The spirit of Chanukah was welcomed to the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew with the singing of three songs: "S'vivon"; "Nerli"; and "Chanukah, oi Chanukah". All three were arranged by Charles Baker.

"Sing We Now of Christmas", arranged by David York and Bryan Johnson, merged carols of different countries and traditions: "The Holly and the Ivy" (of pagan origin); "Rise Up Shepherd and Follow" (an African-American spiritual with a solo by Mr. Ritz); "Bring a Torch"; "Jeanette Isabella"; and "Sing We Now of Christmas." Loren Dempster (cello) and Lars Frandsen (guitar) ably provided the accompaniment.

The wonderful program concluded with four songs from outside the European tradition. Mr. Bankay provided the solo on "De Mornin' Come" (from the Dutch West Indies); "Riu, Riu, Chiu" (with origins in 16th century Spain, featured the solo of Javier Sanchez); "A La Nanita Nana" (a lilting Spanish lullaby). Finally, the aforementioned "Betelhemu" was performed magnificently with solos by Mr. Slusser and James Gedge, accompanied by the multi-talented Mr. Bankay and Bruce Berquist on a variety of African persussion.

Dr. Jonathan Babcock has been the artistic director/conductor of GGC for five seasons. Dr. Babcock is a graduate of the Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam (B.Mus, M.Mus) and the Hartt School at the University of Hartford (D.M.A.). He is in demand as a choral clinician, adjudicator and conductor throughout the United States.

His pride in the performance of his chorus was most evident by the comments he made to them after the concert. "It is a pleasure and an honor to stand in front of you. I wish I had a tape recorder with me so I could share with you all of the incredible compliments I received on your performance. You guys really are the best in town!," he declared.

A member of the chorus, Laurance Splitter, said, "I have performed with many good choirs over the years and GGC is up there with the best of them."

He added, "It is really satisfying to belong to a group of gay men who are cooperating to make great music, rather than competing and 'carrying on' as they do in other social contexts."

Geoffrey Kiorpes serves as principal accompanist for the GGC. Future performances of GCC will take place next year at various venues on February 19 (joint concert); April 2, 22 (joint) and 23; June 3 (pride concert) and July 22 (joint concert with the Melbourne and Sydney LBGT choruses.) For more information on the Gay Gotham Chorus and the dates, times and locations of January auditions please go to www.gaygothamchorus.org.