[PHOTO] Five photos from the Choir! Choir! Choir! celebration of Leonard Cohen in Christie Pit

[rfmcdonald]

Last night, I went to the Choir! Choir! Choir! celebration of the life and music of Leonard Cohen, held last night at 9 o'clock in the man-made amphitheatre that is Christie Pit.













The sound on my recording of "Suzanne" is not the best, but I think you might be able to get something of the power of the event, of the hundreds upon hundreds of people gathered together.

""Suzanne" by Leonard Cohen, with Choir!Choir!Choir! at Christie Pit" (Watch on YouTube)

I liked the Toronto Star report of the event by Alicja Siekierska.

The outpouring of love for Leonard Cohen continued in Toronto on Wednesday, as hundreds of mourners gathered in Christie Pitts Park to sing some of the legendary singer-poet’s greatest hits.

Led by Choir Choir Choir, they began with “Bird on a Wire,” belted “Hey That’s No Way to Say Goodby”e and, of course, performed an emotional rendition of Cohen’s best known song “Hallelujah.”

It was an emotional evening for many, but despite the sombre goodbye, it was a joyful event truly celebrating the work and life of Cohen.

“I want everyone in Montreal to hear us from here,” Choir Choir Choir co-founder Daveed Goldman exclaimed to the crowd, just before launching a boisterous version of “So Long Marianne.”

Clad in warm clothing, gatherers young and old began tricking in an hour before the event started. By 9 p.m., the hill in the park was packed, flickering candles lighting up singing faces.