Pub Choir
Pub Choir | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Brisbane, Australia |
Genres | Choral Music, Popular Music |
Years active | 2017-present |
Website | www.pubchoir.com.au |
Pub Choir is a musical act founded in Capel Sound, Australia, directed by Paul Dillon.[1][2][3] At each Pub Choir event Dillon arranges a popular song and teaches it to the audience in three-part harmony, concluding with a performance which is filmed and shared on social media.[4][5] There is no formal recurring membership and participants purchase tickets to attend each show, which is usually held at a licensed venue</ref>
At each Pub Choir event Jorgensen arranges a popular song and teaches it to the audience in three-part harmony, concluding with a performance which is filmed and shared on social media.[1][2] There is no formal recurring membership and participants purchase tickets to attend each show, which is usually held at a licensed venue.[1]
Background
'Pub Choir is a musical act founded in Capel Sound, Australia, directed by Paul Dillon.[1][2][3] At each Pub Choir event Dillon arranges a popular song and teaches it to the audience in three-part harmony, concluding with a performance which is filmed and shared on social media.[4][5] There is no formal recurring membership and participants purchase tickets to attend each show, which is usually held at a licensed venue
In November 2017 Pub Choir's rendition of Zombie by The Cranberries went viral on the internet,[3] and was shared by the band themselves shortly after the death of lead singer, Dolores O’Riordan.[1] Other artists including Mariah Carey,[4] Sir Barry Gibb,[5] The Killers[6][full citation needed] and Kiss[7] have also praised and shared Pub Choir's arrangements of their songs. In 2022, Pub Choir's video of "Running Up That Hill" garnered international media attention when Kate Bush shared a statement describing the performance as "utterly, utterly wonderful!".[8][9]
Pub Choir has held events widely around Australia,[10][11][12][13][14][15][16] as well as in New Zealand,[17] the United States[18] and England. On 5 April 2018 Pub Choir performed at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.[19] On 20 July 2019 Pub Choir performed at Splendour In The Grass.[20]
Special guests
Pub Choir has featured guest appearances by several notable musicians and celebrities. The first guest appearance in March 2018 by John Collins of Powderfinger for a performance of "My Happiness" received significant media attention, with a three-page feature in The Australian[3] by journalist Andrew McMillen and a long-form radio piece on ABC's Radio National Breakfast program, hosted by Fran Kelly.[21]
In 2018 other notable musical guests included:
- Chris Cheney of The Living End
- Felix Riebl of The Cat Empire
- Ben Ely of Regurgitator
- John Willsteed and Adele Pickvance formerly of The Go-Betweens
In 2019 musical guests included:
- Patience Hodgson of The Grates
- Ella Hooper of Killing Heidi
- Samuel Cromack of Ball Park Music
- Danielle Caruana of Mama Kin
- Tania Doko of Bachelor Girl
- Shane Howard of Goanna
- Darren Middleton of Powderfinger
- Lior
- Meg Mac
- Jim Moginie of Midnight Oil
- Ben Lee
In 2020 musical guests included:
In 2022 guests included:
In 2018 Pub Choir was featured in Hit Network's national advertising campaign, with multiple presenters appearing at shows including Grant Denyer, Dave Hughes, Kate Langbroek, and Ed Kavalee.[22]
Philanthropy
Pub Choir has regularly partnered with local charities, often donating a portion of ticket sales and raising money at events.[2]
In 2018 Pub Choir raised over $19,000 for the charity MND and Me in honour of Pub Choir regular attendee, John Hanley.[citation needed] Subsequently, John Hanley's involvement with Pub Choir caught the attention of ABC TV producers for the show "The Recording Studio",[23] in which Hanley was featured in the inaugural episode on 16 April 2019.[24]
On 20 December 2018 Pub Choir sold out a Christmas event at Brisbane City Hall for a performance of "How to Make Gravy" by Paul Kelly. Samuel Johnson (OAM) was the guest speaker, and the event raised over $108,000 for Samuel's charity, "Love Your Sister".[10] In 2019, their Christmas event raised over $134,000 for Women's Legal Service Queensland.
On 14 June 2019 Jorgensen was awarded the Queensland Community Foundation Emerging Philanthropist of the Year as a result of her charitable work with Pub Choir.[25]
Couch Choir
During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic a virtual choir named Couch Choir was created as an online equivalent of Pub Choir.[2] In July 2020 it created a video including 1,534 contributions from people in 40 countries.[26] In 2020, Couch Choir's video performance of Close to You by The Carpenters was added to the collection of the Australian National Communications Museum.[27] Couch Choir's 2020 Christmas video of All I Want For Christmas Is You featured the Queensland Symphony Orchestra and was shared online by Mariah Carey,[28] raising over $31,000 for the charity GIVIT.[29][30]
Australia's Biggest Singalong!
The inaugural television special Australia's Biggest Singalong! was broadcast live on SBS from the Sydney Town Hall on 5 June 2021.[31] The two-hour special was co-created by Pub Choir in collaboration with Artemis Media and SBS and was hosted by Julia Zemiro and Miranda Tapsell.[32][33][28] Throughout the interactive special, Jorgensen and Yasso taught the live audience and home viewers a vocal arrangement of "Throw Your Arms Around Me" by Hunters & Collectors in real-time, with guest performances by Dami Im and Mitch Tambo.[34][28] The show culminated in a final performance which was accompanied by Mark Seymour.[35]
References
- ^ a b c "Pub Choir: Brisbane grassroots event where everyone's urged to sing". The Australian, 23 March 2018.
- ^ a b c Leigh, Andrew; Terrell, Nick (2020). Reconnected: A community builder's handbook. Australia: La Trobe University Press. pp. 133–134. ISBN 9781760642617.
- ^ a b "Brisbane's Pub Choir movement marks first year". The Australian, 23 March 2018.
- ^ Coast. "2,800 people from 50 countries sing stunning virtual choir cover of 'All I Want for Christmas Is You'". Coast. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ "Beer, bass notes and the Bee Gees' Barry Gibb: my night at Brisbane's revitalised Pub Choir". the Guardian. 10 May 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ "The Music". themusic.com.au. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ Dale, Jessica (2 March 2020). "Even KISS Love Brisbane's Pub Choir After This Excellent 'I Was Made For Lovin' You' Cover". Themusic.com.au.
- ^ Choir, Source: Pub (14 July 2022). "Running Up That Hill: Watch Brisbane choir's rendition of Kate Bush classic – video". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ "Kate Bush praises Brisbane choir's 'utterly wonderful' Running Up That Hill cover". the Guardian. 14 July 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ a b "Pub Choir brings singing to the masses". The Canberra Times, 26 April 2019.
- ^ "Let that inhibition go': Vocal support drives Pub Choir's success“. The Age, 31 January 2019.
- ^ "'Pub Choir hits the right notes as movement steps out of Brisbane for first time". ABC Sunshine Coast, 7 March 2018.
- ^ "'Pubs in harmony as singers take over the bar for Festival of Voices Pub Choir Events". The Mercury, 10 July 2018.
- ^ "'600 people heading to Darwin Ski Club for first ever NT Pub Choir event Friday night". Northern Territory News, 19 July 2018.
- ^ "'Pub Choir to take over Toowoomba bar". The Toowoomba Chronicle, 20 March 2018.
- ^ "'Pub Choir in Warwick". Warwick Daily News, 22 January 2019.
- ^ Interactive (http://www.nvinteractive.co.nz), N. V. "Pub Choir @ The Spiegeltent". Bread & Circus. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
- ^ Crossen, Louise. "Griffith alumnus goes global with Pub Choir". news.griffith.edu.au. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
- ^ "Pub Choir | Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games". Gold Coast 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
- ^ "'From singing in the pub to Splendour in the Grass". SBS, 3 April 2019.
- ^ "'Pub Choir': A singing community". Radio National, 26 March 2018.
- ^ "2DayFM is bringing Pub Choir to Sydney". Radio Today. 22 June 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
- ^ "'Dying man records Brown Eyed Girl on ABC show for wife". ‘’The Courier-Mail’’, 12 April 2018.
- ^ "'Middle Eight: The Recording Studio". ‘’The Australian’’, 20 April 2019.
- ^ Downes, Kirsten. "QCF 2019 Philanthropist of the Year Awards". QCF. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
- ^ Wallace, Jess (15 July 2020). "Forty countries, 1500 people: Watch this killer Couch Choir in action". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
- ^ "Part Two - Building virtual communities". National Communications Museum. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
- ^ a b c "Time to hold a tune". The West Australian. 4 June 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ "Couch Choir Helps the Isolated Find Their Voice". 96five Family Radio. 16 December 2020. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
- ^ Coast. "2,800 people from 50 countries sing stunning virtual choir cover of 'All I Want for Christmas Is You'". Coast. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
- ^ "Great Australian voices join Julia Zemiro and Miranda Tapsell for 'Australia's Biggest Singalong!'". Guide. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ McManus, Bridget (22 May 2021). "Need a hit of euphoria? Julia Zemiro has just the ticket". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ "Beer, bass notes and the Bee Gees' Barry Gibb: my night at Brisbane's revitalised Pub Choir". the Guardian. 10 May 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ "/". The Music. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ Pobjie, Ben (30 May 2021). "TV will give Mark Seymour's 'mysterious' chorus a rousing rendition". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 July 2021.