8 pm, Thurs., June 26 & Fri., June 27       First Unitarian Universalist Church       1187 Franklin St., San Francisco

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Heidi Beeler (415) 828-0167 sfprideconcert@yahoo.com www.sfprideconcert.org

ATTENTION ARTS & FEATURES EDITORS

2008 PRIDE CONCERT CELEBRATES  
30^TH ANNIVERSARY OF SF L/G FREEDOM BAND & LGBTQ MUSIC MOVEMENT

San Francisco, CA. The San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band celebrates its 30^th anniversary with the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco and San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus at the 2008 Pride Concert: Our Message Is Music. Taking its title from a TV interview with Jon Reed Sims (1947-1984), founder of the LGBTQ music movement, the concert kicks off pride weekend with music by the world’s first openly LGBTQ music ensembles in a program showcasing some of the flashiest music written for wind ensemble and for choruses. The celebration features special celebrity guests; former Band conductors; and a historic display, including the baton Jon Sims used to conduct the Band at Davies Hall in 1980. Concert takes place 8 pm, Thursday, June 26 and Friday, June 27, at First Unitarian Universalist Church, 1187 Franklin Street (at Geary), San Francisco. Tickets are $15-$35. Info: www.sfprideconcert.org, (415) 865-ARTS (2787).

“Jon Sims led the Band’s first rehearsal at the Trocadero Transfer,” says Freedom Band Artistic Director and Conductor Dr. Roberto-Juan González. “That means the Gay Music Movement was born on a disco dance floor, so of course, we’re thrilled to celebrate our anniversary in the midst of the fabulousness of Pride weekend! It’s an honor to share the stage with the Lesbian/Gay Chorus and the Gay Men’s Chorus for our birthday.”

Founded in 1978, the year the rainbow flag was created and Harvey Milk rode in the Freedom Day Parade as supervisor, the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Marching Band & Twirling Corps claimed an American symbol for the newly emerging Gay community as it struggled for its civil rights. The Band quickly became a symbol of pride for the Gay community and played music to build understanding between its community and the larger world. At its first “straight” event, the San Francisco St. Patrick’s Day Parade (a parade LGBTQ bands still cannot march in today in many other cities), the Band won “Best Civilian Band” and became an important part of San Francisco’s musical life, performing at Davies Symphony Hall, headlining at Bread & Roses with Robin Williams, opening for Sylvester, and playing for Francis Ford Coppola’s 40^th birthday bash.

Thirty years after its first march up Market Street, the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band (as it is known today) continues to make music as a symbol of LGBTQ pride. Named the official band of the City of San Francisco in 2003, the Band continues to march in city parades and pride festivals, at July 4th celebrations. Its Dance-Along Nutcracker™ has been featured in national media such as the Wall Street Journal, The Ladies’ Home Journal, Good Morning, America, the Today Show and on HG-TV. After three decades, the Band continues to be one of the busiest and most vibrant community bands in the country. (www.sflgfb.org)

The other Pride Concert’s co-producers have equally illustrious histories. Founded by Jon Sims in 1978, San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus first performed on the steps of City Hall the day Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated in November. From its beginnings that day as the world’s first openly gay men’s chorus to its triumphant tour in 2001 to the stages of the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall conducted by Artistic Director and Conductor Dr. Kathleen McGuire, SFGMC has been a source of gay pride and musical accomplishment. SFGMC is currently celebrating its 30^th anniversary season through to the end of this year. (www.sfgmc.org)

The world's first mixed lesbian and gay chorus, the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco (LGCSF) was founded in 1980 by Bay Area musicians and community members under the direction of conductor, singer and pianist Robin Kay. LGCSF was the first gay and lesbian group to win the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce Arts Excellence Award (1994). Directed by Artistic Director and Conductor Stephanie Lynne Smith, LGCSF provides a forum for San Francisco's gay and lesbian music lovers to develop their talents and share their gifts with diverse communities in San Francisco and at events ranging as far abroad as Chicago and Sydney, Australia. (www.lgcsf.org)

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The Annual Pride Concert, first produced in 1979 at Grace Cathedral, is one of the longest-running annual performances in San Francisco and represents one of the first forms of open artistic expression to come from Harvey Milk’s Castro and the LGBTQ community here. For almost 30 years, the Pride Concert provides a showcase for the community music and dance groups that kicked off the gay music movement that was begun in this city and quickly spread to cities across the country and around the globe. These programs have provided a safe space for LGBTQ artists to come together to develop their talents and to demonstrate how the LGBTQ community enriches the society at large despite the discrimination it faces.

Our Message Is Music  is co-produced by the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus and the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band, and is an official 2008 San Francisco Pride Event. For information on this concert, check out the official event website at www.sfprideconcert.org or call 415/865-ARTS (2787).

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