Guest Columns

Guest Post: College A Cappella Groups Are Increasingly in Popularity

By Anonymous on May 7, 2012 in Guest Columns

Kevin Ure holds a master's degree in music composition and has been composing and writing articles on music since 1996. He has written professionally for orchestras, choirs, and chamber ensembles.

College a cappella groups have blossomed since the mid 1990s. The very first college a cappella group was the Yale University Whiffenpoofs established in 1909. Twenty years ago, there were approximately 200 a cappella college groups across the nation. Most of these groups existed only in the "older" schools in the Northeast area of the country. Since then, thousands of college groups have sprouted up across the country, and they aren't all singing the same old songs.

Food and Nutrition for A Cappella

By Mike Chin on April 30, 2012 in Guest Columns

Dionne Warwick has famously said that when she gets a sore throat or finds her singing voice strained, she eats a whole pineapple for dinner. When she wakes up in the morning, her voice is usually crystal clear and feeling unstrained. The same goes for the rest of us--food can play a crucial role in the quality of our voices.

We all know that our vocal chords are muscles, so possibly the best approach is to think of ourselves as athletes who have to make sure our muscles are functioning at their very best. Just as athletes have to get a good balance between physical exercise, relaxing with a game of partypoker.com (or whatever their favorite hobbies are) at the end of the day, and the proper nutrition, singers also need to properly exercise their voices, to rest their voices and also to eat properly.

However much we love our food, it is ultimately energy. Singing burns quite a lot of energy, so we should make sure we eat enough before we perform. But while we might not get a stitch from singing on a full stomach, it will be harder to do so. We use our diaphragms--situated just above that muscle--probably more than any other group of people and a stomach feeling like it's just about to burst won't help.

One important tip is that dairy products seem to increase the amount of mucus we produce, this means we should limit the amount you drink or eat before a concert. Possibly the best thing to consume if you are a singer, is water. So often we forget to drink enough water, but a proper amount of water will keep our vocal chords moist. Then remember that you shouldn’t consume carbonated drinks just before you’re about to sing--the last thing you want is loads of gas. Burping ain’t pretty. Finally, the basic point is that lots of fresh fruit and veg will help keep you healthy and less likely to succumb to infection.

Guest Post: 5 Tips on How to Succeed at a College A Cappella Audition

By Mike Chin on December 8, 2011 in Guest Columns

Joe Morris is a guest author. In preparation for spring semester auditions, he shares with us his tips for successful a cappella auditions. If you happen to be interested in online dating, Joe also is the owner of Best Online Dating Sites where you can find more of his articles that cover topics about safe dating and relationships.

Guest Post: Making the Case for A cappella and Bobby McFerrin

By Mike Chin on August 16, 2011 in Guest Columns

Holli Dawson is a freelance writer who works in both fiction and non-fiction, with a particular focus on the arts and real estate. Her most recent work has been on behalf of a leading moving company.

A cappella music, or the art of oral music, has had a long history and spans multiple cultures, styles, and peoples. Humans have been singing without instrumentation since they could talk, so it has always struck me as odd that a cappella music is not more popular in the mainstream. While college students the world over flock to a cappella concerts, and music aficionados pay large sums to hear a cappella chorals, most people do not drop everything to buy the next great a cappella album, like they do to download Kanye West or Adele’s latest offering. A cappella music still exists on some strange fringe of the popular music sphere. This lesser popularity is not a devastating thing by any means, as there is clearly still a large sector of the population who does enjoy and support the music. There are, however, a few instances when a cappella’s recognition by a wider audience would be very justly deserved. Such is the case with Bobby McFerrin’s 1996 album, Circlesongs.

Bobby McFerrin is most widely known as the writer and singer of the 80’s hit, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”, a catchy reggae-influenced confection that dares you not to hum it incessantly for the rest of the day after hearing it. Unfortunately, while the track provided a steady income, it also defined Mr. McFerrin in a way from which he was never quite able to break free. With a four octave range, the ability to sing polyphonically, and a level of performance creativity and charisma that is almost unmatched, Bobby McFerrin was already a multi-award winning jazz vocalist before his pop hit took over his life. His concerts, which always involve audience participation in improvised choral tapestries, are musically mind-bending experiences, and more than one person has cited their Bobby McFerrin concert experience as the best concert of their lives. So why did Circlesongs fly under the radar?

Like most a cappella music, the album is hard to define, and music reviewers and marketers like nothing more than to define the sound of a group or artist. Whether they are relating the music to the sound of another group, or are referencing the influence of another artist’s album, most musical publications like to display their encyclopedic knowledge of what came before. When an album is created that is not at least passing-ly derivative of another work, or is not easily categorized, it often ends being ignored. Circlesongs, with its largely improved musical tapestries sung in the style of a round, was released on a classical label, but is by no means traditional classical music. In fact, it is not jazz, rock, pop, or alternative either. It might best be defined as an album from that musical grab bag called “world music”, but that would not approach the heart of it either. Circlesongs is simply an a cappella album that pushes boundaries and causes one to rethink what is possible within the a cappella realm. It is Bobby McFerrin at his virtuosic best. Rather than taking pop hits and rearranging them, or revisiting classical music vocally, Circlesongs seems to re-inscribe the lines that define a cappella. Though one could say that the album has aged like fine wine that would imply that there were other albums like it. This is not the case. Circlesongs is still a groundbreaking album 15 years after its initially release, and it is still very much deserving of recognition by both the a cappella and mainstream musical communities.

Sweet Serenade: A Rehearsal with The Buffalo Chips

By Mike Chin on April 4, 2011 in Guest Columns

Jessica Brant is a junior communication major and student journalist at SUNY Buffalo. This is her first piece for The A Cappella Blog.

Dan stood in the center of the huddle making eye contact with his group members before speaking: “Everyone sing their note.”

The laughter settled, the joking ceased, and thirteen voices became one in beautiful harmony.

The guys were working on an arrangement of Bruno Mars’ “Grenade” when I walked into Knox lecture hall to have a listen.

The concentration was overwhelming; they wore it like an athlete, completely immersed in the moment. Focused and driven.

“Make sure to keep in mind our dynamics,” Dan advised after the first run-through.

The gradual swelling of sound had an almost haunting quality to it. As the guys increased and decreased in volume, Chip member Shafiq A. Rahman found himself at just the right moment and took the lead with a tone so soothing you would swear it was a lullaby.

But there is no one solo star on this team. As musical director, Dan “Staff” Stafford—a junior Psychology major who has been a member of the University at Buffalo’s only all-male A Capella group for three years--guides when necessary, but finds he doesn’t always have to; the group tends to lead itself.

ACB Review: Awaken A Cappella's Cee Lo Green Cover

By Mike Chin on March 28, 2011 in Guest Columns

Andrea Aquino is an alumna of UCSC’s Acquire A Cappella. She directed the group during the 2009-2010 school year and led them to a fourth place finish at the ICCA West Quarterfinals last year.

Note: This video contains explicit lyrics and is NSFW.

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I know Awaken as "that group from UCLA that never does anything gimmicky like silly outfits or weird dance moves--they just blow crowds away with well-arranged, passionately-performed songs at every show". My favorite was always Marc Broussard's "Home," with a little of "Go To Sleep Little Baby" from O Brother, Where Art Thou at the beginning. Many people are also familiar with Awaken because of their most famous alumna, Sara Bareilles.

But enough with the past, right? Let's get to the present.

Awaken just released a music video for their latest single, Cee Lo Green's "F*** You." The song follows in the footsteps of Awaken's other arrangements: delicious chords, crisp performance, charismatic soloist, lots of energy and soul. Unless you've been without a radio or YouTube access for the past couple of months, you probably already know the ridiculously catchy original song, so let's cut to what makes Awaken's version so great. I love a cappella arrangements that make me notice small things I didn't get in the original, like the cool trumpet flare at 1:01 or the background guitar bit that starts at 1:40. And there are so many layers at the breakdown (2:41) that will make you want to rewind and rewatch to catch them all. You can really tell how much thought went into the arrangement, and you can see from the video that every member of the group performs both their background parts and highlighted bits with love for the song and for the overall group sound. I'm a big fan of how their two beatboxers sound together, too.

Oh, and props to the guy in the sailor's hat and jacket. Lookin' good!

The singe lfor Awaken's version of "F*** You" is available for download via ACappellaRecords.com.

The Recording Rant: Keeping It Together

By etalley on February 25, 2010 in Guest Columns

Eric Talley is an alumnus of Appalachian State University Lost in Sound, and is currently an a cappella recording producer. Talley writes The Recording Rant on a recurring basis for The A Cappella Blog.

I’m going to take a small hiatus from recording talk and discuss something that is an issue for more groups than they might care to admit. Not everybody sells out eight shows a semester and has fans begging for more at the end. It just isn’t in the cards for younger groups still developing a reputation and finding their sound. These groups are hoping to fill just half of the seats and pray that no technical disasters take place and cause them to lose the four groupies that they barely hold onto. A bigger challenge faces these groups: the challenge to simply Keep It Together.

Are you the leader of one of these groups? You know who you are. You deal with extensive group turnover, people losing interest, lack of motivation, and competition with more popular groups and events around campus. Every time you get a decent show-stopping soloist, they find a reason to not stick it out or find their place in another group. Those in your group that do stay get frustrated by the lack of payoff for the multiple practices every week. Your shows are mediocre and thus the talent entering your group is subpar as well. These groups have a small success rate, and many times they hang it up to end the misery. Here are some other options to save your group and turn yourselves into one of the main events on campus.

1) Group bonding time. My old group’s leader after I left used to set mandatory weekend hangout time. You can understand how this wouldn’t work out with fifteen college kids. They rebelled. BUT, this isn’t to say that the group shouldn’t spend time together outside of practice and concerts. If half of you are hanging out, the others will follow in time. A group of friends has a better connection on stage than a group of singers who hardly know each other. Comfort is big the next time you request that they do some kind of choreography.

2) Highlight the strengths of ALL of the group members. I saw a group a few years ago who had a smaller guy that just wasn’t that great of a singer. Sad, but true. What did they do? They incorporated him into a song using body percussion, which was a crowd pleaser seeing as he was strangely good at it. Not everybody is a great soloist, but if they are in the group they have something to offer, so make use of it. This way, your good soloists don’t feel like they are carrying the group on their back. It can be a heavy burden.

3) ADVERTISE. This cannot be stressed enough to college groups. Get flyers up, talk to your local college radio station, college webmaster, etc. Even better, the week before the show, get outside and sing. For free? YES! Put together three songs and stand where there is the most traffic around campus during the day, and sing the hell out of them. (Side note, avoid slower songs, they tend to grab fewer people on the move.) People will stop, people will listen, and when you stop, people will be disappointed. This is your chance to plug your upcoming show. I promise that your attendance numbers will climb.

4) Make your concerts shows. No, I don’t mean skits between every song, unless that works for you. I mean hire somebody to run sound who knows what they are doing, because a cappella is a different animal altogether and there have been way too many shows ruined by a bad sound engineer who doesn’t understand the genre. Come up with a unique dress code. All of you are wearing ties? Unless you are (insert Clefs, Bubs, etc. here), then it will bore people. It is a tired concept. Lose the ties and go more relaxed. You will feel more comfortable on stage and over time, the crowd will feel more comfortable as well.
There are plenty of us out there who are doing a cappella professionally and hiring a consultant to fix a few issues is always a good idea. You get an unbiased view from somebody who has been around the block. Can’t afford it? Just ask for some help. You might be surprised how many of us would just shoot emails back and forth with you.

In the end, hanging it up is an option that some can’t ignore. Sometimes it is inevitable, but always make it a last resort. Try these tips first, and you will see a turnaround quickly.

The Recording Rant: Lessons from Recordings

By Mike Chin on February 4, 2010 in Guest Columns

Eric Talley is an alumnus of The Appalachian State University Lost in Sound, and is currently an a cappella recording producer. Talley writes The Recording Rant on a recurring basis for The A Cappella Blog.

Another year has passed, and another round of excellent albums have released. It cannot be stated enough that the quality of a cappella music continues to get better and better. We witnessed some truly stellar albums in 2009, and without mentioning names, here are a few things that we can learn from what we have heard:

1) Song originality is HUGE! How many versions of “Apologize” have we heard now? I lost count a while back, but it is far too many. In working with groups now, I stress finding songs that have not been released by five other groups in the last six months, as well songs that showcase their talents. Want to record a Coldplay song? Great idea! Do us all a favor….don’t sing Viva La Vida or The Scientist, because we have been there and done that. If you insist, make it your own and don’t cover the original exactly as we hear it.

2) Your soloist is still the biggest part of the song. Arrangements are blowing me away time and time again with creativity and simple WOW factor, but at the end of the day, your soloist better be able to keep up. I have heard far too many a cappella songs ruined by a mediocre, or just bad, soloist. Your guys group may not be able to sing a Stevie Wonder song. Play to your strengths, no matter how great your arsenal may be. The last thing any of us want to hear is one of our favorite songs murdered by somebody unfit to sing the solo. With that being said….

3) Push the envelope. Most of us read RARB on a regular basis. Great production and simply background chords aren’t cutting it anymore. You have to have the entire package to be considered a top-tier group. This is not to say that I want to see fifty Bubs albums released with different group titles this year, nor do I want every coed group in the nation copying OTB syllables. Just do something different, because do’s and aah’s aren’t selling too many albums these days. Use the top groups to inspire, but there is more than enough potential in the a cappella world to go around.

4) Finally, keep singing! Your album got panned in a review? Only sold half of your copies that you ordered? Had a bad experience with a producer? Persevere. The world wants to hear the best of what you have to offer, and declining to produce an album is the perfect way to NOT give it to them.

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