With the move of the Montreal Expos to Washington, DC, a 36 year tradition came
to an end. We sang the National Anthems for two Montreal Expos games in 2003.
We had a 35 year unbeaten string broken at the second game. We had hoped to
start a new one on June 23, 2004. Look
here
for photos.
The amalgamation of suburban Pierrefonds' "West Island" and urban Montreal's
"Mountain City" choruses produced the "Island City" Chorus.
The dedicated, and fine singing men have expectations of
an increase in membership and a continuing improvement in performance quality
during 2006. Multicultural? Multilingual? Multitasking? multitasking? Better believe it!
We meet at 7:30 PM every Monday evening at Église St-Sixte (at the corner of
Marcel-Laurin Blvd and De l'Eglise in St-Laurent.
We were in competition again this year. We went to Colchester, VT and qualified for the
District Contest in Providence, RI in October 2006. In 2006, we are the Mountain Division Small Chorus Champion, placing 2nd overall, and as winners of the Plateau A
Championship of the Northeastern District, the Island City Chorus is the Small
Chorus Champion for 2005, placing 8th overall.
We participate whenever possible in the ARCIM (Alliance régionale des chorales
de l'île de Montréal) Festival. In 2000, 2001 and 2002, we won our
category.
In 2003, we were unable to compete, due to a conflict with our Division
Contest, but we were back in 2004! This time there was no competition as such,
but we received an adjudication from the judging panel. They liked us!
In 2002, we also qualified as semi-finalists in the CBC Choral Concert
Competition (Cultural Traditions Category)for 2002. This prestigious contest was won in 2000 by Toronto
Northern Lights, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Silver Medallists in Nashville, Portland, Montreal, Louisville and Salt Lake City. We tried to enter
the 2004 Competition, but there was no longer a category that we can qualify for. Recently, the CBC informed us that a category will be available in 2007.
We hosted the Barbershop Harmony Society (SPEBSQSA) International
Convention in 2003, in this, the largest French-speaking city outside Paris.
Bienvenue! Welcome! We entertained over 10,200 delegates at a great convention.
The members of the Island City Chorus continue their dedication to
Barbershopping through competitions and shows.
Our 2006 show was held on June 3 also at Salle Pierre Mercure of the Univérsité de Québec à
Montréal. Our Guest Quartet was Vocal Spectrum
the Barbershop Harmony Society 2004 Collegiate Gold Medallists and
Central States District 2004 Champions and
2005 6th place International Finalist Quartet. A month after singing on our show, Vocal Spectrum won Gold at the BHS International Quartet Contest! The show also featured the a cappella group, Ardesco, a McGill based Vocal Ensemble.
Our 2002 Show,
"Just an Old Fashioned Love Song"
, was held on Saturday, May 25, 2002 at Salle Claude Champagne and featured
Metropolis
, SPEBSQSA Bronze Medallist International Quartet.
We welcomed the 1980 International Champion Quartet,
Boston Common
to Montreal for our Show on November 2, 2002. What great Champs they were!
Our 2003 Annual Show, "The Magic of Barbershop Harmony," was on Sunday, March
23, 2003, scheduled to feature the 1993 SPEBSQSA International Quartet
Champions,
The Gas House Gang
! Unfortunately a medical emergency prevented them from making it. [Our
thoughts and prayers are with the family of Rob Henry, who fought a brave, but
losing battle with cancer.] The show went on with South Side, NED 2002 Silver
Medallists filling in.
It is a great location and we were back again in 2005,
when we welcomed:
Gotcha!
, Gold Medallists in 2004 and Silver Medallist quartet here in Montreal in 2003, were the guest quartet on our show, Memories of Screen and Stage,
along with West Island Sweet Adelines and Commonly Unique .
This show was recorded for broadcast on CBC Radio Two 93.5 FM at 12:05 PM, Sunday, October 9, 2005 on "Quebec in Concert" with Kelly Rice.
Due to a lockout at the CBC the broadcast was delayed until October 28, 2005.
On Saturday, June 3, 2006 we returned once more for A Night to Remember, this time with Vocal Spectrum
the Barbershop Harmony Society 2004 Collegiate Gold Medallists and
Central States District 2004 Champions and the
2006 International Champion Quartet on our show, along with Ardesco, A vocal ensemble.
We have our own brand of fun as well, summertime barbecues, and chocolate
and salad afternoons.
On
Saturday, June 3, 2006
, we had
Vocal Spectrum
the Barbershop Harmony Society 2004 Collegiate Gold Medallists and
Central States District 2004 Champions and
2006 International Quartet Champions on our show, along with Ardesco, A vocal ensemble.
