Founder Helen Lauritzen established the Seattle Peace chorus over a three-month period, from January through March of 1983. The 1980's was a time of grave concern about the nuclear arms race. By reaching out through music and making personal connections, we hoped to make a difference. Motley and musically ragged, we were small, tentative. But we grew. We worked hard and we ventured out. Faithful to the simplicity of our message, we discovered and accepted the complexity of our mission.
Forty-nine of us take the goodwill message into the vastness of the Soviet Union - Moscow, Leningrad, Kalinin, Yaroslavl. And in Soviet Asia—Samarkand, Tashkent, Alma Ata. Concerts in seven cities, but singing everywhere; and everywhere a warm reception to the music, to the smiles and the eagerness of our diplomacy of song. Created slide show of trip called Peace Song on our return. This tour would be followed by two others to the former Soviet Union in 1988 and 1992.
Invited to sing with Soviet Choruses and returned to USSR. Made more friends and connections, and we continued to learn about peace. Produced Peace Journey: The Next Step to convey 1988 Soviet experience.
Seattle Peace Chorus organizes U.S. tours for the Vladimir Chamber Choir, from Russia's Golden Ring, including a performance at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Our international involvement is later recognized when we receive a special invitation to present a performance to President Boris Yeltsin during his 1994 Seattle visit.
Our focus moves back to local community issues. We produce a benefit for the Seattle Homelessness Project and Seattle Displacement Coalition. We initiate the creation of a multi-arts concert called "Broken Wheel." This presentation, using music, story, poetry, and dance explores the brokenness and mending among the Native-American, African-American, Asian-American, and Caucasian communities. Collaborators include Choreopoets, Seattle and Kokon Taiko, Sacred Circle Storytellers, and Local Access.
Seattle Songbridge, a 40-voice multi-ethnic choir, was formed. Invited by the Vladimir Chamber Choir to tour the "Golden Ring" with them, a group of small towns and villages in the heart of Russia. Deepening old friendships and expanding new ones, the seed was planted for a later trip to Chile. Performed at the opening of the first US Russian consulate here in Seattle.
Ten years! We celebrate our 10-year anniversary with a gala concert. Consul General Vlaskin spontaneously gets up to speak about the good work we do. Continued local focus with "American Portrait: From Culture Conflict to Common Ground," collaborating with the Evergreen Chorus, a Korean choir; Four Seasons, an Asian choir, African dancers; Seattle Kokon Taiko drummers; and Grey Eagle, a Native-American storyteller.
The seed planted in 1992 starts to sprout with our meeting Waldo Aranguiz, a Chilean choral director. He comes to Seattle to be our guest director for "Espiritu de las Americas," a multi-media concert, featuring music of North and South America. Working with Almandina and Adefua. Invited to sing for Boris Yeltsin on his first visit to Seattle. Moved to tears, President Yeltsin sang "Mnogaya Leta" (Many Years) with us.
The seed has blossomed! International diplomacy leads our group of fifty to Chile, South America to sing in Chile's first International Choral Festival, arranged by Waldo Aranguiz. In addition to choirs from all over South America, the Seattle Peace Chorus comes from the U.S., and the Vladimir Chamber Choir from Russia. Our travels take us from the dry Atacama desert of the North (where we meet members of the Pozo Almonte Choir) to the verdant land of the Lakes District in southern Chile.
Locally we perform the "Misa Criolla"with Almandina, and "Voices United" with the Seattle Lesbian and Gay Chorus.
The Peace Chorus collaborates with Seattle's City Cantabile Choir to perform "Canto General," the epic song of Latin America. Set to the rich poetry of Chile's Nobel prize laureate Pablo Neruda and music by Greece's renowned Mikis Theodorakis. We also celebrate our return from Chile with "Images of Chile," a multi-media performance.
Perform Washington premier of "Mother of Us All," an epic piece about the power of the earth and the feminine principle, by Northwest composer David York and librettist Judith Barrington.
The seed is growing into a spreading tree. We host the Coro Municipal de Pozo Almonte, a women's choir from the desert of northern Chile and Group Dialogo, an energetic folk-music ensemble, enchanting audiences and us in a tour of Washington and Oregon.
We join The Sound of the Northwest, a gospel choir, for their 10th anniversary concert. Leading up to the concert is a very lively gospel music workshop led by the dynamic Dr. Ysaye Barnwell of Sweet Honey in the Rock, who guest-conducts us in performance.
After 14 years of creative work and service, our founding director Helen Lauritzen moves on to India, and other new challenges. Mark Kloepper becomes our new musical director, also dedicated to the power of music.
The bridges we've built lead to an invitation to 2 special events—singing at the presentation of the "Order of Friendship" to Secretary of State Ralph Munro (the highest honor a non-Russian citizen can receive) and also at the farewell dinner for Russia's Consul General Giorgi Vlaskin.
We rededicate ourselves to our musical mission with our new director. We explore the meaning of peace with "Cry of My Heart." This was followed with our spring concert celebrating local peacemakers "I Begin My Singing..." Our 1998-99 season opened with "Winter Weave," focusing on traditional and nontraditional ways of celebrating the season, increasing our understanding of other peoples' cultures and religions.
The 1998-99 season closes with our spring concert "From This House..." celebrating African music and culture, and its legacy and influence on American music. 1999 also marks the year we are invited to an International Choral Festival, again in Santiago, but this time Santiago,Cuba!
In December, we sang in the International Choral Festival in Santiago de Cuba with 20 choirs from all over the world. We traveled around Cuba as "citizen diplomats" to build good will between US and Cuban people. Under the direction of Mark Kloepper and Pam Gerke, the chorus gave 12 wonderful musical performances! We were broadcast live on Cuban radio. We touched the lives of thousands of Cubans. In addition, we brought and donated lots of needed medical supplies
Sadly, this year also marks the end of Mark Kloepper's tenure as musical director, as he has the opportunity for full-time work. Good luck, Mark!
The new millennium brings new opportunities and challenges. Excited to share our experiences from our Cuba tour, we perform concerts in the spring on "Experience Cuba." We also begin a search for a new music director, while Pam Gerke continues on graciously as interim director. In the fall, Fred West is our guest conductor as we continue to celebrate and reflect on our trip to Cuba with "Orin Odara - Songs of Transformation." We continue exploring new ways to reach people globally with music.
This year finds us focusing on local issues of peace, collaborating and performing with other local peace and labor groups. We perform for Earth Day on Peace and the Planet. Fred West graciously remains as our guest conductor, continuing to challenge us as a choir. Folk Life finds us doing more local collaborations. Following the tragic events of September 11, we held a community gathering to express our grief and to help heal. Already planned for our fall concert was an Interfaith Concert, very apropos as it turned out.
Voices of Reason a concert of Islamic, Jewish, Christian and music based on the three religions' common teachings of peace was a very moving collaboration for us. The Peace Chorus was joined by three gospel choirs—Gospel Truth from Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Shades of Praise from St. Therese Catholic Church, and Urban Rhythms. Also on the program were instrumental and vocal music by the Jewish group Shalom Ensemble, and Islamic chants performed and explained by members of the Muslim community. We premiered selections from the gospel mass Mass of the Holy Spirit, by contemporary composer Joseph Zamberlin.
In collaboration with BioDiversity Northwest, we performed Upon This Land, an original work by Fred West, for Earth Day. We focused on how use of the world's natural resources are fundamentally issues of peace and justice. We performed at the Million Mom March in May, along with many other groups, to promote a violence-free society.
As the "war on terrorism" escalates and the country debates going to war with Iraq, we raise our voices once again for peace and human rights. Becoming increasingly concerned about our government's infringement of basic American rights—privacy, free speech, due process, peaceful assembly—along with greater government secrecy and decreased accountability, we "take it to the streets." These street singing performances highlight situations where democratic freedoms are being abused. Our fall concert, "Let Freedom Ring: Reclaiming Our Voices" is to raise awareness that we Americans are losing our freedoms in the name of "freedom."
The chorus continued its mission to combine issues of peace with musical expression, with a global focus. In the spring we went to Whidbey Island to perform our "Let Freedom Ring: Reclaiming Our Voices" concert. Throughout the year we participated in a number of community peace events and demonstrations, focusing on human rights.
In May we celebrated the Seattle Peace Chorus's 20th anniversary with "Revisiting Russia Through Rachmaninoff." Remembering how the chorus started in 1983, using citizen diplomacy and music on a trip to Russia in the hopes of preventing nuclear war, we performed the moving Rachmaninoff Vespers. We also premiered two commissioned works dedicated to Americans and Iraqis killed in the recent war, as well as a variety of multicultural peace songs.
Our ongoing focus on peace and music took us on a humanitarian trip to Cuba again to participate in the VII Festival Internacional de Coros (Seventh International Choral Festival) in Santiago. It was another amazing, challenging, and moving experience, strengthening our belief in the power of music. Before our trip, we held our fall concert, performing the repertoire we would be doing in Cuba.
The Seattle Peace chorus went out to the community in the fall of 2004 to share our We the People program. We performed this concert at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lynnwood; offered it again at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Seattle for the Pablo Neruda Centenary; and journeyed to Ellensburg to perform We the People, sharing the stage of the city's new music hall with the Kittitas Valley Children’s Choir and the Ellensburg Women’s Chorus.
We the People celebrates the extraordinary efforts of individuals in our history who worked to end oppression and create peace. Musical selections were dedicated to Martin Luther King, Harriet Tubman, Nelson Mandela, Gandhi, and the Quaker abolitionist Lucretia Mott. With this music, the chorus recalled the humble roots and the tremendous community support that inspired many of these activists. In the spirit of these activists, now more than ever, each of our actions can contribute to peace and justice in our time.
The Peace Chorus performed Canto General on May 7th, 2005 at Town Hall in Seattle and on May 14th, 2005 at the South Whidbey Island High School on Whidbey Island. The Whidbey Island performance was sponsored by Concerts on the Cove.
In 1971, Mikis Theodorakis, the famed composer of Zorba the Greek, collaborated with the great Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. Together, they selected 12 poems from the vast Canto General, which had earned Neruda the Nobel Prize. Theodorakis set these poems to music, which range from descriptions of the rainforest jungles of South America to celebrations of great historical figures to the anguish over exploitation by La United Fruit Company. This elaborate production, composed for an ensemble of flutes, guitars, percussion, a full chorus, and soloists, was to have premiered in the great stadium in Santiago, Chile, in September of 1973.
As tragic events unfolded, the stadium was full on that day—full of political prisoners. Allende, the elected democratic leader of Chile, had been overthrown by a military coup. Theodarakis fled the country and Neruda, the greatly loved poet of the people, died soon after—some say of a broken heart.
The Seattle Peace Chorus traveled to Chile in
1995 and has an ongoing affinity for the Chilean
people. The Peace Chorus performed the great masterpiece Canto
General as part of the Neruda centenary celebrations,
which are being held worldwide in 2004-2005
The chorus participated in the University of Washington Spanish Department's Neruda Centenary Celebration by performing excerpts from Canto General..
The Peace Chorus Holiday Singers performed carols at the Municipal Tower in downtown Seattle on Tuesday, Dec. 7th and at 10,000 Villages (65th and Roosevelt) on Dec. 10th, 2004.
The Peace Chorus performed at the Town Hall Tsunami Benefit on Jan. 12, 2005 and at the Seattle First United Methodist Church Tsunami Benefit on Feb. 5, 2005.
At the March 19 rally marking the anniversary of the Iraq invasion, the Peace Chorus joined with the Seattle Labor Chorus to sing songs of protest, hope, and peace.
The Peace Chorus engaged in a powerful musical dialogue with special musicians and vocalists from diverse countries of the Middle East. This extraordinary musical dialogue featured cross-cultural music addressing themes of universal reverence for life, human rights, and the quest for peace and nonviolence.
The interwoven music from different traditions told the ongoing story of innocence, struggle, and ultimately hope for cooperation among diverse peoples. Middle Eastern instruments including the quanoun, the oud and the nay were featured, along with singing in Arabic, English, Farsi, Hebrew, and Turkish. Seattle Peace Chorus also featured new works including a composition based on the lullaby All Through the Night written by Orcas Island composer James Hardman, Do You Hear the People Sing, newly arranged by our own Craig Salins, and gospel and spiritual arrangements by Moses Hogan and Kent Stevenson.
The concert was held at First United Methodist Church in Seattle.
The Peace Chorus performed Mozart's Requiem at the Performing Arts Center on the Western Washington State University campus in Bellingham, Washington, and on Saturday, May 6th, 2006, at Town Hall in Seattle. The chorus was accompanied by members of the Western Washington State University orchestra. For the May 6th performance only, in addition to the Requiem, an ensemble of the Northwest Girlchoir, Amore, performed works that express themes of loss and hope
The Peace Chorus performed the Requiem as a memorial and tribute to people of all origins who endured losses in the Iraq war. Today, in which the price of war is absolutely devastating in every regard, the Peace Chorus offers music that has the power to both accentuate the destructiveness in life and to unleash the healing power of grief and remembering.
To the traditional orchestration of the Requiem, this performance added another layer of instruments to create a cross-cultural sound inclusive of Middle Eastern sensibilities. Sounds of the great frame drum, the Def, and the wooden flute, the Nay, played by musicians from Seattle's Kamand, filtered through the bassoons and clarinets, giving voice to nuances of the Middle East.
Members of the Peace Chorus sang at the candlelight vigil in observance of World AIDS Day. The vigil was sponsored by the Lifelong Aids Alliance. Central Lutheran Church Capital Hill, Seattle
The Peace Chorus, together with Les Femmes d'Enfer, The Mount Zion Men's Chorus, the Shades of Praise Gospel Choir, Grand Trevillion and Miss Edna Baptiste, performed in a benefit concert to raise money for New Orleans musicians who were victims of Hurricane Katrina. The New Orleans Musicians Hurricane Relief Fund, started by Preservation Hall musician Benjamin Jaffee, provides New Orleans musicians with financial support, many of whom are without an income as a result of the hurricane. Benaroya Hall (Nordstrom Recital Hall) Seattle
The Seattle Peace Chorus joined with the Children of Peace chorus, the Raging Grannies, the Seattle Labor Chorus, the Intergenerational Peace Choir, and other groups at a benefit to raise money for war-injured Iraqi children. The benefit was sponsored by No More Victims, an organization founded in 2002 to bring war-injured Iraqi children to the United State for treatment. First Baptist Church Harvard Ave., Seattle
The Seattle Peace Chorus joined the vibrant 300-member Gettin' Higher Choir in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, for a benefit concert to raise funds for the Seattle-based Power of Hope organization—a nationally recognized youth empowerment program founded by Charlie Murphy. Alix Goolden Performance Hall Victoria, British Columbia Canada
Event: The Peace Chorus opened for Jim Hightower, who kicked off a series of locally-sponsored forums and discussions on sustainability and development in Washington's less-than-economically vigorous regions. Hightower's appearance was sponsored by the Institute for Washington's Future Back to the Roots program. Location: Town Hall, Seattle
The Peace Chorus traveled to Richland, Washington, to perform a joint concert with the Shalom Choir of the Shalom United Church of Christ Choir. The event was followed by a dialogue on ways to further peace and social justice. See press release.
The Peace Chorus joined other singers and performers at First United Methodist Church in a celebration of the hard fought freedoms and the ongoing struggle to preserve those freedoms in our country. Speakers included the Rev. Samuel B. McKinney, pastor emeritus, Mount Zion Baptist Church, William Garling, Mt. Zion Brotherhood Chorus, and Rep Jim McDermott, who read the Bill of Rights.
Other performers: Children of the Revolution, Shades of Praise Gospel Choir, Jubilation Singers, Mt. Zion Brotherhood Chorus, City Cantabile Choir, Shoreline Unitarian Church Choir, and Solidarity (Andean ensemble). Christian Swenson, improvisational dancer and mime, depicted a history of the long life of Habeas Corpus.
This performance was made possible through the generosity of Kay Bullitt.
Drawing on musical traditions from around the world to declare the desire to live in harmony with all human beings, the Peace Chorus performed "Voices for the Common Good." This concert featured the premier performance of "Mother's Song" by Joseph Zamberlin. The program included pieces by the Seattle-based Andean ensemble Solidarity, the songs "Peace Train" by Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens), "Manjani" by Sam Mangwana, "Louisiana" by Randy Newman, and the Billy Preston arrangement of "My Country 'Tis of Thee." The Nonettes, an 8-voice ensemble of the Peace Chorus, made their first appearance at this concert with a choreographed performance of the Pointer Sisters' "Shaky Flat Blues." Performed at First United Methodist Church, 811 Fifth Ave, Seattle
"Amandla" is a film that documents the role music played in the success of the anti-Apartheid movement in South Africa. When SPC learned that the featured film at the Wallingford Friday Night at the Meaningful Movies would be "Amandla,"we made arrangements with organizers to do a surprise performance after the film. At the close of the movie, about 15 members of the Peace Chorus came out of the audience and took the stage to sing several of the freedom songs from the film, closing with "Nkosi Sikelele," now the South African national anthem. Surprise turned to enthusiasm as the audience gave us a long round of applause at the conclusion of our singing. For some of us, who attended the film together when it was first showing at the Guild 45th, it was deja vu—we had spontaneously stood and sung "Nkosi Sikelele" that night, too, at the close of the film.
In a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Peace Chorus participated in the evening mass at St. Therese Church in the Madrona neighborhood of Seattle. The chorus performed a selection of pieces, including Bono's MLK, and, accompanied by master pianist Kent Stevenson, joined voices with the St. Therese's Jubilation Choir during the mass. Seattle Peace Chorus' Martha Baskin presented a well-received commentary on Dr. Martin Luther King's Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence.
Seattle Peace Chorus SWAT (Singers with Activist Tendencies) provided support and encouragement to Ground Zero on Monday, Jan. 15th, Martin Luther King Day.
Close to ten of us led protesters in song during the morning training period and later during a demonstration at the Bangor gate. Perhaps the most powerful singing was during the actual acts of civil disobedience and subsequent arrests. Those courageous individuals being arrested were most grateful for our support. We even got some of the arresting officers tapping their feet and offering smiles of solidarity in concern for our country. Ground Zero greatly appreciated our participation. SWAT once again held their banner proudly!
On a cold windy day, Seattle Peace Chorus members joined several thousand vocal supporters of Lt. Ehren Watada, the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse deployment to the Iraq war. They stood with the crowds on a breezy overpass near the entrance to Fort Lewis, where they displayed the SPC banner and sang peace songs. Feb. 5 was the opening day of a military trial considering whether Lt. Watada should go to prison for his refusal to deploy to Iraq. After several hours, the crowd gathered at a rally and cheered the messages of ex-military war resisters, parents who have lost sons and daughters in the war, high school students, Hollywood celebrities and others. Afterward, carrying anti-war and Free Watada signs, everyone marched to the Fort Lewis gates. Carrying the SPC banner, chorus members joined in chants and lead the marchers in song.
In concert with world-wide gatherings that marked the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, the chorus sang a memorial concert at the First Congregational Church in Bellingham. A candlelight vigil followed, with the audience joining the chorus in song. The event was sponsored by the Whatcom Peace and Justice Center.
On March 18th, the chorus participated in an Interfaith service at Seattle First Baptist Church.
The concert opened with the Seattle premiere of "Processional Prayer," an exciting work composed by Ysaye Barnwell of Sweet Honey in the Rock and Venezuelan composer Jackeline Rago. The chorus also performed a new composition by Seattle Peace Chorus director Frederick West. Based on the poem "Let America Be America Again" by the great African-American writer Langston Hughes, the work reminds us of the very best American ideals: freedom, equality, common good, and urges us to reclaim our democracy. The renowned baritone Jimi Malary performed the solo in this work.
Guest musicians included Fucho Aparicio, virtuoso maraca and cuatro player from Venezuela, and Correo Aereo, who performed traditional Venezuelan music.
The concert featured works the chorus performed at the 2007 Festival Internacional de Coros in Venezuela, where Peace Choristers, singing ambassadors, fostered good will and emphasized ties with Central and South Americans.
Festival Internacional de Coros in Venezuela
The music for our fall, 2007 concert was selected to express the passionate desire for peace and justice that we share with our South America neighbors. The program opened with a performance by virtuoso maraca player, Fucho Aparicio. Accompanied by the Andean ensemble Sur Llajta playing zamponas (panpipes), charango (lute-like instrument), and quenas (flutes), the chorus presented a re-creation of the drum festival witnessed in the Afro-Venezuelan town of Curiepe as part of our Good Will Tour. With colorful slides in the background, and interspersed with song, SPC members told stories of powerful connections, touching friendships and common hopes and dreams.
The second half of the program featured the U.S. premiere of "Misa por la Paz y la Justicia" (Mass of Peace and Justice) by Argentinian composer Ariel Rameríz. A folk mass composed in 1980, the Misa incorporates the rhythms and forms of traditional Argentinian music. Sur Llajta appeared to accompany the chorus, and Sid Law performed as soloist.
Fri. Nov. 30 and Sat. Dec. 1, 7:30 p.m.
Seattle First Baptist Church
1111 Harvard Ave. at Seneca (First Hill)
The Seattle Peace Chorus premiered a major
work by local African-American composer Kent Stevenson,
written to commemorate the 40th anniversary of
the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
A stirring composition, Stevenson's work incorporates
the traditions of gospel, spirituals, jazz, Indian
raga, and European choral music.
To emphasize Dr. King's
message of inclusiveness and unity, the Peace Chorus
was joined by members of several Seattle gospel
and community choirs
Special guests:
Josephine Howell , actor, dancer, and singer, whose performances encompass venues in both Chicago and Seattle, and include the Experience Music Project, Jazz in the Valley, and the New Museum of Contemporary Art. She also performs in the Total Experience Gospel Choir's annual production of Black Nativity.
Debbie Cavitt, featured artist at the 2006 Anacortes Jazz Festival, 2007 KIRO Seattle Stars Winner, and soloist at Seattle First African Methodist Episcopal Church
Jason Turner: Tenor soloist
Vania Bynum: Dance
Anjali Joshi: Indian Santoor
Also on the program—back by popular demand—was the composition "Let America Be America Again," performed by the Seattle Peace Chorus. Composed by director Frederick West, the piece is based on a poem by the great African-American writer Langston Hughes, which reminds us of the very best American ideals: freedom, equality, and the common good.
Featured soloists: Don Dudley and Sid Law
*This concert, sponsored in part by the Neighborhood Matching Fund of the City of Seattle's Department of Neighborhoods, The Seattle Foundation, and Seattle Peace Chorus was free and open to the public. It was not a religious event or service
**This concert was sponsored in part by The Seattle Foundation and Seattle Peace Chorus.
Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma A dozen or so choristers led by director Fred West sang songs of freedom and heart to support visitors coming to see their loved ones incarcerated at the Detention Center. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 15, 2008, reports: "...the Center houses illegal immigrants in the process of deportation. It is characterized by "... excessive strip searches and overcrowding to a lack of due process...". Poor nutrition, lack of medical care, and lack of access to legal counsel are also said to characterize life at the Detention Center. Seattle PI Article: http://www.seattlepi.com/local/370806_detention15.html
Benefit Concert for Haiti Along with the Phinney Neighborhood Chorus, City Cantabile Choir, Giddon School Children's Choir, Shades of Praise Choir, Jubilation Choir, and other performers, the Peace Chorus sang to raise money for Doctors without Borders, the National Organization of Minority Architects' (NOMA) program to supply tents to the people of Haiti through CHF International, and to Haitian microcredit lender, Fonkonze, to aid in the recovery efforts. An estimated $5,000 was raised through ticket sales and the raffle of a Haitian painting.