About Us
Our Approach
Voices Rock welcomes everyone, whether you’re a seasoned singer or have never performed in your life and finally want to take the leap.
Rehearsal cycles run for ten weeks and culminate in a performance at the end of the session.
Voices Rock has several locations to choose from! Check out our Choirs page for locations, dates and times.
Can’t attend every rehearsal? No problem! We provide recordings for you to listen to at your convenience. Once you are a member and the session begins, you will receive access to our Choir Genius portal where you will find everything you need for fun and successful session!
The goal of Voices Rock is to build community, and we provide several social opportunities outside of rehearsal for our fantastic members to get to know each other. We also strive to help our community through charity and outreach performances each year.
Reasons to Join
- You love to sing!
- It’s yoga for the brain
- You get to meet new people
- You’ll learn more about music
- We create and build community
- We get to do something meaningful together
- Everyone has a voice and a right to sing!
- Music is good for the soul.
- It’s so much fun!
Interested in Voices Rock? Stay in touch!
Before You Come:
- Stay up-to-date with our email communications
- Listen to the recordings of our current songs on Dropbox!
- Leave all your cares at the door and get ready to sing your heart out!
What To Bring:
- Feel free to bring you beverage of choice and share if you wish!
- Help the planet – bring a reusable cup!
- A pencil and/or highlighter
- You might want a binder or folder to keep your music organized
Meet The Team
Jill Teas
Founder & Artistic Director
Musical and Creative Director Jill taught choral and general music for 26 years in Atlanta and Denver where she directed multiple award-winning choirs. In Denver, Jill taught music at Stanley British Primary school for 11 years where she directed 150 children in her 3-4-5 choir as well as vocal ensembles in the middle school. She has co-directed multiple musical theatre productions at Stanley as well as the Kent Denver summer arts program. She brings tremendous energy and enthusiasm to all of her musical direction and performances. Jill spent two years with the international performing group, Up With People, including a year as the vocal coach on their staff. Jill has been singing professionally in Athens and Atlanta, Georgia and throughout Denver for three decades. As the co-founder and musical director of Voices Rock, Jill has built and led our community of 400+ members and directs the Voices Rock Flagship choir at the Denver JCC and our smaller outreach group, Reverb. With performances from Red Rocks to Ted Talks, she has established herself as one of the premier choir directors in the area. Jill holds a degree in music education/voice concentration from the University of Georgia.
Clara Shelton
Executive Director
Clara Shelton joined Voices Rock in its second session and was hooked from the start. She became the Executive Director in 2025. Prior to Voices Rock, Clara held marketing and communications roles with Colorado Public Radio and Concentric Ag. A lifelong musician, Clara started formal Suzuki violin training at age 5, played with youth symphonies in Europe and the U.S., and sang in an a cappella group at Pomona College, from which she graduated with a degree in American Studies. In her free time, Clara serves as a National Ambassador with MADD, begins too many craft projects, and occasionally hosts a Taylor Swift podcast. She credits Voices Rock with helping her find her people when she moved to Denver, and she believes strongly in the power of groups like this to help strengthen our communities through music, friendship and laughter.
Marla McClure
Denver (Highlands) Choir Director
Marla McClure is a choir director, voice teacher, actor, singer, and ballroom dance instructor. Originally from Los Angeles, CA, she spent the last 12 years in New York City, where she taught high school music and co-directed a community rock choir, Unsettled Scores. An avid musical theater lover, Marla has performed in numerous shows, including Gypsy, Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Last 5 Years, and I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. She has an Advanced Certificate in Music Education from Brooklyn College and a BA in Psychology from Pomona College.
Choir has been one of the great loves of Marla’s life… it was the place where she really found her artistic voice and her sense of community in NYC. Since moving to Denver, she’s been so grateful to find a new choir family in Voices Rock! She loves fostering that same sense of community with her singers in the Highlands area.
Brian Shimamoto
Denver (Central Park) Choir Director & Admin Support
Brian caught the musical bug at age 10 when he was cast in the title role of a local community theatre production of “Oliver!” and music has been a part of his life ever since. His musical roots were always closely tied to the communities he’s been part of from local children’s theatre to high school chorus and show choir. In college, he was introduced to contemporary a cappella ensembles and he and some friends formed the Deltones, a University of Delaware co-ed a cappella group founded on the idea of “friends first, singers second.” That philosophy paid off and the group recently celebrated 35 years on campus and competed on NBC’s “The Sing Off” going up against Denver’s own “Urban Method” and a little 5-member group known as “Pentatonix.” After college, Brian travelled with Up With People where he first met Voices Rock director, Jill Teas and served as her vocal intern while on the road. He went on to work as a vocal director and show manager, traveling throughout the United States and Europe for five years.
Brian and his family have called Colorado home since 2007 and he loves jamming out with Voices Rock in his Central Park neighborhood.
Kent Lemburg
Denver (Cap Hill) Choir Director, Denver (Central Park) Accompanist
Originally from Golden, Colorado, Kent earned a bachelor’s degree in music and theater performance from CU Boulder. His diverse background spans international touring with the educational program Up With People, performing and living in New York City, and working with the historic Country Dinner Playhouse. Kent has also contributed to hand-bell ringing with the Rocky Mountain Ringers and held various music roles across multiple religious denominations. Currently, Kent serves as the staff accompanist at Lakewood High School and is extremely proud to collaborate with Voices Rock.
Edwina Lucero
Lakewood Choir Director
Edwina grew up in Colorado, singing in choirs at church and school, from the Meistersingers at Cherry Creek HS to church choirs and groups through college. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music Education from CU Boulder and spent 20 years teaching and leading in public schools, as well as adjunct at a community college. She has directed a wide variety of styles of choirs, and musicals. The best moments of her teaching career were spent in Northwest Denver with her students building a choir program that was inclusive and prioritized a sense of belonging, welcoming any level, at all times. Edwina believes in the ability of every person to use their voice to express and connect to their self and others, that music-making is ingrained in our heartbeat and how we interact with the world, and her greatest joy in life is helping others discover this for themselves. Edwina and her husband and kids live in Lakewood, and she works with her husband as Director of Operations at his nonprofit, Colorado Treks. She’s excited to make music with Voices Rock!
Laura Masko Gibson
Englewood Choir Director
Laura Masko Gibson is an educator and musician who has been steeped in eclectic music influences her whole life. Her first concert was at age five at The Arvada Center singing as the fifth wheel in her dad’s barbershop quartet. Laura is the founder of the all-women band Mud & Marrow, which currently plays original alt-folk music all over town, as well as the neo-soul band Not A Luxury, where she co-writes all the music with her brother. She has also been drumming and dancing at Cleo Parker Robinson with master drummer Koffi Toudji since 2009.
Laura has directed over 30 middle school theatre productions and she is also mom to two rambunctious kids in Englewood.
Laura believes that everyone can and should sing. Music is for everyone–it is our birthright, and we all deserve to feel what it’s like to be a part of a group lifting up our voices. Laura is thrilled and humbled to be directing the Englewood choir for Voices Rock!
Caley Barstow
Portland, OR Choir Director
Raised in New England, Caley moved cross-country to beautiful Portland, Oregon, in the 1990s. A graduate of Middlebury College in Vermont, Caley sang with the college choir, which recorded music for Vermont Public Television’s “A Vermont Christmas” one chilly January. A lifelong musician, Caley plays piano, organ and clarinet and wistfully wishes she had time to learn how to play her forlorn cello. Daytimes, Caley writes for a financial services firm, but nights and weekends, you’ll find her leading choirs or playing music at Trinity United Methodist and Tigard United Methodist churches in the greater Portland area. A skilled choir leader, Caley is particularly gifted at building communities, leading fun rehearsals and making people feel seen, heard and welcome. Caley has three grown daughters and loves walking her dog, Poppy, through Portland’s many wooded trails.
Stacey Landes
Littleton & Louisville Choir Director
Stacey is thrilled to bring her unique blend of experience and energy to Voices Rock. For Stacey, singing has been a lifelong journey, and making music with choirs remains her favorite way to connect. Above all, she believes in music’s power to foster kindness and cultivate strong, supportive communities.
Stacey spent a decade as an elementary music teacher before finding her calling in conducting, a path that has since offered the privilege of making music with diverse and talented groups throughout Colorado. Her conducting journey includes leading both the adult and children’s choirs at Mile Hi Church in Lakewood, serving as a music assistant with the Colorado Children’s Chorale, and as assistant conductor with the Rocky Mountain Chorale in Boulder. As a singer, she has graced stages with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra Chorus, University Singers at CU Boulder, Inner Voices, and various small ensembles for special events. In a true “choir-nerd” highlight, Stacey even traveled to Carnegie Hall to perform a new work under the direction of John Rutter.
Outside of her musical world, Stacey deeply values time spent in her community and connecting with close friends. Stacey loves traveling to new places, spending time with her sweet cat, Willow, and finds joy in tap dancing.
Dave Ramsey
Denver (Green Valley Ranch) Co-Director/Accompanist
Dave Ramsey is a professional performer, composer, director, writer, and music educator based in Denver, CO. As a soloist, in ensemble, and as a director he has performed a wide range of music from punk and metal to baroque chamber music, opera, EDM, jazz, and experimental contemporary works. Dave’s original music has been performed on five continents and is commissioned for new pieces by ensembles of all sizes. He currently serves as the Director of Music at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church and as the Music Teacher at DSST: Green Valley Ranch High School, both in Denver.
Janeka Taylor
Denver (Green Valley Ranch) Co-Director
Janeka is a passionate educator and musician with a diverse background in music education and performance. After completing her high school education at Denver School of the Arts, she pursued her Bachelor of Music in Music Education at the University of Puget Sound, where she further developed her pedagogical expertise and musical proficiency.
With an unwavering commitment to music education, Janeka has taught for over a decade at DSST Green Valley Ranch. Her experience extends beyond the classroom, as she has also worked with musicians and singers in various educational and performance settings, encouraging a love for music across diverse cultures and age groups.
Jason Brinker
Tacoma, WA Choir Director
For over two decades, Jason has been a passionate choir director and music educator, building vibrant musical communities in both school and civic settings. His career is rooted in a deep belief in the power of music to connect people.
Jason’s experience includes directing numerous high school choral programs and leading over 20 musical theater productions, including favorites like Cinderella, The Addams Family, and Aida. He believes deeply in creating musical homes for singers of all ages and has dedicated time to mentoring the next generation of music educators and serving in leadership roles for state and regional choral organizations.
A true lifelong learner, Jason holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music Education and is currently a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate at Boston University. He is thrilled to bring his diverse experience and dedication to building community through music to Voices Rock.
Nicole Maramba
Seattle Choir Director
Nicole Maramba is a passionate choral educator and conductor based in the Seattle area. With a deep belief in the power of music to build community and inspire joy, she brings energy, empathy, and creativity to every rehearsal. Nicole has worked with singers of all ages and currently leads choirs in both school and community settings.
She has a background in music education and currently teaches in Renton, Washington. She is especially committed to fostering inclusive, supportive spaces where all voices feel welcome. Whether in the rehearsal or on stage, Nicole aims to help singers grow in confidence, skill, and connection.
Kevin Klemm
Englewood & Littleton Accompanist
Originally from Ohio, Kevin moved to Denver to study jazz piano at DU. An avid music lover, his early background is playing drums in bands, starring in musicals, singing in choirs, and studying piano.
In 2018, Kevin and his wife started Klemm Music; a company that provides performances, lessons, and piano service. They teach voice, piano, and drum lessons out of their Englewood location. Visit klemmmusic.com for more information.
In his off time he enjoys hiking, video games, and seeing historical towns around the world.
Walt Lott
Louisville Accompanist
Walton Lott has been making music for nearly 30 years. He is currently an accompanist, performer, and teacher in the Boulder area, playing for church and school choirs, the Rocky Mountain Chorale, Boulder Chorale, and giving frequent solo piano and chamber music performances. In both performing and teaching, Dr. Lott encourages a fun and flexible approach to music making.
For more than 10 years, Dr. Lott has taught a wide range of students, from beginners to adults, from musicians trained on other instruments to people simply looking to refine a new hobby. Walt encourages engagement with a wide range of musical genres.
Walt holds a Doctorate of the Music Arts and Masters in Keyboard Performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he studied under Dr. Andrew Willis, as well as a Bachelor’s in Music from Millsaps College.
Reece Classen
Denver (Highlands) and Reverb Accompanist
Reece Classen is a pianist, composer and educator residing in Denver, Colorado. He is the collaborative pianist for the Arvada West High School choirs where he performs with the schools’ various choirs for concerts and festivals. He regularly collaborates with Colorado Wind Ensemble, the MSU Denver composition and piano areas as well various theater companies across the Denver Metro area. In addition to his work as a collaborative pianist, Reece spends much of his time composing and producing for his many personal projects and often collaborates with other musicians. He also teaches private music and piano lessons with a focus on helping students learn music that interests them. Reece graduated from MSU Denver with a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance and a Bachelor of Music in Composition. In the rare occasion that Reece isn’t making music, you’ll likely find him on top of a 14er or spending time with family in the mountains.
Ryan Durfee
Lakewood Accompanist
Ryan Durfee (Collaborative Pianist) has a B.A. in Piano Performance from Northwestern College in St. Paul, MN. In 1999, he won the NWC Concerto/Aria competition by playing Liszt Piano Concerto #1 and subsequently played the concerto with the Northwestern College Orchestra. After spending over a decade out of school as a full time worship leader at churches in Minnesota and Colorado, he joined the Denver School of the Arts staff as Accompanist and Music Coach, where he has now been for 15 years. He has served as a music director or accompanist in numerous musicals and productions at DSA as well as the larger Denver community. Ryan has been the music director for the Bobby G Awards Ceremony for 8 years (2013-2016, 2022-2025) held each spring at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. He has accompanied the DSA choirs at numerous festivals and on tours including a performance at Carnegie Hall in March of 2022. His solo piano work can be found on the YouTube channel, Ryan Durfee Piano.
Andrea Giles
Tacoma Accompanist
Based in the Seattle area, Andrea Giles has spent decades teaching piano lessons full time, sharing her passion for music with students of all ages and stages. Over the years she has accompanied and directed many adult and children’s choirs. Her musical endeavors also include playing keys with worship bands, jamming with rock bands, and bringing solo piano music to private events such as weddings, holiday parties and corporate events.
Andrea believes sharing music is more than a career — it’s pure joy! Bringing people together through music is a common thread all can enjoy, whether we are seasoned or just dipping toes in the waterfall of music!
When she’s not playing or teaching music, you can find her enjoying life with my husband, children, grandchildren and friends!
Andrea is thrilled to have been chosen to be a part of Voices Rock Tacoma!
Katie White
Denver (Cap Hill) Accompanist
Katie White has been a pianist for over 20 years. She has played with several vocal ensembles, symphonic orchestras, pit orchestras, and vocal soloists. Katie also grew up singing in choirs in her hometown, Ithaca, NY, and has a special love of choral music. She plays and sings a wide variety of musical styles, but especially loves performing jazz, gospel, pop, and rock music. Currently, she serves as the Chancel Choir Accompanist for Trinity United Methodist Church in downtown Denver and plays for the Silver Singers choir in Lakewood, CO.
Katie earned her B.A. in Environmental Studies from Ithaca College and spends the majority of her time working as a professional beekeeper. In her free time, she loves to go biking, running, hiking, and camping. Katie is very excited to begin her musical journey with Voices Rock!
Heather Arnold-Renicker
Operations Director, Reverb
Heather has been singing in choirs since kindergarten and has never met a harmony she didn’t want to jump into. She performed in musicals throughout middle and high school and sang in both a classical concert chorale and show choirs (think real-life “Glee” — jazz hands and all). In college, she joined the women’s chorus at CU Boulder, but after graduation, she struggled to find a choir that felt like home. Enter Voices Rock! She joined in 2017 and hasn’t stopped singing (or recruiting others to sing) since. Now the Operations Director of Reverb, Voices Rock’s community outreach choir, she is committed to spreading the joy of music and group singing throughout Colorado — because everything is better when sung in community. When not belting it out with her choir family, she can be found lost in a good book, traveling or cheering on her competitive swimmer daughter at meets (though sadly, swim parents are not encouraged to sing from the stands).
Andy Ard
Guitar, Voices Rock Band
Andy Ard is a Denver singer-songwriter and the band leader of Voices Rock choir. He also performs with choir director Jill Teas as an acoustic duo. Andy grew up playing guitar, has played in numerous bands, knows a startling number of cover songs, been part of the accompaniment for local musicals, and composed the music for the 2003 virtual tour of the White House for the White House Historical Association. He writes and produces original recordings and enjoys collaborating with other artists. A career highlight was performing with Voices Rock at Red Rocks Amphitheater in 2018 and 2021.
John Olsson
Drums, Voices Rock Band
A drummer for over 30 years, John Olsson is known for his dynamic style and versatility. John maintains a full-time performance schedule with numerous award-winning local and national acts, including Homeslice band, Soulfood band, Pink Hawks, and the Olsson Jazz Quartet. He regularly plays at major concert venues, dance clubs, corporate events, and weddings, and performs in pit orchestras for local theaters— including the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
John is also a frequent collaborator and accompanist with Cleo Parker Robinson Dance and the Colorado Ballet, and performs with various choirs and church music programs across Denver. In addition to live performance, he facilitates recording projects and produces and engineers music in his home studio. He also maintains a private studio and has taught students of all ages and skill levels in his 20+ years of teaching drums.
John holds a Professional Music Degree in Jazz Performance, Music Production, and Music Business from Berklee College of Music in Boston. He remains committed to sharing the joy and connection that music brings, and John loves Voices Rock! For more, visit JohnOlssonMusic.com
Kegan Warring
Bassist, Voices Rock Band
Kegan Warring is a multi-instrumentalist and music educator who believes in making music accessible to everyone. He studied upright and electric bass at the University of Missouri – Kansas City, where he gained experience with a number of musical styles, including gospel music. He gigs, writes music and does studio work in Denver, where he is also a member of the band Catahoula Sun. Kegan’s been part of the Voices Rock band since 2022. He spends his days teaching music at the Denver Center for International Studies at Fairmount.
