Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus Releases 6th CD: Metamorphosis

Joann Usher, Executive Director
Dr. Stan Hill, Artistic Director
Jon Lewis, Executive Director- 612.339.7664

Minneapolis, MN, June 21, 2004– Minneapolis, MN - Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus will release it's 6 th CD (and it's second under the direction of Artistic Director Dr. Stan Hill) next week. Metamorphosis is a recording of the Chorus' latest commission which premiered this last March at Ted Mann Concert Hall with the James Sewell Ballet.

Recorded with a full orchestra one week after the concert premiere, Metamorphosis was written by Robert Seeley with music by Robert Espindola. Hill hand-picked the creative team behind this project, choosing a composer and lyricist he has worked with before. "When I was Artistic Director of the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus, I collaborated with these two men on a couple of projects, (NakedMan - nominated for a Grammy Award in several categories in 1996 - and Exile) so I knew the talent that would be needed to carry out my vision", Hill said. Metamorphosis, which was the brainchild of Dr. Hill, is an in-depth exposure of the unique lives of the men in the Chorus (most of whom are from Minnesota) and is based on interviews from more than 80 of the men of the Chorus.

After the concert premiere in March and then performing the work with the James Sewell Ballet as part of their spring program at O'Shaughnessy Auditorium, the CD release is the next step in the life of this two-plus year project. Next, Metamorphosis will go on to be performed, in part, at the Chorus' July concert: GALA VII Send-Off Concert, (a concert of several GLBT Choruses en-route to Montreal for the Festival of International GALA Choruses). The culmination of this project will be the Festival in Montreal on July 23 where the Chorus will perform nearly 30 minutes of the 55 minute work for several thousand people with choruses from all over the world. Joining the Chorus in Montreal will be the accompaniment of a full live orchestra and the the James Sewell Ballet.

"Very early on we knew that this project was going to be something very special, and that a recording of this work would be the next opportunity for us to produce a CD, said Joann Usher, Executive Director of the Chorus.

"It is the hope of the men of the Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus, that in these words and in these melodies you find catharsis, healing, release, affirmation and love. That is why we commissioned it, this is why we sing it," added Dr. Hill.

The recording includes all eleven movements of the piece plus the encore (Womb, Lullaby, Dialogue, Picket Fences, In My Dreams, Kicked in the Gut, It May Be, Grace, Tidy Endings, If I Could Choose, I Can Fly, Legacy) and two bonus tracks (To Where You Are and The Prayer, both made popular by Josh Groban). The CD was recorded at Ted Mann Concert Hall by Encore Productions, David Trembley and Mike Wolsted.

Audio clips of each of the tracks for Metamorphosis can be heard online at the Chorus's website where the CD will also be available for sale online: www.tcgmc.org . The CD can also be ordered by calling the Chorus office at 612.339.7664. Other recordings by the Chorus include: Hand in Hand, Sing Out!, Sing We Joyously Noel, The Rainbow Connection (featuring the world premiere recording of Oliver Button is a Sissy), and Angels .

The 140 member Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus is the fourth largest and one of the most highly regarded gay men's choruses in the country. TCGMC served an audience of over 10,000 this past year through concert programs and outreach performances. Its mission is Gay men building community through music.

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Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus Releases 6th CD: Metamorphosis

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