2023 ICCA Great Lakes Quarterfinal @ Grand Ledge Performing Arts Center

DEAR FRIENDS,

Welcome to Varsity Vocals’ 27th season! Our enthusiasm for the art of a cappella is greater than ever after more than a quarter century of presenting the best student groups on stage and in the studio.

Our tournaments have grown from a handful of events to the massive showcase they are today, this year featuring more than 610 groups and over 9,100 singers at 85 events across North America and the United Kingdom.

Our original tournament inspired the hit movie "Pitch Perfect", based on the nonfiction book documenting the true story of rival groups competing against each other in our very own ICCA. The "Pitch Perfect" franchise remains the highest-grossing cinematic musical series of all time.

Despite the incredible growth and mainstream popularity we’ve enjoyed, our focus remains sharply on the promotion and development of the talent that crosses our stage. We believe competition fosters growth, as groups work together toward a specific goal and cultivate lifelong skills and relationships.

We provide insightful feedback from our highly qualified judges – but more importantly, our singers get to connect with a larger audience from across the country, learning from their peers and finding inspiration in other groups.

We have seen a cappella make great strides from where it began on our stage 27 years ago, and we can’t wait to see how our 2023 competitors push the envelope. Committed to promoting our singers and energized by the incredible music they create, we look forward to another memorable season. Thank you for joining us!

Sincerely,

Amanda Newman
Executive Director

ICCA GREAT LAKES QUARTERFINAL

Grand Ledge Performing Arts Center
Saturday, February 25th, 2023

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ABOUT VARSITY VOCALS

Since 1996, we have encouraged students worldwide to sing a cappella throughout their lives. Our programs include the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA), the International Championship of High School A Cappella (ICHSA), and the International Championship of A Cappella Open (The Open). We also annually produce The Best of College A Cappella (BOCA) and The Best of High School A Cappella (BOHSA) compilation albums.

Our a cappella competitions give top-notch a cappella groups the opportunity to showcase their talents for an international audience and to take home valuable feedback from our qualified judges. This year, competing groups will appear in venues all around the world, offering their energetic musical performances for your enjoyment.

The college tournament takes place from January through April in nine regions across the country and around the world. Each region holds anywhere from four to five Quarterfinals, and the top groups from each Quarterfinal advance to the Semifinal. The winning group at each Semifinal is named Regional Champion and advances to the ICCA Finals at The Town Hall in New York City on Saturday, April 29th.

The high school tournament is now in its 18th year. The winners of each of seven Semifinal rounds will advance to the ICHSA Finals at The Town Hall in New York City on Saturday, April 28th.

For a full tournament schedule, visit us at www.varsityvocals.com/events

ABOUT TONIGHT'S SHOW

The performance order was determined by random draw this afternoon and will be announced from stage.

Tonight’s performers will be evaluated on elements of their vocal and visual performance, which carry numerical weight. The highest and lowest score from the individual judges will be dropped for each group. Our judges may recognize exceptional performances with special awards as they see fit.

There will be a 15-minute intermission. After the final group has performed, a guest performer will entertain you while the scores are tabulated.

Because each group only has ten minutes to perform, we ask you to keep your applause to an enthusiastic minimum between songs. Please feel welcome to applaud as much as you want after each group has finished its set.

Videotaping and non-flash photography for personal use is permitted during the concert, so long as you do not disrupt our performers or other patrons. Due to licensing regulations, we do not provide a video or audio recording of this performance.

TONIGHT'S COMPETITORS

Since 1996, The Accafellas has been traversing the a cappella and MSU world with their various concerts, community events, and unique personality. They hope to entertain audiences with tight harmonies, slapping rhythms, and boisterous stage presence! Founded by a group of people who share a passion for the human voice, The Fellas strongly believe that live music should be both impressive and entertaining. They are 14 members strong with a huge alumni base that always shows up!

Capital Green is Michigan State University's oldest co-ed a cappella group, singing together since 1998. Currently made up of 17 members, they are a tight-knit family and enjoy performing across Michigan. When they aren't singing, they enjoy late-night trips to Applebee's and BJ's, going on retreat up north each fall, and having Super Smash Bros tournaments. If you like what you hear today, you can stream more of their music on Spotify or Apple Music and find them on Instagram @msucapitalgreen.

Grand Valley State University’s Euphoria is a tight-knit, fun-loving, competitive group of all voice parts. The group takes pride in their sound and performs in various concerts and appearances around the GVSU and Grand Rapids community. They have made their mark in multiple competitions through the years, most recently appearing at the 2021 ICCA Semifinals in Chicago. This year, Euphoria welcomes nine extremely talented new members to the stage. Outside of rehearsals, Euphoria loves to spend time together playing games, going on fun adventures, and bringing the house down for Karaoke Tuesday at their local pub. You can find them online at www.euphoriagv.com or @euphoriagvsu on all social media platforms. The group is thrilled to be back and hopes everyone is able to experience Euphoria.

Fish N Chips is the only tenor/bass a cappella group at Central Michigan University. Although they’re tenor/bass exclusive, Fish N Chips prides itself in being a gender-inclusive group and welcomes auditions from women and nonbinary individuals as well. The group does not specialize in any particular style, but all members get a voice in their repertoire selections.

Gold Vibrations of Oakland University in Rochester, Mich. is an a cappella group that specializes in groovy tunes and good vibes. They especially love singing the likes of Lawrence, Sammy Rae & The Friends, Billie Eilish, and anything that they can put their own spin on. Aside from rehearsing and reminiscing on the time they went to Finals in 2016 (even though no current members were actually there), they enjoy partaking in half-off apps at Applebee’s and playing ridiculous rounds of Jackbox games. Gold Vibrations has a full group of 17 members and you can find them performing at gigs and events around campus, and putting on concerts throughout the year. They’re so excited to be back and competing in ICCA this year!

GrooVe is a co-ed a cappella group from Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich. The group is composed of 20 members who all share a passion for making music. GrooVe sings anything and everything, from ballads to classics, from unison to eight-part harmony! Since 2009, GrooVe has been performing on Grand Valley's campus and in the surrounding Grand Rapids area, as well as competing in talent shows, a cappella-offs, and the ICCA. They’re honored to be here living out their “Pitch Perfect” dreams! When they aren’t singing, you can probably find them eating half-off apps at Applebee’s or at group movie night!

Midnight Snack is Grand Valley State University's first and only all-female a cappella group. Founded in 2005, this small group of women shares a strong passion for music and performing together. They sing a variety of genres including modern pop, variations of jazz and R&B, and classic oldies. Some of their past accomplishments include performing at GVSU’s 2020 President’s Ball and Inauguration Dinner, along with the release of their first professionally recorded single, "Sour Candy"! While music brought them all together, they have created strong friendships outside of the world of a cappella. A lot of their memories from this group include long rehearsals and exhilarating performances, but also late-night sleepovers, karaoke Tuesdays, and hilarious TMI stories that never fail to make them laugh. It is safe to say that they will leave this group confident that joining Midnight Snack was possibly the best decision they made in college.

On the Rox is CMU’s only all-treble a cappella group. As a performance group, their main focus is to entertain. Through singing and dancing, they are able to express themselves and share their love for performing with various audiences. They travel around the state, performing for special events on and off campus, including charity events and fundraisers. They frequently compete in national competitions and enjoy interacting with other members of the a cappella community. They love every opportunity to perform and are excited to share their ICCA set.

State of Fifths is an award-winning a cappella group that was founded in the fall of 2008 at Michigan State University. This co-ed group of undergraduate students comes together from all different majors to make innovative, heartfelt music and incredible memories. State of Fifths performs a wide variety of music, all arranged by their members! You can find them rehearsing twice a week on MSU’s campus, working hard to sound their very best for every gig, concert, and competition.

The G-Men, or Gentlemen for long, is a group of friends who love making music together at the University of Michigan. They change, they get older, they come, they go, but their ideals have endured. Since its founding in 1995, The G-Men have become known across the land for their confident performance style. Despite being dedicated students, natural empaths, and a soccer team recognized at a nearly county-wide level, The G-Men have struggled to accept that existence is ultimately defined by perception. For instance, though history books insist that The G-Men’s mark on collegiate a cappella began only 27 years ago, Prometheus was but a swaddling babe when the first plans for G-Men’s “Mr. Brightside” arrangement began to materialize. Mesopotamian hunter-gatherers hummed the tunes that would eventually become their 2015 album, Abcdefh. Michelangelo dared not paint the Sistine Chapel in shades of blue and white, for fear that a Gentlemanly power might smite him where he stood. The G-Men are committed to an elevated style of performance art, which deconstructs music and spectacle, while entertaining audiences. The Gs definitely weren’t partaking in Super Smash Bros. money matches on a portable Switch backstage five minutes ago.

TONIGHT'S JUDGES

Lindsay CieChanski is the Director of Vocal Music at Skyline High School, which houses four choirs, including the a cappella ensemble, Skyline Blues. Lindsay graduated from the University of Michigan in 2002 with a dual major in voice performance and choral music education, and completed her master’s degree in music education in 2007, also at U of M. She has worked as a guest clinician and enjoys participating in music conferences. Lindsay has also directed musicals and performs in several ensembles. Lindsay has led Skyline’s choirs to successful performances at ICHSA, Solo and Ensemble, and Choral Festival. Skyline Blues has performed for numerous events around the Ann Arbor Community and has consistently competed in ICHSA. Lindsay has greatly enjoyed her time working with Varsity Vocals and is inspired to continue promoting the art of a cappella singing.

Dr. Joshua S. Duchan, Ph.D., is an ethnomusicologist specializing in American popular music. An ICCA adjudicator for nearly 20 years, he is the author of “Powerful Voices: The Musical and Social World of Collegiate A Cappella” (University of Michigan Press, 2012), the first book-length scholarly study of a cappella’s music and culture, as well as numerous other articles about a cappella. His other research focuses on the music of Billy Joel, including multiple interviews with the iconic singer-songwriter that have resulted in two books, “Billy Joel: America’s Piano Man” (Rowman & Littlefield, 2017) and “‘We Didn’t Start the Fire’: Billy Joel and Popular Music Studies” (Lexington Books, 2020). In college, Joshua sang with The University of Pennsylvania Counterparts. While pursuing his doctorate, he joined and directed Amazin’ Blue, the University of Michigan’s oldest co-ed a cappella group, and two of his arrangements for the group were featured on BOCA compilations. He is now Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Music at Wayne State University (Detroit, Mich.), where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in music history, world music, American music, and popular music.

Josh Huls is an arranger, composer, and music director originally from Grand Island, Neb. While studying music education at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, he sang with and directed The UNL Bathtub Dogs. Since graduation, he has been working full-time as an arranger/composer for a variety of musical groups in California, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, and New York. Best of luck to all the competitors today. May the aca-Gods be with you.

Sarah Maskill fell in love with a cappella two weeks after joining her college group at her first big performance: the ICCA Great Lakes Quarterfinal! She is a former bass and business manager of Michigan State University's Ladies First. During her time with Ladies First she produced two EPs, was nominated for a Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award (CARA), and was fortunate enough to advance to ICCA Great Lakes Semifinals three times. She has since workshopped with many groups in the Midwest region, performed at The Open with her group Revel, and currently runs the Artist in Residence program at A Cappella University. You may have also seen her behind a camera at Varsity Vocals events and Contemporary A Cappella Society of America (CASA) festivals.

SPECIAL THANKS

Varsity Vocals would like to recognize and thank Grand Ledge High School, Timothy Daniel, and Daniel Dade; our judges, hosts, competitors, volunteers, partners, and producers; and you, the audience, for supporting Varsity Vocals programming.

Amanda Newman
Executive Director

Dave Rabizadeh
ICCA Director

Elise Hackl-Blumstein
ICHSA Director
PA/MA Program Coordinator

Lucy Jacobs
The Open Director
ICCA West Producer

Emily Flanders
Director of Adjudication
ICCA Great Lakes Producer

Andrew Poole
Director of Digital Media

Erica Tackett
Director of Marketing
& Social Strategy

Emily Sucher
Director of Publications

Sara Yood
Senior Producer

Holli Kitching
ICCA Mid-Atlantic Producer

Lindsay Howerton-Hastings
ICCA South Producer

Arvin Zabalerio
ICCA Central Producer

Leah Alrutz
ICCA Midwest Producer

Bronwyn Jensen
ICCA Southwest Producer

Gemma Davies
ICCA United Kingdom Producer

Christopher Witham
ICCA United Kingdom Producer

Emily Benjamin
ICCA Northeast Producer

Jillian Kimberlin
ICHSA Mid-Atlantic Producer

Danielle Sutherland
ICHSA Midwest Producer

Jake McVey
ICHSA Northeast Producer

Cameron Clemens
ICHSA West Producer

Ben Garza
ICHSA Southwest Producer

Luke Thomas
ICHSA South Producer

Adam McNeil
ICHSA Great Lakes Producer

Nicole Kholweiss
ICCA Central Day-Of Producer

Courtney Jenson
Associate Producer
Emcee Extraordinaire

OUR TEAM

We have an amazing team of people who work tirelessly to make our programs so valuable for our singers and audiences alike — and they all do it while holding down full-time day jobs, too!

The top two placing groups at this event will advance to the 2023 ICCA Great Lakes Semifinal.

BRING THE HARMONY HOME

Find your favorite groups on The Best of College A Cappella (BOCA) and The Best of High School A Cappella (BOHSA), available for purchase on Apple Music and Amazon Music!

VIEW ALBUMS

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