Not a male chorus any more
OrchestrasIn our report on Wednesday’s performance of the Babi Yar Symphony at the Royal Festival Hall, we found cause to praise the ‘impressive performance of the London Philharmonic male chorus’.
This drew a prompt request from the chair of the chorus to remove the noun ‘male’ when describing the LPC.
There are apparently two trans-women in the LPC’s tenor and bass sections.
The original edition of the Shostakovich score was published for ‘bass solo, male choir and orchestra’.
Some editions have now adjusted that to ‘bass solo, bass choir and orchestra’.
“You couldn’t make it up” is the only comment that springs to mind. Sad indeed when one remembers what a great work this symphony is…
Now I am (even more) confused. So the trans-women (originally men, yes?) are now trans-women (part of a campaign that demands access to women’s sports trophies and women’s toilets) but they still want to be in a male choir? Presumably their voices suit the tenor/baritone/bass parts still? And now that the choir mentioned have dropped the “male” part of their name, can all women whose voices match now join freely? Of course any of the afore-mentioned could join a mixed choir with little attention or fuss paid.
Future of classical music is in Asia…
Doesn’t the objection by the chorus chair confuse sex and gender, which, we are sometimes told, are distinct?