DEAR FRIENDS,

Welcome to Varsity Vocals’ 29th 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 700 groups and over 11,000 singers at over 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 29 years ago and we can’t wait to see how our 2025 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 WEST QUARTERFINAL

Fairfield Downtown Theatre
Friday, February 7th, 2025

WE'RE SOCIAL

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

varsityvocals

@varsityvocals

Follow us @varsityvocals on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat, and join the conversation using #ICHSA.

ABOUT VARSITY VOCALS

Since 1996, we have encouraged students worldwide to sing a cappella throughout their lives. Our programs include both the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA), and the International Championship of High School A Cappella (ICHSA). 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 20th year. The winners of each of seven Semifinal rounds will advance to the ICHSA Finals at The Town Hall in New York City on Friday, April 25th.

The college tournament takes place from January through April in nine regions across the country and around the world. Each region holds four or 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 26th.

 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

Continuum A Cappella is the professional high school alumni ensemble of Pacific Boychoir Academy. They sing choral music of all styles, throughout the ages, and around the world, from Renaissance to contemporary pop, hymns, glees, folks songs, spirituals, chanties, and more. They have recently released singles on iTunes, Spotify, and other media platforms. Continuum has also been heard on NBC’s “The Blacklist” and was a top contender in the national Harmony Sweepstakes. 

Downbeat is The Harker School’s contemporary pop ensemble. They perform both a capella and accompanied arrangements of pop, jazz, world music, and musical theatre songs. Chosen through audition for their musicianship, vocal, and dance skills, the group performs for various community events each year including school galas, fundraising events, concerts, and a holiday tour throughout the Bay Area. In addition to being passionate performers, members of Downbeat take on leadership roles at school and throughout the larger Silicon Valley community as volunteers, club organizers, researchers, stage directors, members of Student Council, and as student activists. They are thrilled to participate in ICHSA again this year! 

The hOWLers is a mixed-gender a cappella group from The Athenian School. They specialize in eating yummy food, laughing and singing together, and spreading joy with their voices. 

MST Music Academy's MYST A Cappella is a determined group that is fired up and ready to head into their third year competing in the ICHSA. They are proud of their successful 2024 showing, placing 2nd at their Quarterfinal and 3rd at West Semifinals. These talented young performers have grown up with backgrounds in performance art and share a profound love of music. MYST members are grateful everyday for the opportunity to perform a cappella. 

The Northgate Madrigals (“Mads” for short!) is a longstanding mixed a cappella group from Northgate High School! Ranging from sophomores to seniors, the group splits into anywhere between four and eight vocal parts. They perform all types of music, from classical madrigals (hence their name) to holiday busking songs to contemporary pop arrangements, for events in school and throughout the local community. Their favorite annual event is performing for the fully student-directed and student-produced contemporary concert, Musical America, a tradition at Northgate since long before the current group members were born. Although they are a school-affiliated group, they haven’t had a teacher or administrator for the last two years. Despite this, they have continued performing and pushing themselves to be their best, working together to learn arrangements of their favorite songs by their favorite a cappella groups. Northgate Madrigals members value traditions and group spirit. They look forward to competing in their first ICHSA! 

Established in 2015, Pinewood Take Note is a contemporary a cappella group from Pinewood School Upper Campus in sunny Los Altos Hills, Calif., directed by Katie Linza. They love singing all kinds of music, but specialize in jazz-influenced reimaginings of current pop hits and classic standards. They have had amazing opportunities to work with some of the great jazz and a cappella vocalists and ensembles singing today, including säje, Amanda Taylor, Ben Bram, Alvin Chea (of Take 6), Accent, and Lisa Forkish. They are always looking to expand their musical horizons and learn from the best. Since 2019, Take Note has studio recorded and released singles and EPs to all major music streaming services. 

Treble With Angels is a non-male a cappella group from Aragon High School in San Mateo, Calif. Established in fall 2013, this is their 11th year as a group and sixth time competing in the ICHSA. Previously at ICHSA, they have progressed to 2023 West Semifinals and won numerous awards, including Outstanding Choreorgraphy in 2024 and two Outstanding Arrangement awards in 2023. Treble With Angels is entirely student-run, with all arrangements, choreography, and leadership managed by high-school students. As a group, they focus on female empowerment, striving to uplift the voices of female singers and songwriters. 

Wolf PACappella is Pacifica Christian High School's premier all-gender a cappella group! Founded in 2019, Wolf PACappella has created a safe environment for aspiring young singers, songwriters, and arrangers to thrive while developing lifelong friendships, deepening their relationships with God, and, of course, building their love of music. As much as they love to sing, Wolf PACappella’s mission is, first and foremost, to have fun! 

GUEST PERFORMER

The Lounge Lizards began in 1995 as a group of friends living in the Tercero dorms at UC Davis. The oldest a cappella group on campus, The Lizards can be found performing at local events, most notably at their annual spring concert, No Instruments Attached. As four-time ICCA Semifinalists, most recently placing 1st at the 2024 ICCA West Quarterfinals and 3rd at the 2024 ICCA West Semifinals, The Lizards bring their award-winning a cappella to competition and beyond.

TONIGHT'S JUDGES

Samuel Dantowitz (he/him) is a graduate of Berklee College of Music, where he sang with Pitch Slapped (two-time ICCA Champion), Upper Structure (two-time ICCA Runner-Up), and award-winning vocal jazz group Point of Departure. His work on “She Used to Be Mine” with Upper Structure earned him several Outstanding Soloist awards and can be heard on Varsity Vocals’ 2018 BOCA compilation album, enjoying nearly 700 thousand streams on Spotify and a nod from songwriter and ICCA alum Sara Bareilles. In film and TV, Samuel was fortunate to work on the 2022 Academy Award Best Picture winner “CODA” and Lifetime’s “Pitch Slapped.” His quartet, Mixed & Mastered, was an inaugural mixed competitor at the International Varsity Barbershop Harmony Society Contest. Samuel currently serves year-round on staff at A Cappella Academy. Outside of music environments, Samuel still finds a way to burst into song at his 9-5, where he’s the current “Amazon’s Got Talent” National Champion.

Dr. Daniel Fister (he/him) is thrilled to be in his 10th (!) year judging for Varsity Vocals. He is a proud original member of Wilsonville High School’s Soul’d Out and alumnus of Chapman University SoundCheck. In both groups, he sang bass, arranged, served as music director, and competed in Varsity Vocals events. Daniel remains involved in a cappella as a judge for Varisty Vocals and the Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards (CARAs), a reviewer for the Recorded A Cappella Review Board (RARB), and a masterclass leader. His time singing and judging a cappella inspired him to pursue a doctoral degree in musicology and his dissertation examined how race impacts ideologies, policies, and sounds in contemporary scholastic a cappella. He is now an adjunct professor at various Bay Area colleges. He also sings with and is the assistant director of The Silicon Valley Gay Men’s Chorus, for whom he directs the ensemble’s small group, Desperate Measures. Best wishes to all the competing groups! 

Bill Hare is a Grammy-winning recording engineer/producer and is recognized as a pioneer in bringing pop/rock production techniques to recorded contemporary a cappella. Over the past 35 years, Bill has recorded and/or mixed acclaimed albums for some of the best-known contemporary a cappella groups around the globe, from The Swingle Singers to The King’s Singers in the U.K., Basix to Vocal Line in Denmark, Italy's Cluster, The Ghost Files, Alti & Bassi and Maybe6ix, German supergroups Wise Guys, Amarcord, and Maybebop, to name just a few, as well as artists from dozens of other countries, from Australia to Zambia. He also covers the U.S. from his home base in California, working with top American acts including The House Jacks, m-pact, Pentatonix, Peter Hollens, Street Corner Symphony, NoTa, +4dB, Duwende, The Backbeats, Brian Wilson/The Beach Boys, as well as NBC’s hit show, “The Sing-Off.” Collegiate a cappella clients include The Tufts Beelzebubs, University of Oregon’s On The Rocks and Divisi, The Stanford Harmonics, and scores of others. Bill’s story was also told in the original book version of “Pitch Perfect,” from which the popular movies were adapted. Bill’s accolades include more than 70 appearances on BOCA, over 100 CARA nominations, nearly 40 albums on RARB’s "Picks of the Year" lists, and 11 "DeeBee" awards since 1987 in the vocal jazz category from Downbeat Magazine. Bill has also had numerous appearances on Billboard, iTunes, and other major charts, Gold and Platinum record certifications around the world, and multiple music awards and nominations. 

Hannah Robrecht, a versatile and accomplished classical vocalist, embarked on her musical journey as a member of the Contra Costa Children's Choir from 1997 to 2003. Hannah was a part of their level five elite choir and select a cappella group invited as guest performers at the IACC in 2003 held at UCLA. Hannah's involvement in the Bay Area's vibrant performing arts scene extended beyond the choir as she participated in various plays and musicals with organizations such as Contra Costa Musical Theater, Balasco, and Contra Costa Children's Choir. Her commitment to music led her to regional and national competitions in classical and musical theatre, culminating in an invitation to represent the United States at the 2003 World Championships of Performing Arts. Excited to be performing on a global stage, she brought home a gold medal for opera, a silver for musical theatre, and a bronze for gospel. Hannah was a vocal performance major at the University of Oregon for three years and studied under the guidance of Eric Mentzel and Sharon Paul. She was also a member of University of Oregon's premier treble a cappella group, Divisi. Post-college, she continued to contribute her talents to the musical community by singing with Cantare Con Vivo and is currently a first soprano with the San Ramon Valley Chorale. Currently residing in Pleasant Hill with her family, Hannah has found a harmonious balance between her musical pursuits and a successful career in marketing and communications. 

Hahns Shin is a bass singer based out of Berkeley and East Bay. In undergrad, he performed with the prestigious Purdue Varsity Glee Club and the Purdue Symphony Orchestra. He currently performs in four different a cappella groups (including Side Note, winner of the 2022 Bay Area Harmony Sweepstakes competition) and is active in community a cappella meetups throughout the Bay Area. He has served on the board of the East Bay Harmony community chorus since 2018. 

SPECIAL THANKS

Varsity Vocals would like to recognize and thank tonight's host group, MYST A Cappella (especially their director, Casey Ellis); emcee, Melinda Ellis; sound engineer, Leroy Hyson from RDX Productions; our guest performers The Lounge Lizards, our volunteers, and all of the staff at the Downtown Theatre.; 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
 Senior Producer, ICCA & ICHSA West

Lindsay Howerton-Hastings
 Senior Producer, ICCA South

Arvin Zabalerio
Senior Producer, ICCA Central

Gemma Davies
Producer, ICCA United Kingdom

Emily Benjamin
Producer, ICCA Northeast

Adam McNeil
Producer, ICHSA Great Lakes

Valentyna Simon
Producer, ICHSA West

Ben Garza
Producer, ICHSA Southwest

Bryce McCracken
 Associate Producer, ICCA Central

Bri Decerio
 Associate Producer

Angelina Corbin
 Associate Producer
ICCA & ICHSA South

Sara Yood
Senior Producer

Emily Flanders
Director of Adjudication
 Senior Producer, ICCA Great Lakes

Andrew Poole
 Director of Digital Media

Charlotte Taylor
Marketing & Social Strategy

Holli Kitching
Senior Producer, ICCA Mid-Atlantic

Leah Alrutz
 Senior Producer, ICCA Midwest

Alaina Wegner
Producer, ICCA Southwest

Christopher Witham
 Producer, ICCA United Kingdom

Jillian Kimberlin
 Senior Producer, ICHSA Mid-Atlantic

Christopher Hoffman
 Producer, ICHSA Northeast

Jake Yoakum
Producer, ICHSA West

Nicole Palmetto
Associate Producer, ICCA Northeast

Tyandria Jaaber
Associate Producer, ICCA Mid-Atlantic

Rebecca Williamson
 Associate Producer, ICCA South

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 three placing groups at this event will advance to the 2025 ICHSA 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!

#ICHSA