Performers dressed as cowboys, bees and Taylor Swift performed in Marsh Chapel on Oct. 21. Hosted by treble-voiced a cappella group Aural Fixation, all of Boston University’s a cappella groups united for the annual “Acatoberfest” concert.
In true “Acatoberfest” tradition, each a cappella group performed one or two songs while dressed in coordinated Halloween costumes, said Sara Norris, treasurer of Aural Fixation.
“It’s just really nice to see all the different groups and see all their hard work pay off and what kind of songs they sing,” said Norris, a junior in the Questrom School of Business.
Norris’s group performed Beyonce’s “Woman Like Me” in Top Gun costumes. The Dear Abbeys, BU’s all-male a capella group, dressed as bees, while all-gender group The BosTones performed as pirates.
The event coincided with Family and Friends Weekend, which Norris said the group makes an effort to arrange every year. Norris said her group has three-hour rehearsals twice a week.
“It’s really time consuming and we put in a lot of energy with the songs that we sing,” Norris said. “It’s just really nice to see it all pay off and be able to show friends and family at this concert.”
Ashley Duong, a new member of Aural Fixation, said she joined a cappella groups this fall and “Acatoberfest” was her first performance with BU a cappella. She said she had not performed since high school and felt nervous before the show.
“I’m always a little bit nervous before a performance, but as soon as you get up there, you get a lot more excited,” said Duong, a sophomore in the College of Communication. “It just transitions from nerves to excitement, but it definitely started off with a lot of nerves.”
Duong said she has felt a great sense of community within Aural Fixation and a cappella at BU, that it’s “almost indescribable.”
“I think … doing anything related to the arts is so intimate,” Duong said. “You get to see this intimate side of other people that you wouldn’t normally see.”
Sara Weinberg, a junior in COM, said it was a great show.
“I thought the costumes were really cool and creative,” Weinberg said.
Oura Miyazaki, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, said it was her first time coming to a BU a cappella festival.
“It was really interesting,” Miyazaki said. “[I] really loved the different specific types of groups that they have here. They were [their] own characters.”
“Acatoberfest” was also the first time seeing a BU a cappella concert for Emily Rubin, a sophomore in CAS.
“They were great,” Rubin said. “There were a few groups in particular that I was excited to see, and they really pulled through.”
After the performance, Duong said she felt “Acatoberfest” was a success.
“It went really well,” Duong said. “It was wonderful seeing all the groups come together, and I was really proud of our performances.”
