2023 ICHSA Northeast Quarterfinal @ Galvin Middle School

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

ICHSA NORTHEAST QUARTERFINAL

Galvin Middle School
Sunday, February 12th, 2023

WE'RE SOCIAL

We're talking about this event, and all of our events around the world!

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@varsityvocals

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 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.

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.

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

Accent A Cappella is Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School’s completely student-run, co-ed a cappella group and they are so excited to be performing at ICHSA! Since Accent’s founding almost 20 years ago, the group has been active in their community, performing at school-run and local events around Massachusetts. Working together as a group, Accent rehearses, bonds, and fundraises, creating an environment of musical cooperation at Lincoln-Sudbury. Accent wants to thank everyone who helped this event happen. Accent’s set this year revolves around the fragility of love and how it influences perspective, with songs “Prisoner” (Dua Lipa ft. Miley Cyrus), “Dancing On My Own” (Robyn), and “Japanese Denim” (Daniel Caesar). To hear more from Accent, their EP, Wave, can be found on Spotify! Accent A Cappella can also be found on Instagram and Facebook @accentacappella. Come see them at Acapalooza in March!

Luminescence, an all-female a cappella group from Marblehead High School, was founded in 2005 and has been entertaining audiences ever since. From a competitive standpoint, the group received awards for Outstanding Choreography and Outstanding Soloist (ICHSA and NE Voices) and won NE Voices competition (2014). Luminescence earned 3rd place in the ICHSA Northeast Semifinal in 2016. Since 2017, Luminescence has released three albums with The Jewel Tones, C105, Six Feet Apart, and, No Time for Trouble on iTunes and Spotify. Be sure to follow Luminescence on Instagram (@mhsluminescence).

The Crescendos is Chelmsford High School's treble-voiced a cappella group. They are veterans of the ICHSA tournament, having performed at Northeast Semifinals multiple times and earning special awards for Outstanding Vocal Percussion and Student Arrangements. They take great pride in their high level of student leadership. The Crescendos also love creating video content for their social media accounts. Look for them on TikTok and Instagram!

The Jewel Tones is a co-ed a cappella group from Marblehead High School. Founded in 2003, the group has since shared its music with the community, and beyond. The Jewel Tones have participated in many competitions, including ICHSA and NE Voices. Over the years, the group has participated in other exciting endeavors, including a perofmrance at Governor Baker's Inaugural Ball. Since 2017, The Jewel Tones has released three albums with Luminescence, C105, Six Feet Apart, and No Time for Trouble on iTunes and Spotify. Be sure to follow The Jewel Tones on Instagram (@mhsthejeweltones).

The Newtones is Newton South's only a cappella group and they are completely student-run. When they're not singing, you can find them at Kung Fu Tea and watching Morbius at 2 a.m.

The Thursdays is Chelmsford High School's first contemporary a cappella group, founded in 2014. The group has performed in the ICHSA every year and has represented the Northeast region at Finals four times. They have appeared on the WGBH television show "Sing That Thing" and make frequent appearances at community events in the greater Boston area. This year, the group is excited to welcome nine new members into the Thursdays family.

Voices ReChoired is a group from Marlboro High School. They pride themselves on choosing meaningful set themes that also tell a story. This year, their set focuses on the current struggles in today's global climate. They are extremely grateful to be performing in this year’s ICHSA and are honored to share the stage with such amazing groups.

Voices of Steel is the advanced mixed voice group at Wakefield High School, directed by Ana Morel. Formed in 2009, they have collaborated with groups such as The Exchange and The Nor'easters and have worked with Shams Ahmed, Deke Sharon, and Caleb Whelden. They love to make music almost as much as they love their red Converse. In 2018, they placed 2nd in the ICHSA Northeast Quarterfinal. In 2014, 2015, and 2016, they won the NE Voices competition, and in 2015, they won the Salem Pitch Trials. Group members have won awards for Student Arranging, Outstanding Choreography, and Outstanding Soloist. They are thrilled to be back on the ICHSA stage and wish good luck to all the competing groups!

WitchPitch is Salem High School's premier a cappella group. They enjoy performing all over, from singing at the White House, to busking in downtown Salem. They love to perform songs from many different music genres and styles, especially songs with messages that they connect to and believe in. They are so excited to be back on the ICHSA stage!

GUEST PERFORMER

Established in 2004, The Audiophiles is the first and only co-ed a cappella group from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Since they primarily perform arrangements done by active members, their repertoire and music style reflects through the groups' tastes at any given time. In 2019, they released their first studio EP, .WAV (You can listen to several of the tracks on their Spotify!). In 2019 and 2020 they were Quarterfinalists in the ICCA.

TONIGHT'S JUDGES

An established clinician and music educator, Harrison Acosta originally studied orchestral performance and vocal pedagogy at the UCF School of Performing Arts. After completing his capstone thesis, “Capturing Moments in Music feat. The Human Voice,” he began advanced study in the Contemporary Writing and Production program at the Berklee College of Music. Harrison has collaborated to create several vocal groups across the community, including Voicebox, Project V, REMIX, Atlas and Royalty. As an undergraduate in 2014, he created UCF’s Voicebox, leading the group to place internationally and receive numerous accolades for their recorded music, live performances, and arrangements. They have been featured at showcases across the country and have been crowned champions at three national shows: SoJam XIV (2016), SoJam XVI (2018), and BostonSings (2018).

Becca Crivello has been involved with vocal groups since her elementary years, eventually going on to receive her bachelor’s degree in music studies (education) from UMass Lowell with a concentration in voice. While attending UMass Lowell, she started a female-identified a cappella group, The Hawkettes, and was their music director for four years. During that time, they performed in numerous concerts and recorded an EP, Lavandula. She went on to get her master’s degree in music education from Boston University, where she remained active in the choral community. She is currently the choral director at Hudson Memorial School in Hudson, N.H., where she directs three grade-level choirs, an audition-based choir, and the annual musical. She recently had the opportunity to direct Tonal Chaos (formerly The Sachimes), a high school a cappella group from Saugus, Mass., in which she arranged two ICHSA sets (one in-person and one virtual). Becca is grateful for the opportunity to further contribute her time to the a cappella community!

Isaiah Hawkins is an arranger, songwriter, and music educator from Auburn Hills, Mich. He graduated with a degree in music education from Michigan State University, where he was a music director of State of Fifths and The MSU Spartones. At MSU, he was a production assistant for the ICHSA Great Lakes region and received Outstanding Arrangement awards from ICCA and The AcaOpen. He also released an EP, Lifeline, and an album, Legacy, with State of Fifths, receiving Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award (CARA) and A Cappella Video Award (AVA) nominations and awards along the way. Isaiah was also one of the members of the Voices Only Productions arranging team, sang with Flux Vocals, served as the North Region Relationship Manager for the Contemporary A Cappella Society of America (CASA), was on the Boston Sings (BOSS) team, and is a clinician for vocal groups of all ages!

Amy Malkoff is one of the producers of the Haunted Harmonies festival in Salem, Mass. She has served as the marketing director for the A Cappella Education Association, as well as the media director of the Women's A Cappella Association (WACA), and on the board and as web content director for the CASA. She is a longtime ICHSA/ICCA judge, as well as a certified judge for other vocal events. She is a workshop teacher, master clinician, writer, designer, social media manager (www.amymalkoff.com), and a singer/songwriter and studio musician (www.amymalkoffmusic.com). She currently runs and manages the New Hampshire-based performance venue Club Sandwich (Sandwich, N.H.), where celebrity John Davidson performs on weekends, along with a lineup of nationally known artists on Thursdays. She was a founding member of the groups All About Buford and Deadline Poet and has appeared onstage and in the studio with acts such as Wayne Brady, Jonathan Brooke, The Persuasions, Ellis Paul, Vance Gilbert, GrooveLily, Patty Griffin, and Dar Williams. She has a degree in music from Kenyon College, with music studies at Youngstown State University and master’s-level coursework at the New England Conservatory of Music. Amy's music has appeared on both the Rounder Records and Hear Music/Starbucks labels. @amalkoff

SPECIAL THANKS

Varsity Vocals would like to recognize and thank our host, Ana Morel at Wakefield High School, along with the Galvin Middle School staff for making this possible; our incredible sound engineer, Jill Clark, and all of our event staff; 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 ICHSA Northeast 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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