ABOUT US
Our story
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Hi!
We are Les Genevoix, the gay men's choir of Geneva and the only one in French-speaking Switzerland.
We are a non-profit organization. Our mission is to sing and build community among gay men, while promoting messages of tolerance and acceptance, in support of the LGBTIQA+ community.
Born in 2020 at the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, our choir started virtually with about ten members, growing over the years to our current size.
Our 40+ members come from all corners of the world: from Geneva to all of Europe, from the USA to Japan, via India and China.
We are all amateur singers of different levels and backgrounds, led by our professional choir director.
We sing a varied pop repertoire, with 4-part arrangements called TTBB - Tenors 1, Tenors 2, Baritones, Basses.
Some of us are also musicians and delight us with our instruments (clarinet, flute, trumpet...)
And we have a great band that accompanies us during our concerts!
We perform during our big annual concert, in addition to other performances throughout the year.
We rehearse once a week and during intensive workshops throughout the school year.
If you would like to join us, you will find more information here .
Our
association
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As an association, we have our own statutes and documentation, accessible to everyone below.
We hold a General Assembly once a year and we elect our operational core, the Board, every 2 years.
Our musical choices are made by our Artistic Committee and our musical director.
Discover all the details about our association by clicking on the documents below, as well as in our charter !
RAPPORT D'ACTIVITE
2022​
RAPPORT D'ACTIVITE
2022​
Our musical director ///
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Katie Johnson joined Les Genevoix at the very beginning of this wonderful project, bringing with her incredible energy to build the community, a deep passion for all kinds of music, and extensive experience as a choir conductor..
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Can you tell us who you are and about your background?
My name is Katie Johnson. I am a choir conductor, private voice teacher, and music teacher. I’m from Texas in the United States, and I’ve been living in Geneva for about five years. I grew up singing in choirs and playing the piano. I’ve worked with school choirs, community choirs, and church choirs, so I’ve conducted singers from ages 3 to 90.
Why a gay men’s choir?
When I was living in Texas, I conducted a men’s choir in a church, and it was a wonderful experience. Not only were the guys great, but men’s voices can be incredibly versatile—you can sing many different styles of music. I love conducting any choir, but when I was approached about possibly conducting a gay men’s choir in Geneva, I immediately jumped at the opportunity. In a city like Geneva, life can be very transient—people come and go all the time. Being able to build something that helps people feel more at home and part of a community is an honor for me.
What are your goals for Les Genevoix?
From the very beginning, my goals have been to have fun and simply sing together. Looking ahead, I want Les Genevoix to be able to sing any type of music at a high level while maintaining a strong sense of community.
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How does it feel to be the only woman surrounded by all these men?
I’m used to working with many different groups of people—whether all women, all men, little girls, little boys, only children, etc. Every group has very different personalities, regardless of gender, so I’m really excited to get to know the personality of our group!
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What are the most-listened-to songs on your playlist?
I like almost everything, and I go through phases where I become obsessed with certain artists or songs. Since I don’t drive in Geneva, I don’t listen to the radio anymore, so I listen more to older tracks—throwbacks from the ’90s, musicals, classic rock, jazz. I also have a three-year-old daughter, so at the moment I don’t really get to choose the playlist much… it’s basically Frozen!
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What is your musical guilty pleasure?
Growing up in Texas, I listened to a lot of country and western music, so those songs will always be close to my heart. But I have to admit that even before having a daughter, I loved almost everything Disney. One of my first dreams was to become a Disney singer. It doesn’t really make me feel guilty, but it’s nice to have a good excuse (a child) to listen to all my favorite songs from my youth.
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