DEAR FRIENDS,

Welcome to Varsity Vocals’ 28th 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 650 groups and over 10,000 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 28 years ago and we can’t wait to see how our 2024 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 GREAT LAKES SEMIFINAL

The Pabst Theater
Saturday, March 23rd, 2024

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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 high school tournament is now in its 19th 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 26th.

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 27th.

 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

Harmonix is a fierce, competitive, treble a cappella group based out of Jordan, Minn., with so much sass and a whole lot of class. Their mission is to focus on empowerment by embracing their whole selves, being confident, showing respect, and accepting others. They are passionate about singing their stories to inspire others to step out of their comfort levels and become the best version of themselves. Harmonix believes that everyone should live in harmony with one another and within their own hearts. 

Vocal Point is a 14-member, auditioned, a cappella vocal band based out of Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau High School, in Galesville, Wis. They have performed all over the Midwest, opening for nationally touring a cappella groups such as Six Appeal, Street Corner Symphony, Revoiced, Cantus, Vocalosity, DCappella, and The Exchange. They have performed in some of the biggest venues in the country such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Beacon Theatre, Auditorium Theatre, The Chicago Theatre, and for a crowd of over 50,000 people when opening for Gavin DeGraw and Andy Grammar. Vocal Point has participated in the ICHSA for the past eight years, receiving awards each year for Outstanding Soloist and Vocal Percussion. In 2017, they won the ICHSA Wildcard and advanced to Finals in New York, earning 3rd place and Outstanding Vocal Percussion. They returned to Finals in 2019 and placed 4th. In 2019, Vocal Point took a break from competing in the ICHSA and turned their attention to doing workshops with other high school a cappella programs and performed at the National A Cappella Convention (NACC) in Memphis, Tenn. After that hiatus, Vocal Point was thrilled to represent the Great Lakes region at Finals in 2023. 

Knight Club is Oak Creek High School's premier mixed-voice a cappella group. They have been heavily involved in the high school a cappella scene since 2014.  During that span of time, they have participated in ICHSA every year, including the year that it was a virtual competition. They have been fortunate to advance to Semifinals and Finals on multiple occasions. Knight Club enjoys hosting a cappella workshops and concerts, like OCAP (Oak Creek A Cappella Party) and AC in the OC (a cappella in Oak Creek). They have been featured on BOHSA and have a growing catalogue of songs available on various streaming services. Knight Club prides themselves on putting together powerful performances that tell their stories. You can follow Knight Club on Instagram @ochsknightclub.

Founded in fall 2018, Major Detour is in its sixth year at Buffalo Grove High School. Major Detour has seven members, all juniors and seniors. Major Detour is very excited to be competing with ICHSA once again after earning the title of 2019 Quarterfinal Champions. 

Resolve is the premier contemporary a cappella group at Niles West High School in Skokie, Ill. Resolve, a mixed ensemble consisting of 20 students from the ninth to 12th grades, performs repertoire spanning multiple genres of music. Founded in 2023, this is their first year competing at the ICHSA. 

Colla Voce is a student-run group at West High School. They have participated in ICHSA every year since their founding. They self-arrange and self-choreograph all of their pieces and have a blast with it! Colla Voce usually sings a variety of pop songs, but likes to include at least one classical piece every year, plus a holiday song at their annual winter concert. Outside of ICHSA, they sing at their school's concerts and at other gigs around Madison, like opening for UW's choir concerts. They love to do whip-shares at the start of every rehearsal and close off every rehearsal by dancing around to the “Rio” soundtrack. 

Founded in 2005, The Angelics is Plainfield North High School’s premier a cappella group. They are the only competitive group in their district and the only female-centered a cappella ensemble at their school. This innovative and passionate group of musicians seeks to push the boundaries of contemporary treble a cappella, using their angelic voices to connect, inspire, and empower. They perform a variety of music, ranging from upbeat popular music to ballads from emerging artists. The students are involved in assistant directing, arranging, song selection, choreography, and event planning. This group of girls takes pride in making music a comfortable space, sharing ideas and being authentically themselves. Through their sisterhood, they infuse each of their songs with deep emotional resonance. Their performances range from curricular concerts, community events, collaborations with collegiate a cappella groups through workshops and clinics, and tours for local elementary and middle schools. With their reestablishment in 2022, The Angelics have adapted, further making their mark on the a cappella world. The Angelics are thrilled to come to this space for the first time and bring the highest standards of musicality, choreography, and heart. 

Vocal Point is a treble group from Lockport Township High School. They have competed at both the Quarterfinal and Semifinal levels of ICHSA and placed at the ICHSA Great Lakes Semifinal in Milwaukee. Vocal Point has also competed in the ICHSA Wildcard competition. 

Off The Record is a passionate group of student musicians who strive to entertain audiences with technically sound and emotionally compelling performances. In its six years of existence, OTR has been fortunate to qualify for four ICHSA Semifinal rounds and placed as Runner-Up in both 2021 and 2023. OTR actively performs throughout the Midwest and has been invited to perform at the Illinois Music Educators Conference and as the opening act for Foreigner’s farewell tour. They would like to thank their friends and family for all of their support. 

Noteworthy originated as the Memorial Madrigals, a group of high school choir singers from Eau Claire Memorial High School that has been spreading holiday cheer throughout the Chippewa Valley for over 55 years. While The Memorial Madrigals are still in high demand to carol during the holiday season, they now perform as Noteworthy for the rest of the year, focusing on the art of contemporary a cappella music and performance. This is the group’s sixth year under the direction of Aurora Krajnikconde. Noteworthy is composed of 13 members who were accepted after a rigorous audition process. This Noteworthy’s fifth year competing  in the ICHSA. Last year, they advanced to ICHSA Semifinals and were honored to compete with 10 other amazing high school a cappella groups from the Great Lakes Region at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee.

TONIGHT'S JUDGES

Heather David is a proud alumna of Syracuse University's Main Squeeze, for whom she sang, arranged, choreographed, and did vocal percussion. Since graduating, Heather has remained active in the a cappella world as social media coordinator for Boston Sings (BOSS), Program Manager of Social Media for the Contemporary A Cappella Society of America (CASA), associate producer of Voices Only, and an instructor for workshops and masterclasses at a cappella festivals nationwide. She has won ICCA awards for Outstanding Arrangement and Outstanding Vocal Percussion as a college student and Varsity Vocals has held a special place in her heart ever since. 

Laura Kruschke has been involved in a cappella since her college days at UW-Madison, where she sang with Tangled Up in Blue and earned her degree in music education. In 2007, she participated in launching the Contemporary A Cappella League (CAL) and founded greenTONE A Cappella in fall 2007. gT is 10 members strong today and sings for a variety of local events, including weddings, holiday parties, fundraisers, and flash mobs. In addition to gT, Laura continues to offer her expertise to local high school choirs through workshops and group coaching. In addition to Laura’s aca-involvement, she arranges music for local high school show choir and a cappella groups, sings and plays saxophone in a local band, teaches yoga, and wears many other hats as a mom to three busy school-aged kids. 

Benjamin Lebovitz, a graduate of the University of Arizona, is an experienced arranger, clinician, and educator. As Arizona's ambassador to CASA and with the state's chapter of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), he organizes regional festivals for collegiate and high school ensembles while regularly facilitating at music educator conferences. A National Board Certified Teacher in music, Ben taught at Walden Grove High School for seven years prior to returning to the classroom. Today, he is a Ph.D. student in education and an active musician in Madison, Wis. 

Aubrey Malito-Waters is delighted to be judging these talented groups! Aubrey attended Illinois State University for musical theatre and music business and served as music director for the women’s a cappella group, Secondary Dominance. After graduation, Aubrey performed in musicals and cabarets in New York and worked in house management for six Broadway shows. She continued to arrange a cappella music and was even commissioned by the cast of “Jersey Boys” to arrange a piece for their Hall & Oates concert to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Since returning to Chicago, Aubrey has been an active performer and teacher. She is the director of choirs at Conrady Junior High in Hickory Hills, coaches the speech team, and vocal directs the spring musical at Carl Sandburg High School in Orland Park. Aubrey holds a Master of Music Education from Eastern Illinois University. 

Kimberly Sailor is the editor-in-chief of the Recorded A Cappella Review Board (RARB), where she has authored nearly 500 published reviews for scholastic, collegiate, and professional groups worldwide. Sailor has judged for Varsity Vocals since 2005 after graduating from her collegiate group, USC's Reverse Osmosis. She works as a writer, teacher, and firefighter. 

SPECIAL THANKS

Varsity Vocals would like to recognize and thank our judges, hosts, competitors, volunteers, partners, and producers; and you, the audience, for supporting Varsity Vocals programming.

Amanda Newman
 Executive Director

Elise Hackl-Blumstein
ICHSA Director
PA/MA Program Coordinator

Dave Rabizadeh
 ICCA Director

Emily Sucher
 Director of Publications

Lucy Jacobs
 ICCA West Producer

Lindsay Howerton-Hastings
 ICCA South Producer

Arvin Zabalerio
ICCA Central Producer

Gemma Davies
 ICCA United Kingdom Producer

Emily Benjamin
 ICCA Northeast Producer

Danielle Sutherland
 ICHSA Midwest Producer

Adam McNeil
ICHSA Great Lakes Producer

Cameron Clemens
 ICHSA West Producer

Jody Hagler
 ICHSA Mid-Atlantic Producer

Bryce McCracken
 Associate Producer

Bri Decerio
 Associate Producer

Courtney Jensen
 Associate Producer
Emcee Extraordinaire

Sara Yood
Senior Producer

Emily Flanders
Director of Adjudication
 ICCA Great Lakes Producer

Andrew Poole
 Director of Digital Media

Charlotte Taylor
Marketing & Social Strategy

Holli Kitching
ICCA Mid-Atlantic Producer

Leah Alrutz
 ICCA Midwest Producer

Bronwyn Jensen
 ICCA Southwest Producer

Christopher Witham
 ICCA United Kingdom Producer

Jillian Kimberlin
 Senior Producer

Christopher Hoffman
 ICHSA Northeast Producer

Ben Garza
 ICHSA Southwest Producer

Luke Thomas
 ICHSA South Producer

Alaina Wegner
 Associate Producer

Jake Yoakum
 Associate Producer

Rebecca Williamson
 Associate Producer

Andrea Poole
Consultant
ICHSA Director Emeritus

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 placing group at this event will advance to the 2024 ICHSA Finals.

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!

#ICHSA