Community choirs showcased during the Olympic Torch Relay
Since the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay began its 106-day journey a month ago, more than 1,800 torchbearers have carried the flame over 19,000 kilometres, while many community choirs have performed There’s a light/Cette flamme — an original musical piece composed by Canadian choir master Gregory Charles — during daily community celebrations.
Performances, which include community choirs, during the 189 community celebrations on the Olympic Torch Relay route showcase Canada’s diverse culture, accomplishments, beautiful landscapes and its proud history.
Community choirs bring together people of all ages, races and religions, and the relay is a tremendous and unique opportunity to give them a voice. “When I think that hundreds of thousands of choir members across the country can unite their voices to celebrate the union of peoples, it’s just beautiful,” said Gregory Charles when asked what he loves the most about this project.
Charles and the Choeurs du Nouveau Monde, with the support of the Government of Canada, worked with local choral groups from each celebration community to prepare their performance. “All choirs learned the song based on the composition of their members: children, women, men or mixed,” explained Charles. There’s a light/Cette flamme is performed just after the arrival of the final torchbearer who lights the cauldron in each community.
The meaning of the song
Charles wrote and composed There’s a light/Cette flamme in French, English
and some parts in Huron. The theme of light mainly inspired Charles: “Light is a recurring theme in art history. It represents the will to know, to understand the world and others. The flame, like a lighthouse, becomes the catalyst, the world’s vector for change. This is what the world’s athletes inspire. It is also the promise that the world will be a better place if all men stand by each other. Light also implies that good triumphs over evil.” said Charles.
The introduction of There’s a light/Cette flamme is a call from the north to participate in a modernized choral arrangement inspired from the introduction to Greek plays in ancient times. The second part of the song is simply pure energy — a simulation of the act of running and the hope to harness the power and wisdom of fire to bring humanity closer to perfection and freedom.
“Choral music is a citizen art; it’s representative of our country and civilization and fraternity in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. There are more choir members than athletes in our country, ” said Charles.
