While many Boston University students were at parties in Allston or attending basketball or hockey games Saturday night, others were singing their hearts out and enjoying the sweet sounds of student a cappella groups.
For the fourth year in a row, BU’s In Achord hosted the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella at Morse Auditorium for a crowd of nearly 500, most of whom were students who danced and clapped along with the show’s upbeat tunes.
The yearly competition, now in its 12th season, is one of four quarterfinals held in the New England area, Varsity Vocals Northeast Producer Maxine Sharavsky said. The first- and second-place groups — Berklee College of Music’s Pitchslap and Boston College’s Dynamics — will go on to compete in the semifinals held on Mar. 22 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Host group In Achord provided the opening and closing performances with renditions of Pat Benatar’s “Heartbreaker” and One Republic’s “Apologize.” BU’s comedy troupe Slow Children at Play emceed the event and offered sketch comedy between performances.
“In Achord chose not to compete this year in order to focus on our hosting duties,” In Achord member Ariel Gold, a University Professors Program senior, said.
The Dear Abbey’s, 2005 International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella competitors, were also absent.
“BU has a lot of a cappella groups, and they don’t all get to compete,” Terpsichore member Gabrielle Caroselli, a College of Arts and Sciences freshman, said. “So a lot of them show up to watch.”
CAS freshman Alex Warren of The BosTones, a group that was not competing, said, in addition to seeing his friends compete, he attended because “It’s nice to see other talented groups.”
Six Boston-area groups participated in the Varsity Vocals competition; BU groups The Allegrettos, Terpsichore and Chordially Yours, as well as groups from BC, Berklee and Northeastern University.
The groups are selected to compete based on an application process, Northeastern junior Chelle Sharavsky said.
Groups that have competed in past years are automatically invited to compete again, Zaretzky said, adding that her group, The Downbeats, returned to compete again this year.
“We try to take as many groups as possible,” Sharavsky said. “We try to maintain balance between male, female and co-ed groups . . . Everyone is here to win, but the vibe is not competitive. We always have a mix of well-established groups and groups that are just starting out.”
Dynamics member Matt Walsh, a BC senior, said his group has been preparing all season.
“We only rehearse the three songs that we will be performing,” Walsh said. “I wasn’t sure if we would make it, but we’ve come a long way.”
Varsity Vocals also hosts the International Competition of High School A Cappella and releases two CDs every year that feature the best groups at the high school and collegiate level.
