KRISTEN SHULTIS
Special to The Leader
The stage in Diers hosted some of the campus’ best a cappella groups during a workshop put on by the American Choral Directors Association and Dr.Huff. Featured groups included Premium Blend and Vocal Jazz Ensemble. Both got their chance to show the audience their talents and talk about the audition process, as well as other aspects of their group.
Vocal Jazz Ensemble started the show off. Colin Mann got up and led the group in a Psalm as a sort of warm up. He then talked about the different aspects of the music that they were singing. Mann also gave people tips on how to teach a capella groups and small choruses, including how to blend and the different voices of the singers in the group. They blended together well, and the soloists were very good. Mann was knowledgeable, and the group seemed to connect with him.
Next up was Premium Blend, led by Matt Cali and Brian Brown. Cali began by warming up the group with some typical choir warm-ups, including lips trills and scales. They sang a few songs for the audience which included a mash-up that included “Home” by Phillip Phillips and “I’ve Got The Magic In Me” by B.O.B.
“It was cool. I thought everyone rehearsed the same way,” Emma Hayes, member of Premium Blend, said of the rehearsal techniques.
They then talked about their audition process which included testing the singers’ ranges and, in the second round, how they may work in groups or use different methods to learn how to blend together. All of the singers seemed dedicated; Cali also mentioned how they practice at least three times a week.
“It’s a good educational experience for everyone, learning about the rehearsal techniques,” McConnell said. “It was also fun that I got a chance to participate.”
They then took questions from the audience. One audience member asked how many of the group’s members are non-music majors. Cali and Brown both answered with a “Quite a few” and they began to talk about how dedicated those people were.
“It’s a great experience to learn different types of music and also learn about the techniques,” said Hackman.
The last thing Premium Blend did was perform as Guinea pigs for Rusty Ritzel’s arrangement of “All of Me” by John Legend. The group looked terrified, but they did very well for sight reading the melodies and blends.
“If you want to arrange for a group like this you need to know how many voices their are and their range,” Ritzel said to the group.
For the very last event, Dr. Huff, director of women’s chorus, called everyone that was left on stage where he taught a capella versions of “Blackbird,” “My Funny Valentine” and other classics.
“It was a cool experience, and I didn’t know what to expect,” Emma Hayes said when asked what she thought of the the experience.
“It was fun to perform and a great experience for me,” Whitney Hackman, member of Premium Blend, said.
The workshop proved beneficial for audience members as well.
“As someone who is not a music major, it was a great experience,” audi- ence member Ryan McConnell said.
