Building Bridges through Harmony

Gordon Johnston, the founding conductor of Chœur gai d’Ottawa Gay Men’s Chorus, remembers that the first all-Canadian gathering of gay choirs took place in Ottawa. The gathering included "Ottawa Men’s Chorus, In Harmony, the guys from Calgary, and Vancouver Men’s Chorus,” with Willi Zwozdesky at the helm of Vancouver Men’s Chorus. It would be another seven years before the clan would gather again.

The Unison Festival began in Edmonton in 1998. David Garber, then artistic director of Edmonton Vocal Minority, suggested a weekend choral festival to bring together Canadian LGBTQ2 choruses, who were not all able to attend the week-long GALA Choruses festivals that take place in the United States. The inaugural Canadian GALA Choruses Festival proved to be a resounding success, bringing together 15 choruses from across Canada, all eager to return for another festival.

As with the Olympics and GALA Choruses festivals, the decision was made to hold the Unison Festival every four years and Toronto was chosen for the 2002 festival. The four-day festival was hosted by four local choruses: Forte The Toronto Men’s Chorus, IRIS The Toronto Women’s Chorus, Rainbow Voices of Toronto, and Singing Out! Lesbian and Gay Chorus of Toronto. With 18 choruses attending, the 2002 Toronto festival helped to establish Unison as a new tradition for Canadian LGBTQ2 choruses.

In 2006, Vancouver was home to the Unison Festival, with artistic direction provided by local composer Willi Zwozdesky. Vancouver introduced the name “Unison Festival” for the 2006 festival. With the slogan ‘One Sound’, the 2006 festival saw the largest number of hosting choirs to date, welcoming over 500 delegates from over 15 choirs to the Chan Centre.

Unison found its next home in Winnipeg for 2010. Hosted by Winnipeg’s Rainbow Harmony Project, all performances were held at the acoustically wonderful Knox United Church. Over 500 delegates from 15 choirs enjoyed the hospitality of Winnipeg’s LGBTQ2 community over four days full of beautiful song, engaging workshops, and memorable social events. During the 2010 festival, the decision was made to create a formal national Unison organization.

Unison Ottawa 2014 had big shoes to fill, after the resounding success of Winnipeg 2010. The three host choirs, Tone Cluster—quite a queer choir, Chœur gai d'Ottawa Gay Men's Chorus and In Harmony – A Women’s Chorus, created the organization and delivered a very successful festival under the artistic direction of Kurt Ala-Kantti and the expert coordination of Gayle McLelland. Over 600 delegates shared music, friendship, and joy over a 4 day festival that included Rob Bowman's creation "Show Tune Showdown", a banquet with inspiring keynote speaker Ivan Coyote, and great social events, including a karaoke party. At the closing ceremonies, Ottawa was very excited to pass the torch to Calgary for the 2018 Festival.

Unison Festival Calgary 2018 celebrated UNISON Festival's 20th anniversary with an opening concert featuring Calgary Men’s Chorus, One Voice Chorus, and the BarberEllas, joined by a 150-voice massed youth choir. Highlights included the 200-voice SATB Festival Chorus with orchestra, dynamic workshops led by Scott Leithead, inspiring concert blocks showcasing choirs and ensembles, and the lively Saturday night Musi-Circus. The weekend concluded with a spectacular closing concert featuring Calgary’s Spiritus Chamber Choir and the announcement of the next host city.

For the first time in its history, Unison Festival headed to the east coast of Canada. Originally planned as Unison Festival Halifax 2022, to be held on the long weekend in July, the global pandemic caused a delay and the much anticipated and eagerly awaited Festival finally took place in May of 2023. Over 600 eager delegates invaded Halifax for the May long weekend at the brand new Halifax Convention Center, hosted by the Halifax Gay Men's Chorus and The Women Next Door Ensemble. Highlights of the weekend include, the opening Concert, the Workshop and Concert by the Queer Songbook Orchestra and the LGBTQ Purge Fund commissions performed by the 3 Festival Choruses in a magnificent closing Concert. Welcome back choral singing!

Twenty years after Vancouver last hosted the Unison Festival, we’re heading back to this vibrant West Coast city in May 2026. Over four days, 27 choirs and up to 1,000 singers from across the country will gather for Canada’s largest 2SLGBTQIA+ choral festival, celebrating music, community, and connection. Concerts at the landmark Queen Elizabeth Theatre will showcase the diversity and artistry of our choral movement, from small ensembles to massed Festival Choruses. The 2026 theme, Music Healing Spirit, highlights the power of singing to restore, uplift, and inspire. Vancouver’s natural beauty and welcoming spirit will provide a perfect backdrop for this unforgettable celebration.