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Syracuse groups unite in song

Deanna PaysonPhoto Credits: Shea Kastriner

Campus Harmony

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When you hear the harmonies com-ing together, it’s just so beautiful. You can’t believe it’s just people making that beautiful sound,” said Gabi Levinson, senior and a cappella singer at Syracuse University.

A cappella music, or singing with no in-strumental backup, has become increasingly popular on many college campuses, and Syr-acuse University is no exception. According to Levinson, a member of the Jewish group, “Oy Cappella”, here at Syracuse, there are currently a total of seven groups on campus. Groovestand, Main Squeeze, The Manda-rins, Orange Appeal, Otto Tunes, Oy Cap-pella and Redemption rehearse and perform regularly both at Syracuse and in surround-ing areas. Each group prides itself on having a unique take on the songs they perform, that range from current pop hits to old classics.

The common factor among all seven groups is their love of singing and making vocal music. Says Levinson, “when you’re singing, you forget about everything else. Those five or six hours of rehearsal each week, you don’t think about your classes or anything else.” Lauren Duda, a junior and member of The Mandarins, agreed. “Being a part of a cappella is important to me because it offers a stress relief from everyday life. It helps refocus you.”

The groups also share something else be-sides their love of music, however. All seven are members of the A Cappella Council at Syracuse University (ACCSU), a student-run organization still in its infancy. Formed in spring 2011,its mission is “to promote and strengthen the collaborative efforts of the SU/ESF a cappella community,” according to the group’s Facebook page. Levinson, the Programming and Finance Director of

ACCSU for this upcoming year, believes that since its inception, the organization has cre-ated a “more peaceful and balanced environ-

ment” in the a cappella world. “I think we respect each other a lot more.”

This environment of mutual support and respect was not al-ways the case for the SU a cappel-la community, however. Levinson

describes the a cappella scene before ACCSU as disorganized and cliquey. “Before ACCSU, you worried about who was doing what song, who could do what better,” she reflected. Courtney Jones, Office of Student Activities consultant for a cappella on campus, agreed, describing the pre-ACCSU environment as “disjointed, lost and confused.” “I just felt like it was sad,” she recalled. While her offi-cial role as Office of Student Activities con-sultant is to assist her student organizations in logistics and planning, Jones was often playing the role of sounding-board for inter-group issues and complaints. While advising individual groups on event planning and budget development, she says she got quite an earful. Jones recalled hearing that mem-bers of individual groups had such grave tensions with each other, that having two groups in the same room was to be avoided.

“When you hear the harmonies coming together, it’s just so beautiful...”

Laura Leatherman, a 2012 graduate of The Mandarins, distinctly remembers the hostility that existed between groups. “As a member of one of the two female a cappella groups, I witnessed first-hand some of the obvious ten-sion.” The groups came together to perform at “Afterhours”, an end-of-semester concert run by The Mandarins, but that was the extent of their collaboration. While many problems were based on “personal stuff,” according to Jones, she was often concerned that these animosities would trickle down and become ingrained in generation after generation of group members. These concerns, and an in-terest in increasing inter-group communica-tion, led Jones to the idea for what would quickly become the A Cappel-la Council. “Let’s just get them all in one room,” she said. “The groups should use each other as resources.”

After gauging the opinions of the leaders of the then-six groups on campus concerning her budding idea, Jones recalled that she was surprised to find unanimous sup-port. “I didn’t hear no from any-one!” Sitting around a conference table in the Office of Student Activ-ities suite in Schine Student Center, ACCSU was born. The first night, a lengthy discussion about Afterhours was all that time allowed. “We got through maybe one topic,” laughed Jones. This was far from what she had antic-ipated for the first meeting, having planned a list of topics should no one speak up.

That first evening became the launch-ing pad for a series of intense discussions. “That got the ball rolling- then it was BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!” Jones added, remembering the enthusiasm of the leaders to talk about any and all Syracuse a cappella topics. Much to her surprise, groups were eager to share ideas on rehearsals, auditions, musical ar-ranging, even competing.

After the first few meetings, the group met again to discuss how they would be able to

become a Registered Student Organization (RSO), a lengthy task filled with paperwork and logistical requirements. While some groups were initially hesitant to embark on such a permanent formalization of this new ‘summit’ of sorts, including Levinson and Oy Cappella, all six of the existing groups soon warmed up to the idea. Says Levinson, “I figured out it was important. I realized I loved the people in the a cappella world and that our groups love each other, but we had no way of doing legitimate fun things together.” Coming together as an RSO would allow the a cappella community to gain benefits such as the ability to apply for school funding for con-

certs and social events, and would allow the ‘burden’ of planning such events to be shared amongst all the participating groups, rather than resting solely on the shoulders of one group or another. Jones said she informed the students that this was not a necessary step- they could have remained an infor-mal group, simply meeting to talk and share ideas occasionally, but this was not a favor-able option to the students. “The deadline for the application was the end of the week, and thwwey said, ‘we’re going to do it!’” Jones re-called. The group spent the remainder of the spring 2011 semester working hard to meet the requirements of a new Registered Student

Organization. They created a constitution, decided on a system of voting ‘liaisons’ to represent each group, and elected the in-augural executive board. In its 2011-2012 year, the a capppella council sponsored social events, created a ‘Meet ‘n Greet’ for incoming freshmen and reformed the entire a cappella audition process.

As the second executive board for the A Cappella Council takes the reins, they are optimistic about ACCSU’s opportunities for growth over the next year. “It’s only going up from here!” said incoming secretary and junior, Sydnee Corriders. “We will continue supporting each other and communicating, but still maintain the identity of each group.” Levinson agreed, saying that although the orga-nization is still so young, it has the potential to be “the heart” of the a cappella world. “As the number of people interested in a cappella, and interested in joining the groups, begins to grow,” Public Relations chair, Lauren Duda added, “I hope the importance of the organization on campus will grow as well.” Duda hopes to see Afterhours, the signature event of the Syracuse a cappella community, become larger. “Within three-to-five years, I hope that ACCSU can be recognized as one of the main organizations on campus, whereas now it is still emerging.”

For now, the leadership and those involved in ACCSU are celebrating their successes thus far. “It [ACCSU] has surpassed, even in just the three or four semesters it has been around, anywhere I would have anticipated it would go,” says Jones. “They’re helping each other. People are performing more, and have gotten better... they’ve really increased people’s awareness of the groups on campus, too.” As the incoming President, Janine McElhone, put it, “ACCSU is its strongest when we’re all together.”

“I feel like I was part of the last genera-tion at Syracuse that will remember any feud

or tension between a cappella groups on campus...I would honestly say that ACCSU has truly turned this tension into more of a support system between groups on campus, even when they may be directly competing,” Leatherman reflected. This change was nev-er more apparent than at the International Competition of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) this past winter. Widely regarded as the March Madness of the a cappella world, IC-CAs promised a cappella glory for those who advance through the rounds of competition. At the Mid-Atlantic Quarterfinal in Bing-hamton, New York this past February, three Syracuse groups competed against one an-other. Instead of animosity toward each oth-

er as competitors, an entirely different am-bience prevailed. As Main Squeeze, Orange Appeal and Groove-stand took the stage

that evening, Corriders remembered a strong Syracuse presence. “It felt like it was SU against the world!” The A Cappella Council, in just one year, had created an environment in which any Syracuse a cappella success was a success for all. The kind of environment in which harmonious music, and friendships, can thrive.

“It felt like it was SU against the world!”

a cappella magazine

LEGAL?!Arranging

Is it

NIGHTMARES

tips for recording

on a budget

158EXCLUSIVE! we sit down with

to talk

&

TOURINGACA-DRAMA

DATING

PENTATONIX

VO CESa cappella talk

Syracuse groups unite in song

CampusHarmony

Deanna PaysonPhoto Credits: Shea Kastriner

W hen you hear the harmonies coming together, it’s just so beautiful. You can’t believe it’s just people making that beautiful sound,” said Gabi Levinson, senior and a cappella singer at Syracuse University.

A cappella music, or singing with no instrumental backup, has become increasingly popular on many college campuses, and Syracuse University is no exception. According to Levinson, a member of the Jewish group, “Oy Cap-pella”, here at Syracuse, there are cur-rently a total of seven groups on cam-pus. Groovestand, Main Squeeze, The Mandarins, Orange Appeal, Otto Tunes, Oy Cappella and Redemption rehearse and perform regularly both at Syracuse

and in surrounding areas. Each group prides itself on having a unique take on the songs they perform, that range from current pop hits to old classics.

The common factor among all sev-en groups is their love of singing and making vocal music. Says Levinson, “when you’re singing, you forget about everything else. Those five or six hours of rehearsal each week, you don’t think

about your classes or any-thing else.” Lauren Duda, a junior and member of The Mandarins, agreed. “Be-ing a part of a cappella is important to me because it offers a stress relief from everyday life...it helps refocus you.”

The groups also share something else besides their love of music, however. All seven are members of the A Cappella Council at Syr-acuse University (ACCSU), a student-run organization still in its infancy. Formed in spring 2011,its mis-sion is “to promote and strengthen the

collaborative efforts of the SU/ESF a cappella community,” according to the group’s Facebook page. Levinson, the Programming and Finance Direc-tor of ACCSU for this upcoming year, believes that since its inception, the

organization has created a “more peace-ful and balanced environment” in the a cappella world. “I think we respect each other a lot more.”

This environment of mutual support and respect was not always the case for the SU a cappella community, however. Levinson describes the a cappella scene before ACCSU as disorganized and cliqu-ey. “Before ACCSU, you worried about

who was doing what song, who could do what better,” she reflected. Courtney Jones, Office of Student Activities con-sultant for a cappella on campus, agreed, describing the pre-ACCSU environment as “disjointed, lost and confused.” “I just felt like it was sad,” she recalled. While her official role as Office of Stu-dent Activities consultant is to assist her student organizations in logistics and planning, Jones was often playing the role of sounding-board for intergroup issues and complaints. While advising individual groups on event planning and budget development, she says she got quite an earful. Jones recalled hearing that members of individual groups had such grave tensions with each other, that having two groups in the same room was to be avoided.

“When you hear the harmonies coming together, it’s just so beautiful...”

Laura Leatherman, a 2012 graduate of The Mandarins, distinctly remembers the hostility that existed between groups. “As a member of one of the two female a cappella groups, I witnessed first-hand some of the obvious tension.” The groups came togeth-er to perform at “Afterhours”, an end-of-se-mester concert run by The Mandarins, but that was the extent of their collaboration. While many problems were based on “per-sonal stuff,” according to Jones, she was of-ten concerned that these animosities would trickle down and become ingrained in generation after generation of group mem-bers. These concerns, and an interest in increasing inter-group communication, led Jones to the idea for what would quickly become the A Cappella Council. “Let’s just get them all in one room,” she said. “The groups should use each other as resources.”

After gauging the opinions of the leaders of the then-six groups on campus concern-ing her budding idea, Jones recalled that she was surprised to find unanimous sup-port. “I didn’t hear no from anyone!” Sit-ting around a conference table in the Office of Student Activities suite in Schine Stu-dent Center, ACCSU was born. The first night, a lengthy discussion about After-hours was all that time allowed. “We got through maybe one topic,” laughed Jones. This was far from what she had anticipated for the first meeting, having planned a list of topics should no one speak up.

That first evening became the launch-ing pad for a series of intense discus-

sions. “That got the ball rolling- then it was BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!” Jones added, remembering the enthusiasm of the leaders to talk about any and all Syracuse a cap-pella topics. Much to her surprise, groups were eager to share ideas on rehearsals, auditions, musical arranging, even competing.

After the first few meetings, the group met again to discuss how they would be able to become a Registered Student Organization (RSO), a lengthy task filled with paperwork and logistical require-ments. While some groups were initially hesitant to embark on such a perma-nent formalization of this new ‘summit’ of sorts, including Levinson and Oy Cappella, all six of the existing groups soon warmed up to the idea. Says Levinson, “I figured out it was important. I realized I loved the people in the a cappella world and that our groups love each other, but we had no way of do-ing legitimate fun things together.” Com-ing together as an RSO would allow the a cappella community to gain benefits such as the ability to apply for school funding

for concerts and social events, and would allow the ‘burden’ of planning such events to be shared amongst all the participating groups, rather than resting solely on the shoulders of one group or another. Jones said she informed the students that this was not a necessary step- they could have

remained an informal group, simply meet-ing to talk and share ideas occasionally, but this was not a favorable option to the students. “The deadline for the application was the end of the week, and they said, ‘we’re going to do it!’” Jones recalled. The group spent the remainder of the spring 2011 semester working hard to meet the requirements of a new Registered Student

Organization. They created a constitution, decided on a system of voting ‘liaisons’ to represent each group, and elected the in-augural executive board. In its 2011-2012 year, ACCSU sponsored social events, cre-ated a ‘Meet ‘n Greet’ for incoming fresh-men and reformed the entire a cappella audition process.

As the second executive board for the A Cappella Council takes the reins, they are optimistic about ACCSU’s opportuni-ties for growth over the next year. “It’s only going up from here!” said incoming secretary and ju-nior, Sydnee Corriders. “We will continue supporting each other and communicat-ing, but still maintain the identity of each group.” Levinson agreed, saying that al-though the organization is still so young, it has the potential to be “the heart” of the a cappella world. “As the number of people interested in a cappella, and interested in joining the groups, begins to grow,” Pub-lic Relations chair, Lauren Duda added, “I hope the importance of the organization on campus will grow as well.” Duda hopes to see Afterhours, the signature event of the Syracuse a cappella community, be-come larger. “Within three-to-five years, I hope that ACCSU can be recognized as one of the main organizations on campus, whereas now it is still emerging.”

For now, the leadership and those in-volved in ACCSU are celebrating their

successes thus far. “It [ACCSU] has sur-passed, even in just the three or four se-mesters it has been around, anywhere I would have anticipated it would go,” says Jones. “They’re helping each other. Peo-ple are performing more, and have gotten better... they’ve really increased people’s awareness of the groups on campus, too.” As the incoming President, Janine McEl-hone, put it, “ACCSU is its strongest when

we’re all together.”“I feel like I was

part of the last gener-ation at Syracuse that will remember any

feud or tension between a cappella groups on campus...I would honestly say that ACCSU has truly turned this tension into more of a support system between groups on campus, even when they may be direct-ly competing,” Leatherman reflected. This change was never more apparent than at the International Competition of Colle-giate A Cappella (ICCA) this past winter. Widely regarded as the March Madness of the a cappella world, ICCAs promised a cappella glory for those who advance through the rounds of competition. At the Mid-Atlantic Quarterfinal in Binghamton, New York this past February, three Syr-acuse groups competed against one an-other. Instead of animosity toward each other as competitors, an entirely different ambience prevailed. As Main Squeeze, Orange Appeal and Groovestand took the stage that evening, Corriders remembered

a strong Syracuse presence. “It felt like it was SU against the world!” The A Cappel-la Council, in just one year, had created an environment in which any Syracuse a cappella success was a success for all. The kind of environment in which harmonious music, and friendships, can thrive.

“It felt like it was SU against the world!”

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