ATTENTION CALENDAR & PSA EDITORS
San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band
The Official Band of the City of San Francisco presents
The Official September Concert
herchurch/Ebenezer Lutheran, 678 Portola Dr, San Francisco
8 pm, Friday, September 25
San Francisco. Celebrate all things September with the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band’s Official September Concert. Conducted by Artistic Director Jadine Louie, this concert pays tribute to National Hispanic Heritage Month, Wonderful Weirdos Day, Clean Hands Week, International Talk Like A Pirate Day and Shostakovich’s Birthday among others. Program includes Rossini’s Overture from the Barber of Seville, Alfred Reed’s El Camino Realand Vaughan Williams’ Sea Songs.
Concert starts 8 pm, Friday, September 25 at Ebenezer/herchurch Lutheran, 678 Portola Drive, San Francisco. Info: 415.255.1355; www.sflgfb.org. Reception and photo exhibit by A Woman’s Eye Gallery follows. Wheelchair accessible. Admission free.
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About the Band
Named the "Official Band of San Francisco" in honor of its 25th anniversary, the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band is the first openly gay musical organization in the world, inspiring the formation of gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender/intersex/ questioning/queer bands, choruses and performing groups around the globe. Founded in 1978 by Jon Sims at the height of Anita Bryant's anti-gay crusade, the Band has made music to build understanding between gay and non-gay communities for more than two decades.
In addition to performing for hundreds of thousands at parades throughout the year, the Band presents its award-winning Community Concert Series, a series of free, pops-style symphonic concerts. The Band performs for community events like the unveiling of the Harvey Milk Statue at City Hall, the San Francisco AIDS Walk in Golden Gate Park and the Seniors Connection New Year's Dinner at the Tenderloin YMCA. In January 2009, members of the Band marched in the Obama Inaugural Parade with the Lesbian & Gay Band Association as the first openly LGBT contingent in a presidential inaugural parade. In 2008, the Band recreated its 1978 debut in the SF Pride Parade for the Oscar-winning film Milk, became the first live band to perform at ARCO Arena at a Sacramento Monarchs game and took first place in the 2008 Corte Madera 4th of July Parade. The Band was named the Absolutely Fabulous Music Contingent in 2009 and the Most Absolutely Fabulous Contingent in 2006 of the San Francisco LGBTQ Pride Parade. The Band’s annual Dance-Along Nutcracker® draws sell-out crowds and has been regularly featured in local and national news media, including the San Francisco Chronicle; National Public Radio; Good Morning, America; the Today Show and The Wall Street Journal.
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The Official September Concert is part of the 2009-2010 Community Concert Series of the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band, named the Official Band of the City of San Francisco. The SFLGFB is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, and is proud to be sponsored in part by Grants for the Arts of the San Francisco Hotel Tax Fund and the Jon Sims Endowment Fund for the Performing Arts (www.jsef.org).
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