By Natalie Kouba and Jonathan Edmondson
Editor-in-Chief and Arts & Entertainment Editor
Beautiful blends of passionate vocals reverberated throughout Mayo Concert Hall on Saturday Oct. 18 during the third annual “Acappellooza.” The event, which was hosted by The Trentones, featured short sets from all four a cappella groups on campus — each with their own distinctive style and sound.
The event, as Vice President of the Trentones Aly Hogan stated in the beginning of the evening, was created to help strengthen the a cappella community on campus and raise money for a cause. All of the donations collected at the free event, Hogan said, will go to the VH1` “Save The Music Foundation,” an organization that strives to bring music education to schools that can not afford to keep funding the arts.
“We are passionate about this foundation because they distribute money to rebuild music education programs in public schools,” Hogan said.
The group raised $388.40 for the foundation, according to Ali Falcone, the Trentones president.
“Pretty much everyone in our group benefited from the musical programs in our respective high schools, so it’s great to be able to help raise funds so other students can have such a wonderful experience as well,” said Treblemakers member Courtney Johnson.
To kick off the event, the College’s all-female group the Treblemakers performed a three-song set, including “Island in the Sun,” “Rumor Has It” and “Happy.” The group belted sweet and sassy harmonies, enticing the audience with bubbling energy.
Next up was Voice of Hope, a Christian-rock group who performed “Waiting on the World to Change,” “When I’m Afraid” and “I See Fire.” The group, which includes a balanced blend of men and women, performed with persistent passion.
iTunes, a group that draws from a global influence, performed next. Their set included a song from Zambia, “Gold” from the musical “Once” and a mashup of “A Sky Full of Stars” by Coldplay, “Airplanes” by BOB and “We Found Love” by Rihanna. iTunes was the largest of the groups, and each member brought their distinct vocals to the numbers.
To close the evening, the Trentones performed a riveting three-song set that included “Please Don’t Go,” “Vibrato” by Lorde and “Rather Be.”
“As a group we wanted to build an a cappella community and all the a cappella groups in campus are always doing their own things,” said Falcone. “So we wanted to have one event every year where we could all come together and share our love for a cappella with the rest of the community.”
It was evident that the packed audience received the event well. In addition to generous donations, those who attended the concert provided robust applause after every number.
“We love our a capella community that we have created, and we hope to keep building community for years to come,” Hogan said. “We hope to keep continuing this event for years to come, and hope that as time continues, we continue to raise more money and awareness.”
