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 WEST QUARTERFINAL

The Elsinore Theatre
Saturday, January 28th, 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

Created in 2003, Divine provides treble singers of OSU's campus a place to express themselves and support one another. Divine meets twice weekly, usually on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. They perform every Friday at the Memorial Union steps on campus along with OSU's two other a cappella groups, Outspoken and Powerchord. They compete at ICCA every January and sing at on and off-campus events throughout the year.

Divisi was founded in 2001, and is one of the University of Oregon's premier a cappella groups. Constantly striving to achieve the highest quality music and performance, Divisi has become one of the most well-known and admired collegiate groups in the nation working with contemporary pop.The movie “Pitch Perfect” was based off of this group!

Formal Houseparty is a group that began at the start of the pandemic in the spring of 2020. This mixed group represents many majors at Linn-Benton Community College. How did they get their name? Say that you were going to a houseparty, but wanted to dress nicely: that's the vibe.

Headband is a vivacious group of tenors, basses, and vocal percussionists who perform face-meltingly delicious contemporary a cappella music in a variety of genres. Headband performs on Willamette's campus, sings around the west coast, travels to regional festivals, and competes in the ICCA. Check them out on YouTube and Spotify, or on social media @headbandwu.

Established in 2007, Mind the Gap is University of Oregon's premier competitive gender-inclusive a cappella group on campus. They perform a varied repertoire of staple arrangements and new musical endeavors with songs that interest and inspire the group. Mind the Gap is a collective of undergraduate and graduate students from a variety of concentrations offered at the UO, yet all members share a passion for creating music. The group focuses on building connections on campus by performing weekly and collaborating with university clubs. They also strive to support the wider Oregon a cappella community by performing with other Oregon-based groups. Having last competed in the virtual 2020 ICCA, Mind the Gap is eager to get back into the swing of competitive a cappella by performing a set arranged and choreographed entirely by past and current group members. Mind the Gap aims to be a welcoming environment for students to musically collaborate, all while fostering a community of inclusion and acceptance.

Naked Voices is the premier, all-gender a cappella group from UC Santa Barbara’s campus. Although there are four other groups on campus, Naked Voices is the only one with a history of competing at events such as the ICCA and Los Angeles A Cappella Festival (LAAF). Covid-19 forced the group to break their streak of competing but they are  excited to change that this year! They emphasize the fun in their music while working hard to perfect their sound. Their repertoire ranges from upbeat pop music by artists such as Britney Spears and Ariana Grande to smooth R&B from artists like Lauryn Hill and Frank Ocean. They frequently perform on campus, whether in music classes or to open for another group or show, so they get lots of experience up onstage together. This year, half of the group members are new to the a cappella world but they have already seen great strides in our group sound and are eager to keep learning. They aim to build a fun family of talented, collaborative musicians who represent UCSB in performances, all while providing a musical outlet and forming lifelong friendships. 

Power Chord is Oregon State University's all-inclusive a cappella group. This fun, bubbly, and diverse SATB group has a blast performing on campus, at local venues, and in competitions all around the Pacific Northwest. 

You might ask, what could Montana possibly offer besides seemingly endless fields of wheat and more cows than you could ever imagine (more than there are people)? Well, Rhapsody A Cappella from Montana State University brings the lively art form of a cappella to a state where the most interesting thing is a large acid pit in the ground. As Montana's only competitive collegiate a cappella group, Rhapsody's musical repertoire includes everything from “Blackbird” by the Beatles to “Easier” by 5 Seconds of Summer. Rehearsing five hours a week requires a dedicated crew who's willing to put in work, but Rhapsody is also a second family, with “Pitch Perfect” movie nights, love-hate relationships, and pizza runs after rehearsals. The group has performed at weddings and proposals (who knew a cappella could be so romantic?), and at local venues including the Bozeman Hot Springs, the American Legion, and Steep Mountain Teahouse. Needless to say, there's no lack of originality, no lack of talent, and certainly no lack of a good time. This diverse group of students shows that a love of music can be shared throughout any discipline or background. The cows have got nothing on them.

Portland State University's The Green Note is an award-winning a cappella group with roots in pop and R&B. They are a majority-queer group established in 2010. In both 2021 and 2022, they won their ICCA Quarterfinal and went on to compete in Semifinals. In addition to competitions, they perform many times a year throughout the Portland-Metro area. When they’re not singing, many group members pursue other forms of performance art or play Minecraft together!

Up Top from Willamette University includes a mix of lovely voices and people. With every song, their goal is to tell a story and make people smile.

GUEST PERFORMER

InVoice hails from greater Portland, Ore. and brings together four guys with an array of vocal performance backgrounds. They draw inspiration from musical styles including classical, choral, gospel, musical theatre, and of course, barbershop, and blend these influences to create unique and exciting experiences for every audience. 

TONIGHT'S JUDGES

The daughter of a choir teacher and accompanist, Cate Caffarella received a Bachelor of Music Education from Northern Arizona University and a Master of Music Education from Boston University. This is her 14th year at West Albany High School, where she directs three choirs and heads the drama program. WAHS choirs have won numerous awards, including top-five finishes at OSAA State Choir competitions, district championships, judges’ choice awards, and ICHSA Semifinals. Cate and her husband, Jason (also a musician), are former directors of the Oregon Children’s Choir Young Men’s Ensemble and The Classics. They and their children, Tobin, Taran, and Teah, enjoy singing and spending time together. 

Jackie Emmett attended Ricks College as a vocal performance major on scholarship where she was able to perform as alto soloist in their presentation of Handel’s “Messiah.” After Ricks, she attended BYU and became the bass in the all-female a cappella group, Noteworthy, and went on to win the ICCA in New York in her second year with the group. She is currently singing with the Portland Choir and Orchestra where she was recently a featured soloist. Jackie is happily married with four little boys, teaches voice lessons, is an ADHD and Productivity coach, and directs a youth choir in her area. 

David Fowler is a music producer and creator from the Pacific Northwest who specializes in vocals and contemporary a cappella. A believer in “harmony through harmony," he aspires to make group singing more accessible to everyone. He has collaborated professionally with many accomplished singers and brands including Home Free, Malukah, Peter Hollens, David Archuleta, Sam Tsui, Chester See, and Taylor Davis. David is also a member of Verdant, an award-winning collective of singers native to Eugene, Ore., who seek to make the Pacific Northwest a home for vocal music. 

Bronwyn Jensen is a singer, music educator, and arranger from Burbank, Calif. Bronwyn began her music career by way of show choir and vocal training throughout high school. In college, she studied vocal music performance, where she trained in contemporary voice, music theory, and ear training. In 2016, she joined BYU Noteworthy, where her passion for a cappella took shape. During her time with the group, she starred in multiple YouTube videos and served as the assistant music director. Since 2019, Bronwyn has been working for Varsity Vocals as the ICCA Southwest Producer. Currently, Bronwyn is the music director for Rise Up Children’s Choir’s advanced a cappella ensemble, Amplify. Bronwyn lives in Utah with her wife, Courtney Jensen, and their daughter, Eleanor. 

Peter Sepulveda is from Salem, Ore. and teaches choir at McKay High School. During his time at McKay, he has consistently coached state-qualifying choirs and directs Scots-Appella, the competitive a cappella group that has performed at ICHSA Semifinals and placed in regional competitions. While at St. Olaf College, he performed with The Limestones, arranging and singing on their studio album, Down to Earth. He graduated from St. Olaf with a degree in vocal music education and received a Master of Education from Portland State University. In addition to his work at McKay, Peter has served as a clinician for K-12 choirs in the Salem-Keizer area. He frequently collaborates with college a cappella groups and arrangers and seeks to spread the art form in his district and throughout the state of Oregon.

SPECIAL THANKS

Varsity Vocals would like to recognize and thank tonight's emcee, Jake Yoakum, our photographer, Jake Young (jakeyoungphotography.com), and our guest group, InVoice; sound engineers, Pete and Trina from Yoakum Light and Sound; Courtney Jensen, Harmonie Nyounai-Herrera, Jason Caffarella, and all the staff at the Elsinore Theatre; 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 West 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!

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