With roots spanning continents and stretching back a millennium, choral singing encompasses a wide range of styles and traditions. One thing all choruses have in common? The way they bring people together, whether to belt out Bowie’s “Starman” or release ear-piercing shrieks, intentionally or otherwise. When picturing a choir, one might imagine a robed church or chamber ensemble swaying through hymns and liturgical anthems, perhaps some Christmas tunes, instead of the long legacy of protest and resistance found in, say, folk music. But Portland’s music scene has a tradition of subverting expectations, and its choirs are no exception.

A Notion, A Scream While it rehearses in a church and looks the part of a schola cantorum, A Notion, A Scream performs only music by living composers and songs with a message of social justice. Founded in 2024, the group raises its voice to benefit local causes, like the LGBTQ+ community organizations Rahab’s Sisters and the Marie Equi Center. In January, the choir will sing in support of the Land Back community space Prismid Sanctuary, performing songs by Dr. Rosephanye Powell, whose work often blends African American musical styles, like spirituals, R&B, and gospel, with elements of classical music.

Low Bar Chorale More drop-in rock show than formal choir, the Low Bar Chorale doesn’t rehearse or hold auditions. Cofounder Ben Landsverk designed the group for people who think or have been told they can’t sing. “You don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to go running,” he says. A decade ago, the group began as a singalong at Revolution Hall to memorialize David Bowie. Eight people singing “Space Oddity” turned into a chorus of thousands of strangers performing Prince’s “When Doves Cry” at Pioneer Courthouse Square. The group still meets every other week, whether working through Elton John’s songbook for its annual Valentine’s Day show or performing alongside Storm Large and Portugal. The Man.

Portland Gay Men’s Chorus In 1980, amid the burgeoning Gay Liberation Movement, three friends posted an ad in a local gay newspaper looking to start a choir—a pathway to activism. A month later, 20 singers came together to found the Portland Gay Men’s Chorus. Now in its 46th season, PGMC is one of the oldest gay men’s choruses in the country, counting over 200 active members. Through the AIDS epidemic and a rise in anti-LGBTQ+ hate, shows have looked like a Disney-themed concert during Pride Month and a show of pop hits featuring exclusively LGBTQ+ songwriters. The group has toured across North America and China and performed with the Portland Lesbian Choir, Rose City Pride Bands, and Portland’s LGBTQ+ and allied youth chorus Bridging Voices.

Wild Rose Resistance Choir Formerly known as Ceasefire Chorus, Wild Rose Resistance Choir can be found singing at marches, farmers markets, public parks, mutual aid garage sales, and community art installations. The group began singing in December 2023 in response to the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip. Like its namesake, the free-growing and resilient wild rose native to Portland, the street choir hopes its songs serve as “an antidote to despair, and a reminder of tenacity, strength, and tenderness.”

Yelling Choir Melody? Harmony? Composed of femme, women, and nonbinary artists, the Yelling Choir prizes the effect of avant-garde performance art over closely following notes on a staff. It’s the brainchild of Maxx Katz, a classically trained flutist and musicologist. Frustrated by the constraints of high art, Katz set out to reimagine what voice, presence, and power sound like. Releasing big emotions is the chief concern: screeches, hisses, clacks, grunts, and yells. Soft meows and primordial screams are fair game, too. They don’t just stick to the stage; at a recent show, close to a dozen members in colorful jumpsuits shrieked and danced about in a warehouse performance space.