The A Capella Rush concert took place on Saturday, September 9 at Jorgenson. All nine groups performed two songs to recruit new members to audition this weekend. Pictured: Notes Over Storrs. (Olivia Stenger/The Daily Campus)
The semi-annual A Cappella Fall Rush Concert was held in Jorgensen at 7 p.m. on Saturday night to a sold out crowd that included President Herbst. The event was hosted by DJ Porter, president of the UConn A Cappella Association (UCACA). UCACA is the overarching organization for the nine a cappella groups that are currently on campus: A Minor, Chordials, Rubyfruit, Conn Men, CDN, Drop the Bass, Extreme Measures, Rolling Tones, and Notes Over Storrs.
This event, which takes place in the fall and spring, showcases the amazing talent of the nine groups and encourages students to audition. “Come sign up and we will make great music together,” said Porter during his speech.
The first group to perform was the UConn Chordials, an all-female group currently consisting of eight very talented ladies. They sang “River” by Bishop Briggs and “Stay” by Rihanna, with the help of a few of their alumni to fill spots. They are currently looking for all voice parts, and will be releasing an album later this semester. You can follow them @UConnChordials.
The second group to perform was the Rolling Tones, one of the four co-ed groups. They sang “Settle Down” by Kimbra and a powerful mashup of “Sugar, We’re Goin Down” by Fall Out Boy and “This is Gospel” by Panic! At the Disco. They are looking for all voice parts. You can follow them @UConnRollingTones.
UConn’s newest all-female group, Drop the Bass, performed next. They sang “Sun Out of the Rain” by Elizabeth Huett and “Tear in My Heart” by Twenty One Pilots. As the newest a cappella group on campus they are looking for new members and all voice parts. You can follow them @UCDropthebass.
Next up was UConn’s oldest all-male a cappella group, A Completely Different Note, or CDN for short. They performed “The Popular Thing” by Jukebox the Ghost and “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)” by Michael Jackson. They are also looking for all voice parts. You can follow them @CdnUConn.
Following CDN was A-minor, UConn’s oldest co-ed group.They sang “Invincible” by Big Wild and “Chains” by Nick Jonas. They recently competed in the 2017 International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) where they made it to the semi-finals. They are looking for all voice parts and can be followed @UConnAMinor.
Performing next was Rubyfruit, an all-female group. They sang “The Night We Met” by Lord Huron, which was made popular by the Netflix original “13 Reasons Why”, and “Tears Dry On Their Own” by Amy Winehouse. They are looking for all voice parts. You can follow them @UConnRubies.
Up next was Notes Over Storrs, one of the co-ed groups. They sang “Own House” by MisterWives and “Standing By” by Pentatonix. They are looking for all voice parts, and you can follow them @NotesOverStorrs.
Performing Next was Extreme Measures, or “Ex-M”. They are a co-ed group and recently released an album. They sang “Dark Fantasy” by Kanye West and “The Real” by Busty and the Bass. They are looking for all voice parts. You can follow them @exm.uconn
Last but not least performed Conn-Men, UConn’s second oldest all-male a cappella group. They performed “Unchained Melody” by the Righteous Brothers and “Your Eyes” by Allen Stone. They are looking to fill all voice parts and can be followed @UConnConnmen.
Each group displayed amazing vocal talent that was extremely captivating. The entire crowd was getting into it as well, clapping along and shouting for their performing friends. It is clear that a cappella is really important to each group, and they are excited to find new members to join them. Not only was the show entertaining, but all the proceeds went to a good cause. “One of the reasons I’m so happy you guys came is because we all know UConn donates to HuskyThon, and all of the proceeds from this show are being donated” said UCACA president Porter during his closing remarks.
Auditions began taking place Sunday and will continue tonight in the Music Building.
Melissa Scrivani is a campus correspondent for The Daily Campus. She can be reached via email at melissa.scrivani@uconn.edu.