2011: The Year in Review
2011 was a great year for a cappella, and we at The A Cappella Blog had a great time writing about it as the year went on. In this wrap-up post for the year that was, we're taking a quick look back at some of this site's key content from the past twelve months.
In January, we debuted a new column known as Absurdist A Capella which included a tutorial on how to propose using a cappella. We kicked off our coverage of the ICCA season with a review of the ICCA quarterfinal atClemson.
When February rolled around, we explored the ins and outs of all-male a cappella, reviewed ICCA shows at Rutgers, Johns Hopkins, Penn State, and Berkeley, in addition to exploring how one might use a cappella to stave off a zombie apocalypse.
Come March, we analyzed the turnover rate for leadership in collegiate a cappella groups, took an in-depth look at all-female a cappella, and reviewed ICCA semifinals from the South, Mid-Atlantic, and Northeast regions.
In April, we profiled ICCA Finalists The Buffalo Chips, looked at the statistics on groups hosting alumni shows, and, of course, reviewed the ICCA Finals.
May included a review of Johns Hopkins University's Battle of the A Cappella Groups, a treatise on air guitar solos and our picks for best of the ICCA season.
The summer months included the debut of Keith Tripler's Who's Singing and news about new a cappella sites and new appearances of a cappella on TV.
September kicked off with an exploration of whether it was OK for UNC Psalm 100 to kick out a gay group member. We also had interviews with Sing-Off alumns, MAXX Factor and Kenton Chen, and kicked off our coverage of the third season of The Sing-Off with full reviews of each episode, and the introduction of the ACB Power Rankings.
In October, we continued coverage of NBC's Sing-Off, while also stopping in to cover a live sing-off competition at The Rochester Institute of Technology.
We wrapped up coverage of The Sing-Off season three in November with a review of the live finale, and contemplation of how we might keep the show alive for another season. In honor of their new film, we took some time to look at The Muppets' place in the a cappella world, in addition to calling attention to five reasons for the a cappella community to be thankful.
In December, we covered the Sing-Off Christmas special, and took part in a campaign to encourage NBC to keep The Sing-Off going for another year. We also reviewed Stephen Harrison's Acapolitics, interviewed the faculty director of Afro-Blue, and explored how one might provoke a holiday revelation using a cappella. We wrapped up the year with a uniquely a cappella holiday greeting and a ranking of the top 10 American collegiate a cappella groups of 2011.
It has been quite a new year, but just you wait--The A Cappella Blog has some huge developments in store for 2012. Our new publication season, which will include new content every weekday, will begin next week. Until then, a safe and happy new year to you all!