In this 2025 photo provided by Voice Rock, its Portland choir members are pictured at a showcase performance.
Courtesy Voices Rock
The very first Voices Rock choir started in Denver in 2014 by a music teacher who heard from her students’ parents and her own friends that they wished they had some kind of musical outlet. Jill Teas obliged with a small group of adults who met for several weeks, rehearsing popular songs and performing them at a local bar. But the no-audition “come one, come all” ethos of the choir quickly spread to other Colorado cities. And after a few years, Teas chose to quit her teaching job to run the Voices Rock organization full-time. This year, three Northwest cities began their own Voice Rock chapters: Seattle, Tacoma and Portland. We hear from the Voices Rock founder about the idea behind the choir — and from two Portland participants, director Caley Barstow and soloist Courtney Upton, about what they get out of it.
Note: The following transcript was transcribed digitally and validated for accuracy, readability and formatting by an OPB volunteer.
Dave Miller: This is Think Out Loud on OPB. I’m Dave Miller. We end today with Voices Rock, the no audition choir that sings pop and rock songs, started in Denver in 2014. It spread to other cities in Colorado, and then last year it arrived in the Northwest. There are now Voices Rock choirs in Seattle, Tacoma and Portland. The Portland chapter will have a concert tomorrow evening at The Den in Southeast Portland.
Courtney Upton is one of the singers. Caley Barstow is a Portland choir director. And Jill Teas is the founder and artistic director of Voices Rock. All three of them join me now. It’s great to have you on Think Out Loud.
Courtney Upton: Thanks for having me.
Jill Teas: Thanks for having us
Miller: Jill, how do you describe Voices Rock?
Teas: Voices Rock is an unbelievable community adult rock choir. We come together, we sing songs that you know and love. And it’s just a welcoming environment, everybody is welcome. There are no auditions required. This is truly a choir for the people and it’s really a choir for people that probably felt like choir wasn’t an option for them. So we’re here to change those truths.
Miller: What made you want to start this?
Teas: I’m a longtime music educator, taught in the classroom, taught children’s choirs for many, many years in Atlanta and Denver. And a lot of my students’ parents used to say, “wow, I wish there was something like this for grown-ups.” So the idea kind of came about. It started as a project really, to see if we could bring adults together and see what would happen. It turned out to be something that people just fell in love with and it grew from there.
Miller: Caley, how did you hear about Voices Rock?
Caley Barstow: I’ve been kind of in the choir world for a while and we’ve always kind of kept an eye on what’s happening around Portland. And when I heard about Voices Rock, I was intrigued.
Miller: Obviously intrigued enough to want to eventually take part?
Barstow: Absolutely. I actually reached out to Jill. I did not know much about the choir and I was curious about learning to build a choir from ground up. I had done a little bit of that in the Portland area prior. Jill was so enthusiastic and so inspirational, I knew I needed to do this.
Miller: Courtney, why did you want to join the choir?
Upton: I’ve always sung my whole life. I’m not professional at all, but just singing in the car and in the home.
Miller: So you’ve always sung, but never in a choir before?
Upton: I’ve actually sung in another choir probably about three years ago, but that was the first time. And when this one came around, I knew Caley from the past and I really enjoyed her energy. I really wanted to try out this choir just to see how it would be. It’s been amazing.
Miller: Was it an enticement to you that there are not auditions?
Upton: Definitely. Just to be able to come in and there’s no pre-qualifications, you just come in and sing no matter what level you are. Just to get in there and do what I love, it’s been amazing.
Miller: Do you remember the first time that you were singing as one voice in a group, as opposed to just you in the shower?
Upton: Yeah, it’s definitely different. I’m used to always singing the melody. And with the choir, you don’t always get that chance, whatever part you’re in. But when it all comes together, it sounds amazing. No matter what part you’re singing, it’s just an amazing arrangement that comes about, which is so cool.
Miller: Caley, why make this a no-audition choir?
Barstow: Wow, that’s a good question. I have never even thought about that because I’ve always welcomed everyone with open arms. I know that Jill would say the same thing.
No auditions means we welcome anyone of any ability, anyone with a heart for singing, anyone who sings in their car to the radio, anyone who sings in the shower like you said earlier. It means that we’re not judging you. We’re not trying to evaluate singers. We want to build a community and we want everyone. And a community is made up of lots of different people with lots of different abilities. I think sometimes the biggest surprises come when you don’t realize what a good singer you actually are.
Miller: Does the opposite ever happen? [Laughter] That there’s somebody who simply cannot carry a tune at all, but they’re there? They’re a wonderful person, I don’t mean to cast aspersions! But they cannot sing in tune?
Barstow: That’s another good question. That never ever bothers me because you can’t help but respond with a smile, with joy in your heart if someone’s singing from their heart, even if it’s off key. That’s my take on it. Now, I don’t know what Jill would say, but that’s how I see it. [Laughs]
Miller: Jill, how do you feel about it?
Teas: Oh, I couldn’t agree with Caley more. And you know what, honestly, Dave, everyone has a right to sing. Everyone has a right to sing.
Miller: Oh totally, no one is saying anybody doesn’t have a right to sing. We’re just talking about a concert that people are paying to listen to.
Teas: You know what’s really interesting, we’re going into our 11th year of Voices Rock and I think the one thing that I’ve really learned is, it’s like anything else. Maybe you’re not the best singer, maybe you are struggling with matching pitch. But just by being around a group of singers and singing in a group, you’re going to get better, period. Your ears are going to develop. And maybe some people who are struggling to sing maybe didn’t sing as children growing up. But just by being around other singers or just singing in a group, they just get better. And it’s really fun to watch that. People develop their musical skills just by being a part of it.
Miller: Let’s listen to a clip from a recent performance. This is the Beatles’ “Blackbird” from the Voices Rock concert in Denver this past Sunday. This is one of the songs that the Portland choir will be singing tomorrow.
[Recording of “Blackbird” by the Beatles playing, performed by Voices Rock]
[Soloist]
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise
[Full choir, with background vocal percussion]
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these sunken eyes and learn to see
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to be free
Blackbird fly, blackbird fly
Blackbird fly, blackbird fly
Into the light of the dark black night
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh …
[Recording ends]
Miller: Courtney, as soon as the chorus came in, you started “doom doom dooming” a little bit, and then singing under your breath a little bit. What’s it like to hear another chorus sing a song that you’re gonna sing tomorrow?
Upton: It’s great that we’re able to. And I think the great part of it is that we can go up to Tacoma, we can go up to Seattle, we can sing in other choirs. And that’s the freeness of that, that we’re all singing the same songs. [It] is really cool, that sense of community that kind of brings us all together.
Miller: Jill, how do you choose the songs for the choruses?
Teas: Oh, that’s such a great question. We do a really deep dive into all sorts of arrangements. We do six songs every single session. And it sounds like “wow, that’s not a lot,” but it’s just the right amount, in a 10 week session, to really get singers comfortable knowing these arrangements. So it starts with the arrangement itself, and is it accessible for what we do? Are people going to be able to sing the song, work on the song and really master the song by the end of it?
And we hit all of the decades. There’s usually something for everybody. We go back to the ‘60s, all the way to current artists today. We try to really shake it up, so that there’s something for everybody in each session. So that’s how we select our repertoire.
Miller: The list I saw goes from Beatles to Post Malone and Chappell Roan – ‘60s to last year or the year before.
Let’s listen to part of another song. This is, Courtney and Caley, from your first concert back in July. One of the songs was Fleetwood Mac’s “Don’t Stop Thinking About Tomorrow.” Let’s have a listen.
[Recording of “Don’t Stop Thinking About Tomorrow” by Fleetwood Mac playing, performed by Voices Rock]
[Full choir, with audience clapping to the beat]
Yesterday’s gone, yesterday’s gone
Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow
Don’t stop, it’ll soon be here
It’ll be here better than before
Yesterday’s gone, yesterday’s gone
Ooh, ooh, ooh
Don’t you look back
Ooh, ooh, ooh
Don’t you look back
Ooh, ooh, ooh
Don’t you look back
Ooh, ooh, ooh
Don’t you look back
[Recording ends]
Miller: Caley, what do you remember about that first concert?
Barstow: [Laughs] I remember everyone being so worried that I was going to step off that stage backwards. I can’t stay still when I’m directing, it’s just ridiculous.
Miller: And you were right in front of the ledge.
Barstow: I’m right on the edge.
Now, I just remember, for some people, it was their first time singing in a Voices Rock concert. And I’ve always told people, when the session starts, everyone starts out kind of shy unless they came with someone. And it builds throughout the 10 weeks, the experience builds. And it culminates in this concert, that once you get up there, [you] see “oh my gosh, we’re performing for a full house.” We had a full house at the Multnomah Arts Center for our first concert and people were really enthusiastic. The energy was high and the smiles on people’s faces ... I think it was Courtney who may have said that one of the things he loves about Voices Rock is that we move on the stage. We’re not standing there stiff. We’re getting into what we’re doing. And that’s a big part of it, singing with your whole body.
Miller: Courtney, what do you remember about that show?
Upton: That instance where you hear the clapping, that was all the audience. So to have audience involvement come at you gives you even more kind of a presence there. You feel like you’ve done something to make people happy. I just remember, it was kind of a nice night and had that many people show up. And there’s still no pressure. Like Caley always says, “If you screw up a line, just keep going. No one will know. You just keep going.” So it just kind of really brings you down, and you’re able to enjoy it and not feel like you’re super worried about being there.
Miller: Jill, what is it about singing together with other people, I guess the feeling of singing in a choir with other people … How do you put it into words?
Teas: It’s hard to put into words. It’s just electric, it’s an experience. It’s interesting just to tag on, on what Courtney and Caley were just saying, we just did our inaugural Seattle show last night with their very first group. It never gets old for me watching a group of people get on a stage and sing together. And the energy that just fills the room is like nothing that I ever experienced. It’s amazing.
I’m thinking about the audience too that came in last night probably not knowing what to expect. We had a lot of first-time singers singing up on a stage with a full band and all the things … nervous, nervous, nervous. Then they just started singing and it was like all of the tension just dropped. And the audience response, the connection between the singers and the audiences, is unbelievable. I had some Seattle friends that I grew up with that came to the show and they said it was an “emotional roller coaster.” It was all the things, all the feels. I think that’s what happens when you’re on a stage or just in a room, even the process in our rehearsals. There’s so much that you feel when you’re singing together. It’s amazing.
Miller: Courtney, my understanding is that you have a solo in the concert tomorrow.
Courtney: I do.
Miller: What song is that?
Upton: U2, “Beautiful Day.” And I love that song because I’m a big U2 fan. I’m excited.
Miller: Let’s listen to a little bit of one more song. It’s not a “Beautiful Day,” but it’s “Time Warp” from “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” And this also is from the Voices Rock concert in Denver this past Sunday.
[Recording of “Time Warp” from “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” playing, performed by Voices Rock]
[Full choir] Let’s do the time-warp again
Let’s do the time-warp again
[Soloist] It’s just a jump to the left
[Full choir] And then a step to the right
[Soloist] Put your hands on your hips
[Full choir] You bring your knees in tight
But it’s the pelvic thrust
That really drives you insane
Let’s do the time-warp again
Let’s do the time-warp again
It’s so dreamy, oh fantasy free me ...
[Recording ends]
Miller: Courtney, what’s your advice to somebody who is thinking “maybe I wanna sing in a chorus, I’ve never done it, I’m still scared?”
Upton: The amount of support you receive from our fellow singers, it’s amazing. I felt the same way when I first joined a rock choir, and I just wasn’t sure. But once you get in there, you immediately just feel like you’re part of the group. Especially with Caley as the director, no one gets singled out, there’s no pressure and you just get to start singing what you’ve always loved to do. There’s just so much support that comes with it.
Miller: Caley, do you feel like you’re all ready for the show tomorrow?
Barstow: [Laughs] I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. I’m ready to go.
Miller: That’s how I feel before every single show: as ready as I will ever be.
Courtney, Caley and Jill, thanks so much.
Upton: Thank you. Appreciate it.
Teas: Thanks so much for having us.
Barstow: Thank you.
Miller: Courtney Upton is a member of the Voices Rock choir and one of the soloists tomorrow. Caley Barstow is the director of the Portland chapter of the group. And Jill Teas started it all. She is the Voices Rock founder and artistic director.
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