Voices Rising Winter Season '25

** REGISTRATION NOTES **

Due to the amazing growth of Voices Rising, this is the first time registration will be capped. There is a chance that it will fill up before the season starts. If you want to ensure a spot, please register early. General Registration is open from December 15 to January 26.

.....

An 8-week season of connecting with voice and community through joyful and wholehearted singing in the oral tradition, culminating with a Big Sing!

This is an invitation for you. Yes, YOU! Do you sing in the shower? Driving around town? Taking a walk? Doing the dishes? This is a choir for you.

This is a non-audition, experiential singing group, created by and for community. Try it out and be delighted by the beautiful sound we can make together - all voices welcome! No experience needed. We are a non-performing group; we are more oriented around experience, fun, depth, and connection. This committed series will give you the opportunity to expand and open into your natural voice, and sing uplifting, inspiring, and healing songs while connecting with community over the course of eight weeks.

.....

Two sessions to choose from each week. Come to EITHER or BOTH, as you're able. This is a super deal!

Jan 19, 26; Feb 2, 9, 16, 23; Mar 9, 16 (no session Mar 2)

3:00-5:00 pm

Barrel Room @ Immersion Brewing

550 SW Industrial Way #185

> AND/OR <

Jan 23, 30; Feb 6, 13, 20; Mar 6, 13, 20 (no session Feb 27)

6:00-8:00 pm

Rosie Bareis Meeting Room @ Deschutes Children's Foundation

1010 NW 14th Street

> PLUS! <

Saturday, March 22, 3-5pm

Larkspur Community Center Event Room

A participatory community celebration of singing together! More details to come.

.....

This is community choir redefined - accessible, easy to catch on, group harmony singing for ANYONE to join and experience the magical satifaction of creating something beautiful together in no time at all. Singing is our birthright and all levels of experience are welcome. Led by Kira Seto, discover an experiential, inclusive, and supportive space for connecting with community and voice, through joyful and wholehearted singing. We're singing for the simple pleasure of singing as a group, NO PERFORMING, nor standing in formation. We gather in a circle and move organically. Timid and new singers are held by the collective as they find their voices and belonging in the group tapestry of sound. Like a yoga class, you will leave feeling a mixture of upliftment, learning, and connection.

• Over the course of 8 weeks, participants will learn a repertoire of easy-to-learn, short-form, engaging, and uplifting songs that are mostly sourced from the modern community singing movement, including possible originals from Kira. This includes rounds, layered parts, and harmonies. There is NO SHEET MUSIC, all songs are taught by ear, through call and repeat.

• Sessions vary from week to week but generally include vocal warm-ups; learning and savoring songs, connective prompts, a social break midway, and a winding-down intentional moment.

• When you register for the season, you are invited to attend EITHER, or BOTH sessions each week, as you're able. There is no expectation on how much you attend, but sessions are progressive in the material. The songs we sing will be mostly the same but may vary a little depending on the energy of the different locations.

• All registered participants will have access to practice tracks to support learning the songs. These will be available after the first week.

Our season will culminate in a BIG SING, where all of the singers get to dress up festively, come together with family and friends, and hear and feel all of our voices combined! This is NOT A PERFORMANCE, but a participatory celebration of singing together and building community! More on that later...

.....

[General Registration is open from December 15 to January 26. Due to the growth of the group, this is the first time registration will be capped. There is a chance that it will fill up before the season starts. If you want to ensure a spot, please register early. No registration fees will be added to your total on Eventbrite.]

$150-300 sliding scale*

• *SLIDING SCALE: is meant to welcome people of diverse backgrounds and economic access. Please consider your positionality and choose the sweet spot that is both generous and affordable for you.

• ATTENDANCE: Your payment covers your access to the entire season and all provided materials, regardless of your attendance. If you make it to four or five sessions, it's still a great deal. If you make it to all sixteen 2-hour sessions (both every week) and the Big Sing, it's a crazy deal!

• KIDDOS: Youths under 18 years old may attend for FREE with an accompanying adult. Please read more below on bringing kiddos and be sure to fill in any relevant info in the registration questions.

• ALT. REGISTRATION & PAYMENT PLANS: If you prefer to not use Eventbrite to register or need to work out a payment plan, please contact Kira directly ASAP at [email protected]. Accepted payment methods are cash, check, Venmo, or PayPal.

• WORKTRADE & FINANCIAL SUPPORT: If money is a limiting factor, please reach out and let's see what we can work out. If you're able to offer trade in lieu of financial contribution, reciprocity is greatly appreciated. Please contact Kira ASAP at [email protected]. It's important that this offering is accessible to all who want to join, as well as valued and supported through some energetic exchange.

• REFUNDS: Available up to one week after the season starts, minus Eventbrite fees. Your payment is not transferable to future seasons.

• Please PAY IN FULL before the season starts (Jan 26 the absolute latest). Once your registration and payment are received (or an alternative agreement arranged with Kira), you will have access to practice tracks and all choir materials.

.....

• ACCESSIBILITY: Sessions are mainly standing events, AND if anyone needs to be seated to support their physical health, chairs are available. Take care of your body. Feel free to move your chair about the room to support your participation. Please share in your registration if you will need a chair or if you have any other accessibility needs that we can try to meet.

• ATTIRE: Wear comfortable clothing and shoes that you can move around in.

• BRING: A leak-proof water bottle - keep yourself hydrated!

• ARRIVAL: Arrive 10-15min early. We begin at the posted start time, and being present for the beginning is important.

• FOOD: Eat lightly before we meet. Singing requires space in your diaphragm and outward-facing expressive energy; digestion doesn't help with either. Small snacks to get you through are fine.

• SUBSTANCE-FREE: This is a sober event. Sunday sessions take place at Immersion Brewery and you are invited to partake of their brews AFTER sessions conclude.

• SCENTS: Be fragrance/perfume-free.

• CLOSED CONTAINER: This is a closed container, not a drop-in group. Any exceptions will need to be approved by Kira.

• KIDDOS: This is primarily an adult group. Children who are quiet and non-disruptive are welcome to be present and participate. I ask for parents' support in meeting their children's needs. They are welcome to be part of the circle if they feel comfortable, or self-entertain nearby. You are welcome to bring your family to try it out and have a dialogue with Kira. Youth under 18 are included for FREE.

• PHONES/RECORDING: Please make sure to silence and put away your phone before our sessions start. I ask you to refrain from any recording (audio/video) during sessions. This is to allow us to be fully present.

• TRY ON PARTS: You are encouraged to try on different song parts and see how they feel in your body (sing them an octave up or down if that helps). You are welcome to switch parts and move to another section as you feel inspired.

• CONNECTION OVER PERFECTION: The goal is rich and meaningful experience as a group, not musical perfection. If someone sings a wrong note or is off, be kind, this is a "call-out free space". We're going to sing loud and oftentimes "badly", remember, you are always allowed to move. No shaming self or others for how we sound.

• HEALTH: This is an in-person, indoor, mask-optional event. Consider it to be full exposure. We will be close to one another, and breathing together deeply. Do not come if you are sick with anything, or might be.

.....

>> SUNDAYS <<

Barrel Room @ Immersion Brewing

550 SW Industrial Way #185 (map)

Parking: The Box Factory complex has a small parking lot. There is a large additional parking lot off of SW Industrial Way going towards Crux Fermentation (pin drop).

Entrance: Enter through the Immersion Brewing's main door, walk past the register towards the bathrooms, and the Barrel Room will be on the right just before them.

>> THURSDAYS <<

Rosie Bareis Meeting Room @ Deschutes Children's Foundation

1010 NW 14th Street (map)

Parking: The parking lot entrance is off 14th St between Kingston Ave and Jacksonville Ave. There are a fair amount of spaces there and also in the alleyway between 14th and 13th. Ample street parking is also available, please do not block any driveways or mailboxes.

Entrance: Enter the building from the parking lot (the Jacksonville side will be locked), walk down the hall and the meeting room will be on the left across from the kitchen.

.....

Kira Seto (she/her) is a multiracial (white and Japanese) song catcher, songleader, artist, community leader, and ever-evolving human residing in the original homelands of the Paiute, Wasco, and Warm Springs people, also known as Bend, Oregon. Enlivened by the magic of many voices weaving together in sonorous alchemy, Kira blends heart and harmony, sharing potent, soulful, and enchanting songs, from simple pocket ones to layered polyphonic pieces. She believes in the transformative power of community singing - that it is an invaluable tool for empowerment, connection, and healing, both individually and collectively.

Kira has been leading a capella group singing since 2017, ever since she experienced deep liberation with her own voice. In 2020 she joined as a co-songleader and organizer for Open Hub Singing, a drop-in community singing group in Bend. In 2023 she started Voices Rising, an all-voices community choir. She is a student of Lisa Littlebird’s Songleader Flight School (2020) and a graduate of the Community Choir Leadership Training (2023). She has been a featured songleader at various festivals around the country, including Oregon Country Fair.

Learn more about Kira’s music and offerings:

Instagram: @kira.is.singing

Linktree site: https://linktr.ee/kira.seto.

Join Kira's MAILING LIST to receive updates on singing opportunities.

.....

INCLUSION & SOLIDARITY STATEMENT

As a cis-gendered, white-passing, multi-racial (white and Japanese), hetero, able-bodied woman, I am committed to undoing systems of societal oppression and supporting liberation from the inside out, personally and collectively. I welcome folks of all identities and backgrounds to join my offerings and will do my best to cultivate an inclusive and supportive community space, particularly for those demographics that have been historically marginalized and oppressed. I also acknowledge the limitations of my perspective and capacity due to the conditioned lens through which I see the world. I am committed to listening, learning, and unlearning. May our collective learning serve towards the liberation of all beings. <3

{ Barrel Room @ Immersion Brewing }

{ Rosie Bareis Meeting Room @ Deschutes Children's Foundation }

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Location details below, Multiple locations, Bend, United States