This past Saturday, the 19th International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella was held at Wharton Center.
And for two MSU a cappella groups, the final results were aca-awesome.
Winning the top two spots in the quarterfinals and heading to Dayton, Ohio for the ICCA Great Lakes Semifinal were MSU’s all-male vocal group, the Accafellas, and coed vocal group, Capital Green.
Since 1996 the ICCA has held competitions throughout the nation, giving hardworking a cappella groups the opportunity to showcase their talent. Consisting of seven regions, each region holds four quarterfinals, in which the top two groups will advance to the semifinals with the hope to become regional champions and make it to the finals at the Beacon Theatre in New York City.
Conjuring a sold-out crowd, Saturday night consisted of nine a cappella groups representing five universities throughout Michigan. Combining artful humor, synchronized choreography and harmonic hymns, each group had 12 minutes to perform their set and impress the judges.
President of the Accafellas and media and information senior Alan Good has participated in the competition for the past four years. Free of nerves, Good had confidence in his group’s success.
“Once I get into performance mode the nerves don’t really get there. It’s more of the adrenaline and really wanting to be out there,” Good said. “It’s a lot of trust and faith in our guys to really just buckle down and do what we need to do.”
Having four new members in a group of 10, the Accafellas prepare for the competition by holding three rehearsals a week combined with a number of gigs throughout the year. Normally private events, the group will always try and perform for charitable organizations. Music director and linguistics senior Andrew Lee highlights one event.
“This past semester, it was at IM Circle. It was the Up ‘til Dawn for (St. Jude), and we always make it a priority to do gigs like that,” Lee said.
And after advancing to the semifinals the Accafellas have little time to celebrate. Scheduled for four gigs the day after their victory, the Accafellas will perform at events ranging from a pompon state championship to a sorority house.
But as sweet as the success is, Good isn’t caught up in all the hype.
“Hopefully everybody just has fun. That’s mainly what were here for,” Good said. “We’re here to support all the a cappella groups that came here from all around Michigan and really just have fun, meet people and spread music.”
In the next stage of the tournament, the Accafellas and Capital Green will be performing March 21 in Dayton in hopes to become regional champions at the ICCA Great Lakes Semifinal.
“We are thrilled to advance to semifinals. Our group has put a tremendous amount of time and effort into the preparation of our ICCA set,” Capital Green member and supply chain management senior Ashley Bronstein said. “Regardless of what our scoring sheets say, our group is so proud of the performance we gave and it has boosted our confidence and brought us even closer as a group.”
