Who We Are

Huge smiles on a choir of 28 singers dressed in shades of purple

Calliope Feminist Choir 2023 Winter Concert: We Sing!

Calliope Feminist Choir of southeast Ohio is a community of women, trans and non-binary singers who share music for joy and connection and to inspire action through song.

Currently under the direction of Debra Spangler and accompanied by former director, Nancy Pierce, and guest musicians, Calliope performs one or two concerts a year, and sings at events in support of community organizations. For the last several years, we have also performed once or twice annually for women inmates at SE Ohio Regional Jail. Please contact us if you would like us to sing for your organization or event.

Group of 22 singers, dressed in various shades of purple and wearing black masks, standing on stairs posing for photo 
Calliope Feminist Choir onstage at their May 2022 concert.

Our Values

Rooted in the feminist values of social justice, anti-racism and right relationship with the earth, we strive for musical excellence within our musically diverse group of singers. We choose music that challenges and entertains so that both singers and audiences can connect emotionally and be moved to thought and action.

Feminism in Practice

Striving towards accessibility, belonging, and inclusion, we offer

  • Free childcare provided for singers

  • A sliding scale for all dues and performance tickets

  • Concerts signed by ASL interpreters

  • Rehearsal and concert space that accommodates people with varying mobility needs

Fostering equity and community, we 

  • Sing with and for the residents of the Southeast Ohio Regional Jail

  • Partner with local organizations to learn and connect through donations of time and resources.

Building on our roots in activism and social justice, we 

  • Support local social justice actions through word and song

  • Celebrate an active social justice community with opportunities to volunteer and learn together

  • Uplift and amplify oppressed voices through our musical choices

  • Practice right relationship with the land and all its peoples,  through the development of a land acknowledgement statement, as well as exploring ways to honor the earth, the natural beauty of our region, and the heritage of the First People.

Two women face each other with arms in motion. 
Director Debra Spangler and ASL Interpreter, Lorraine Rogers, May 2022
Two women, wearing masks, talk behind a piano. 
Singer lorraine wochna and Director Debra Spangler consult at the piano, May 2022

Our History

Formed in 1993, Calliope grows out of the women’s music movement. “Like any political song movement, its music challenges, comforts, educates, and invites the heart to fall in love with a new perspective on life and humanity” (Holly Near). We are a member of Sister Singers’ Network, connecting us to feminist choirs around the U.S. that share our musical and social vision.

 

Meet Our Director,

Debra Spangler!

 
White woman wearing glasses faces the camera and smiles 
Debra Spangler at the Spring 2022 concert.
 

Debra comes from a family of musicians - teachers, organists, singers, baritone-players - and has enjoyed music all her life. Top favorite experiences are singing and tap dancing as part of a Forties-style quartet during college, singing backup for a funk band in Seattle in the ‘90’s, and leading the Athens Homeschool Marching Choir with her husband Dan Dennis when their kids were young.

Debra joined Calliope as a singer in 2014, became Assistant Director in 2017, and Director in 2018. She has served on the Sister Singers Network Steering Committee since 2019 and led one of the mass choruses during the 2023 SSN Festival in Cleveland. She is already looking forward to taking Calliope to the next festival - Chicago 2026!