Queer Choir is a radical, intergenerational and re-humanizing community, singing into the growing and necessary movement for collective liberation. We welcome queers of all a/genders, cultural backgrounds, and voice types. There is no audition for Queer Choir, and we do not use SATB voicing. At this time, Queer Choir is open to 2SLGBTQIA+ -identified folks only.

CACTI COHORT SPRING INFO

REHEARSALS: Tuesdays from 7-9pm at The Lavender Network, 440 Maxwell Drive in Eugene

PERFORMANCES: Saturday, June 14th at The Wildish Theater (part of 1st Annual Sing The Body Festival) and June 28th at Eugene Pride

OUR WORK: Each 11-week QC cohort becomes its own organism, well-held by facilitator elias wolf, and always taking on unexpected and expansive shapes. Inspired by the principles and elements of Emergent Strategy (with immense gratitude to Black queer feminist author adrienne maree brown, as well as indigenous peoples and practices all over the globe) elias leads by leaning into possibility, play, curiosity, humor, non-linearity, transformation and authentic connection.

WHAT WE ARE PRACTICING:

harmony-singing as interdependence
queer joy as an act of resistance to tyranny
intergenerational relationality as a pathway for change
vocal improvisation as trust-building, in ourselves and in the collective
weekly side-by-side singing as a commitment to rigor in times of uncertainty, chaos and destruction
learning music by ear, with sheet music and as spontaneous co-creation as an exercise in cultivating resilience and holding multiple possibilities
attunement to voice and body as an orientation away from separation and disconnection (what all systems of oppression require of us) and toward justice and love (what collective liberation requires of us)

OUR GUIDING THEME FOR SPRING: intentional adaptation ("change is constant. (be like water).)

“I choose what to embody, what to long for, even as the horizon shifts before me.” - adrienne maree brown

WHAT DOES "CACTI COHORT" MEAN?

This spring, Queer Choir is offering TWO concurrent cohorts with slight differentiation between the two; The Cacti Cohort will absorb more (learning more songs, slightly faster pace of learning) and face upward and outward (performing at the end of the cohort). The Kelp Cohort will move more fluidly through fewer songs with more time devoted to using voice and improvisation for flow and play. *NOTE: Singers in Cacti can opt out of performing so long as they are aware of the orientation toward performing, and singers in Kelp can opt in to performing, so long as they learn the additional music on their own time.

RECIPROCITY: $44 - 444

We offer multi-tiered pricing to meet singers where they are. Choose an amount that is in alignment with your financial situation, your social location, and offered from a place of abundance, gratitude and ease: please check out the this graphic to determine which tier is for you. People of the Global Majority/BIPOC, trans and disabled kin encouraged to pay at a lower tier. Those with the means encouraged to pay at a higher tier to sustain the community / sponsor a singer experiencing financial hardship. If you cannot pay via Corsizio, please register at the $0 tier and then bring cash to the first rehearsal on April 8th.

ACCESSIBILITY

Our venue is ADA-accessible and includes gender neutral restrooms. There is ample parking in the lot behind the building and closest to the back entrance where our practice space, Community Hall, is located. Limited public transportation, but carpools are often a possibility! Sheet music and lyric sheets are provided for a variety of learning styles. This is a neurodivergent / neurodiverse-friendly space where multiple ways of interacting and learning are welcomed and appreciated. COVID/illness policy: if you are sick, have any symptoms, or have been exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID or was otherwise contagious, please stay home. Masks are not required, but encouraged as needed (i.e. if you are no longer contagious but symptomatic). We will have doors open for airflow.

ANTI-OPPRESSION/LIFE-AFFIRMING PRACTICES

Queer Choir strives to be an actively anti-racist /anti-oppression community - through both intentional re-humanizing/life-affirming orientations (read above) and more tangible practices indicated below. As a white-bodied facilitator, I, elias, am committed to a fierce, compassionate and consistent practice of examining and dismantling the culture of whiteness/white supremacist delusion that lives inside my body and lingers in the air we all breathe. These practices are always evolving.

Naming the unceded / stolen territory where we reside as the traditional lands of the Kalapuya people: Acknowledging the ways in which we benefit from the land, and the actions we can take toward healing, justice and accountability.
Giving from the overflow: every cohort, Queer Choir puts on a concert and donates the proceeds to a movement or organization that serves our systemically and strategically marginalized community members.
Educating ourselves on the impact of whiteness and white supremacist delusion, as it pertains to music and community singing, and within our broader world (a resource page can be found here).
Naming and owning our complicity in systems of oppression and working to dismantle those systems as they show up in ourselves, our relationships, and our wider community.
Honoring and lifting up the stories and music from humans outside the dominant narratives: listening and celebrating the voices of immigrants, Black, Indigenous and People of the Global Majority, queer and trans kin, elders, youth, disabled kin, abolitionists, and more.
Understanding cultural appropriation vs appreciation --especially as it shows up in music-- with a commitment to learn from any missteps and repair harm caused with swiftness, thoughtfulness and humility. In particular, Queer Choir acknowledges that ALL popular music (soul, folk, country, pop, jazz, R&B, blues, etc) has roots in music from the African Diaspora. With profound regard, we honor and reflect on this statement from elias' queer Black colleagues Valerie Troutt and Audacious: BECAUSE OF BLACK MUSIC, I AM.

OUR FOUNDER & LEAD FACILITATOR

elias wolf (formerly Lisa Forkish - they/she/he) is a queer singer, songwriter, teacher, community-cultivator and dynamic facilitator, centering personal + collective healing and liberation in all of their work. A musical initiator and change-maker, elias has been at the helm of 12 different vocal groups over the past 20 years - including Queer Choir, since moving to their hometown of Eugene, OR - and continues to hold singing spaces with the care, rigor, humor and love. elias identifies as a highly-sensitive, deeply-attuned and awkwardly-goofy neurodivergent, queer AF human of English, German and Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Check out this video to get an idea of what elias' singing spaces can look like, and explore their artist CV to learn more about their experience and training.

TESTIMONIALS

"Queer choir with elias has been such an incredible experience! The safety and playfulness they create allows me to open my voice and open my heart. Singing with her and this rad group of queer folks lifts me up every week." - Ira

"Melding music and messages in deep, meaningful ways, elias creates singing spaces that are invigorating and inspiring on many levels, creating a magical vibration for true introspection, connection, and healing." - Angela

“Being in Queer Choir reminded me that my voice (and by extension me) has its special strengths and deserves to be heard along with others in harmony, or dissonance as it may be. Thank you for that!" - Dan

“elias creates space that allows me to be my freest self. She reminds me through music that I can be playful, bold, and connected. In this space I get to witness how we heal each other, and we need examples of that to see the world we want.” - Nani

“elias creates a safe space to unpack all the vulnerabilities and sensitivities that come with singing for me. They are absolutely present and so very knowledgeable. I feel safely held and guided.” - Jenn

DETAILED CACTI COHORT SCHEDULE

Tuesday, April 8th - OPEN HOUSE (option to try Queer Choir for free before registering)
Tuesday, April 15th
Tuesday, April 22nd - Voice Matching (singers will be placed in their section according to vocal timbre alignment - no solo singing!)
Tuesday, April 29th - Community-Building Night (open to both cohorts!)
Tuesday, May 6th
Tuesday, May 13th - Sectionals (each voice part will have their own devoted time)
Tuesday, May 20th
Tuesday, May 27th - BIG CHOIR at WOW Hall (open to both cohorts!)
Tuesday, June 3rd
Tuesday, June 10th - BIG CHOIR in tech rehearsal at the Wildish Theater
Wednesday, June 11th - BIG CHOIR in tech rehearsal at the Wildish Theater
Saturday, June 14th - Sing The Body Festival at The Wildish!
Tuesday, June 17th - Closing session + afterparty
Saturday, June 28th - Eugene Pride (Queer Choir likely performing a set!)

*Bold events indicate different venue (not Lavender Network)

Queer Choir Spring: CACTI COHORT