President Biden Passes the Torch

In my mind, I had already written a ’blog post pleading for President Joe Biden to step down and pass the reins to someone younger and more capable of standing up against Donald Trump. But then news broke that he had done just that. Bravo!

This changes everything. President Biden's decision to withdraw from the 2024 Election has brought renewed hope to a growing number of Democrats, including myself, who are concerned about his age and speech impediments hindering his ability to combat Trump's gaslighting and authoritarian ambitions. It's a politically savvy move: by stepping aside, Biden has done what Trump cannot—put party and country before his ego.

Now, Democrats must find a replacement candidate for the top of the ticket. The apparent frontrunner at this early stage is Vice President Kamala Harris, a strong choice given her experience as VP. However, there are some calls for an open convention where another candidate could emerge as the nominee since there were no primaries. I would love to see Pete Buttigieg as either Harris's running mate or at the top of the ticket. His handling of the Key Bridge collapse showed his leadership skills, and he is incredibly talented, speaking seven languages fluently and having the ability to quickly learn new ones on the fly (he even learned Norwegian just to read one book!). I can easily see him picking up Mandarin to communicate with Xi Jinping.

Other formidable Democratic candidates could also potentially take on Trump. California Governor Gavin Newsom has successfully overseen the sixth-largest economy in the world, while Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer could give us an advantage in a crucial battleground state. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has significant resources and connections that could garner support from Democrats quickly. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro could help keep the state in the blue column, while Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear could be better suited for McConnell's Senate seat.

The potential of these candidates is a reason to feel hopeful and optimistic. Any of them would be a strong opponent to confront Donald Trump's nonsensical and incoherent “speeches.” Their strength and capabilities should reassure us and give us confidence in the upcoming election.

I know I feel better already.

GALA Memories

Photo by Lou R. R. Zurn

The GALA Festival 2024 has now become a part of history, and Minneapolis’s performance was commendable. Good job, people of Minneapolis. The weather presented some challenges, notably an afternoon downpour on Wednesday that introduced attendees to our Skyway system and a severe thunderstorm on Saturday night that caused significant damage in Saint Louis Park. However, the weather was mostly sunny and warm, with temperatures even reaching into the 90s on Sunday. Naturally, the festival’s highlights occurred in the performance halls’ refreshingly cool, air-conditioned environment. I attended as many shows as possible and intend to purchase the $35 streaming pass to view the ones I missed.

The festival kicked off on Wednesday with an opening concert by the Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus, OneVoice Mixed Chorus, and Calliope Women's Chorus, collectively the "host choruses." It's important to acknowledge that OVMC's former artistic director, Jane Ramsmeyer-Miller, spearheaded much of the effort. As this is her final GALA Festival before retirement, we extend our heartfelt gratitude and love for her years of dedication and service.

Some of the highlights of the Festival for me were:

Performing with TCGMC in the opening night Welcome Concert, where I sang backup vocals to “Purple Rain,” and in the Thursday morning coffee concert, where we presented the “EveryBODY” commission we premiered in Mahtomedi last month, joined by the Minnesota Valley Women’s Chorale, See Change Treble Choir, and the James Sewell Ballet. Ray, the little boy who plays Young Tom in the “Tom and Dean” movement, got a standing ovation. That kid’s gonna be a star someday.

Once we had sung the coffee concert, I was done singing. I spent the rest of the festival immersed in the music of other choruses, many of whom brought epic new commissions to the Festival, while periodically riding down Interstate 420, as one of my fellow choristers put it. Hey, it’s legal here now.

Modern Men of the Coachella Valley, under the direction of the legendary Dr. Stan Hill, presented “Momentum,” the final opus of “The Roberts.” Robert Seeley wrote the music to lyrics written by his partner Robert Espindola before his death. It was a powerful piece that’s sure to be performed by GALA Choruses in the future. (After all, that’s what Festival is for.) It was great to see Stan again. He was the TCGMC Artistic Director who let me in.

Heartland Men’s Chorus of Kansas City premiered a new song called “Boys in the Street” about the evolution of a father’s relationship with his gay son that had me in tears. This was probably my “GALA moment” this time. We all have one.

It was great to see the New Orleans Gay Men’s Chorus perform, too. I never miss their show because New Orleans is my hometown. At first, I thought they wouldn’t be there, but they showed up on the schedule at the last minute. One was a cute guy named Adam who went to college with my friend Jeff. Sadly, Jeff didn’t make the performance, as he’s one of the homeowners affected by that severe thunderstorm Saturday night.

And, of course, there was the exciting conclusion where it was announced that the next GALA Festival will be held… right here in Minneapolis again! I’m already making plans!

And the one lowlight of the Festival:

I’ve tested positive for COVID. It figures. But to be honest, it was worth it.

Festival! Festival!

The time has come at last! The GALA Choruses Festival is less than a week away, and choruses everywhere are buzzing with excitement. Fortunately, this time, I won’t need to deal with expenses like airfare and a hotel room because GALA is right here in Minneapolis this year! (It was supposed to be here in 2020, but the pandemic.)

As a host chorus, we’re going to be singing in the big opening night concert, where we’ll be reprising Gerald’s hilarious parody of Gilbert and Sullivan, “I Am The Very Model of a Modern Homosexual.” First tenor Andrew Hjermstad really camps it up, and the chorus provides the refrains while doing choralography with hand-held fans.

We have the honor of having a “coffee concert” at GALA this year to present EveryBODY, the commission about body image that we performed at our Pride concert, This is Me. But GALA isn’t just about performing; it’s about watching the other choruses perform, too. I’m especially looking forward to seeing some old friends, like Dr. Stan Hill, who was artistic director when I joined the chorus, and members who may have left us to move to other cities who now sing with their GALA choruses. I’m especially looking forward to seeing the New Orleans Gay Men’s Chorus since it’s my hometown. At first, I thought they weren’t coming, but they snuck in at the last minute.

All Prided Out

Another Pride weekend is on the books, and as usual, I spent too much money, ate too much junk food, and got sunburned. I rode in the parade (which is now being called a “Pride March” for some reason) in my pimped-out wheelchair. I added Progress Flags flying from poles mounted to the handles (this, it turns out, worked better in my head than it did in practice) and signboards with the Chorus logo mounted on either side of my chair.

Since we had a large banner to carry at the front of the Chorus, I rode my chair to bring up the rear. To the crowd’s delight, I had fun swaying with the music and doing twirls during the dance breaks. The battery in my chair performed admirably, making the march’s length and a couple of laps around the park before I headed to the Saloon for the Block Party that really wasn’t worth the forty bucks it cost to get in.

Now that Pride is behind us, it’s time to get back to work on our music because the GALA Festival is next week! I have a rehearsal tonight and then another tomorrow night in St. Paul. From there everything is downtown, so I can make it on the bus. We’ll be performing at Orchestra Hall, a huge venue. I’ve only performed there once before, as a backup singer for a concert called Broadway Rocks.