It may be called the Vancouver Welsh Men's Choir but its singers' backgrounds are not limited to the British country.
In fact, the 100-plus vocalists either come directly - or have ancestors - from nations around the world.
"We have quite an international group," said VWMC president Andy Mar, who is of Chinese descent, "so it makes for a wonderful mix."
As well, not all of its singers are Vancouver residents. Mar, who lives in Point Grey, said the choir members hail from around the Lower Mainland (although none are currently from the Tri-Cities) and are eager to be part of Canada's largest men's choir.
On Saturday, they will affirm their Canadian roots when they pay homage at a show at Port Coquitlam's Terry Fox Theatre, titled This is Our Home: Songs of Canada.
And it will be a powerful performance, Mar said, as the award-winning BC Girls Choir under the baton of Fiona Blackburn will join them for a few numbers.
Mar said the two groups recently confirmed their PoCo program.
"We tried to find songs that are about Canada or are composed by Canadians," he said, noting a few Welsh traditionals will be thrown for good measure at the end.
Among the tunes that made the list are: Song for the Mira, Allister MacGillivray's 1973 tribute to the Cape Breton river; We Rise Again, penned by Leon Dubinsky in 1984 for the musical The Rise and Follies of Cape Breton; Red River Valley; Watching the Apples Grow, the first song on the first album by Hamilton, Ont., folk singer Stan Rogers; Maple Leaf Forever, penned by Alexander Muir in the year of Confederation; Canada: This is My Home by Bob Buckley for Expo 86; Ian Tyson's Four Strong Winds; Fogarty's Cove by Rogers; and The Royal Hudson by Dave Baker.
As well, the girls will sing a set of four pieces - I's the B'y & Bonavist' Harbour, Letter from a Girl to the World, Dubula and Ah! Si Mon Moine Voulait Danser - while both choirs take up The Royal Hudson, Watching the Apples Grow and Fogarty's Cove together.
Tickets to see the Vancouver Welsh Men's Choir on April 11 at the Terry Fox Theatre (1260 Riverwood Gate, Port Coquitlam) are $27/$25/$10 by calling 604-878-1190 or visiting vwmc.ca; tickets will also be sold at the door. The show is sponsored by Glacier Media, the parent company of The Tri-City News.
