Voices Rising Fall Season '25

** REGISTRATION NOTES **

General Registration is open from Sept 4 to Oct 8. Due to the amazing growth of Voices Rising, registration is capped and will likely fill up before the season starts. To ensure a spot, please register early. Pre-Registration is open Aug 21 to previous choir members only (details sent via email).

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New? Get a taste of Voices Rising at our ONE-DAY CHOIR! on Sept 25.

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A 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 8-weeks.

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

THURSDAY EVENINGS

Oct 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; Nov 6, 13, 20

6:00-8:00 pm

Rosie Bareis @ Deschutes Children's Foundation

1010 NW 14th St

> AND/OR <

Oct 5, 12, 19, 26; Nov 2, 9, 16, 23

2:00-4:00pm

Heritage Hall @ First Presbyterian Church of Bend

230 NE 9th St

> PLUS! <

Saturday, November 29, 3:00-5:00pm

Community Room @ Larkspur Community Center

1600 SE Reed Market Rd

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

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This is community choir redefined - accessible, easy to catch on, group harmony singing for ANYONE to join and experience the magical delight of creating something beautiful together in no time at all. 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 together. 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.

• OVERVIEW: 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.

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

• MEMBERSHIP: When you register for the season, you have access to all 16 sessions (two each week) and can attend as many (on EITHER or BOTH days) as you like - like a gym membership. There is no requirement on how much you attend, but sessions are progressive in the material. The songs we sing will be mostly the same between the two days but may vary a little depending on the energy of the different locations.

• PRACTICE TRACKS: All registered participants will have access to practice tracks, which include audio tracks for each part, lyrics, and song infomation. These will be available after the first week.

• BIG SING: 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 revel in all of our voices combined! This is NOT A PERFORMANCE, but a participatory celebration of singing together and building community! More on that later...

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[General Registration is open from Sept 4 to Oct 8. Due to the amazing growth of Voices Rising, registration is capped and will likely fill up before the season starts. To ensure a spot, please register early. No registration fees will be added to your total on Eventbrite. Pre-Registration is open Aug 21 to previous choir members only (details sent via email)]

$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.

• CANCELLATIONS & REFUNDS: Please note that Eventbrite fees will be deducted from all refunds, if applicable. Cancellations made at least 7 days before the season start date (Sept 25) will receive a full refund. Cancellations made within 6 days or less before the start date will incur a $20 fee. Cancellations made on or within one week after the start date will incur a $35 fee. Refunds will not be available beyond one week (Oct 8) after the start date. Please also note that payments are non-transferable to future seasons.

• Please PAY IN FULL & ASAP to ensure your spot. Once your registration and payment are received (or an alternative agreement made with Kira), your spot is confirmed, and you will receive access to practice tracks and all choir materials.

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• 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 a 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.

• 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.

• 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.

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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 more community singing opportunities.

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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

Host or Publisher Kira Seto