Juneau Pride Chorus’s strong women

The Juneau Pride Chorus will perform its 17th annual concert at Northern Light United church Saturday.

The idea for the chorus originated at a meeting for PFLAG, which stands for Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. Marsha Buck is known as the “Founding Mother.”

Leslie Wood has been the Juneau Pride Chorus's conductor since 2000. Photo by Scott Burton/KTOO
Leslie Wood has been the Juneau Pride Chorus’s conductor since 2000. (Photo by Scott Burton/KTOO)

“Somebody said we should start a pride chorus! And then they looked at me because I’m the one with a degree in music,” she says.

Seventeen years later the chorus, which is now the public face of PFLAG, is 32 members strong. Fellow founding member Leslie Wood became the conductor in 2000.

“It’s my passion, it’s what I love to do,” says Wood. “My actions in my body try to portray what sound I want to hear.”

Christine Wallace is another founding member. She says, “If you’ve had a crappy day at work, it’s gone by the time practice is over.”

Wallace also likes the activity’s accessibility.

“Singing is one of those basic human things like walking, running; it’s free, you carry it with you all the time. If you’re berry picking it works, if you’re hiking it works, if you’re out on a boat it works. If you know a lot of songs you have this internal iPod that you can access for whatever emotion or situation you’re in,” says Wallace.

Despite its accessibility, it’s not without challenges.

“We’re vulnerable,” says Buck. “We’re opening our mouths and it isn’t always lovely. We all make mistakes. One time I made a rhythm mistake tonight, the woman behind me said, ‘That’s fine Marsha, that’s what rehearsals are for.’ That vulnerability makes us more open to each other and open to support and friendships.”

And that’s integral to many of the women.

“Some of us aren’t whole people if we’re not part of a music group,” continues Buck.

Members practice at home by singing along with recordings, and they practice weekly as a group. When everything comes together, Wallace says it’s “kind of a mind meld. If you got the timing right, and the pitches right, and you’re listening to each other, it’s a thing that isn’t any one of you.”

This year’s theme is “strong women” and includes an eclectic selection of songs.

“It’s our talent show. We’ve been working since August. We want our friends to come and listen to us and eat cookies,” says Wallace.

The concert begins at 7 p.m. Saturday at Northern Light United Church.

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