ICCA finals thoughts

[stupidramblings]

The SHOW was excellent. It was well paced, had loads of energy and was run very well. Congratulations to the organizers who did a phenomenal job.

A hearty congratulations to all those who competed. I felt every group gave the best performance possible and the awards went to deserving people. (I couldn't possibly remember the awards, but they were definitely worthy of the praise.)

I don't presume this thread to be the official announcement, but I wanted to write some of this down before I forget it. The results ended in a Vocal Point victory, with Out of the Blue 2nd and Other Guys 3rd. In my mind I was thinking Other Guys and Vocal Point put on the best show and I had them tied in my mind. I had Out of the Blue and Chorallaries in the next tier--but not too far behind.

I missed the mark as Other Guys ended up third, but I think Out of the Blue was definitely right there, so it all washes out.

1st place, Vocal Point--did some Jazz. And a spiritual piece. They started with the THX sound you hear at the beginning of movies followed by the 20th Century Fox theme you also hear before movies. They followed it with an excellent rendition of "Spider Man" (as done by Michael Buble (sp?)), a spiritual ballad--very moving, and topped it off with "Sing, Sing, Sing"--a great closer. VP had energy throughout, the movements were spot-on, the harmonies were tight. From where I was sitting, the lead mic seemed real hot, and it was hard to hear the background. VP went first though, and by the end of the set the sound guy had balanced it out well.

2nd place, Out of the blue--was awesome. They had energy, fire, and good song selection. Most notable was Queen's "Fat Bottomed Girls" which started strong and just got stronger as they went on. The arrangement was solid. I had a little trouble with understanding the lyrics. They could have used more crispness in lyrical delivery, but that was my only complaint.

3rd place, Other Guys--a very polished show. I had heard they were good, but I didn't know they'd be that good. They did a barbershop tune (they have eight, so barbershop fits well) which was very, very blended and beautiful. The most impressive tune for me was the Beatles medley. It was fantastic. They were under control of their voices and movements at all times. I'm not sure how to describe what was missing, but it seemed they could have used a bit more power behind the vocals. It seemed like they were holding back...something. Anyway, I had them very close to Vocal Point and would have guessed they would take second, but I don't begrudge their actual placement.

As for the other groups, they did very well, but did not stand out. I have to admit I can't remember who else did what. The rest of the field all had a similar sound, they all wore mostly black and they did great, but not notably great. Again, if they had stood out, I would remember more. One thing I thought was especially noteworthy was the girl who did an amazing job with "If I Ain't Got You" by Alicia Keys. Again, I can't remember which dressed-in-black group she was with but she was phenomenal. Kudos.

I was impressed with how well the show fit together given the random selection of group order. If I could plan a show based on the eight groups that performed, I would put the groups in exactly the same order. The flow of the show was good. the transitions worked and the organization was great.

Again, congratulations to all--Especially to Vocal Point and the special award winners. You put on a great show...

[acappellanut]

OK, i felt that the awards were well placed...but.

i think Reverse Osmosis should have gotten SOMETHING for their AMAZING rendition of Fix You. The soloist wasnt as good as OOTB, neither was the arr. but. their choreography was incredible. It almost brought me to tears. i thought it was just an AMAZING performance of the song. incredible.


Otherwise, i was a little dissapointed in some of the groups. I thought last years groups had much more raw energy, and seemed like they were having such a good time, where only Vocal Point and OOTB seemed like they loved singing at the ICCA finals.

And, on the Subway back to Penn, i overheard some chaps discussing Vocal Points closing song. I thought it was a VERY tasteful choice. I liked how they closed the show. kudos to Vocal Point.


And on a side note. Dont ever let Vocal Point open anything. They were incredible. Talk about passion and a love for what they do.


And the Effusion VP. Those were some pretty sweet vocal scratches. i thought they were a little out of place....but oh well.

[qwyjiboChu]

I don't mean to sound like I have sour grapes or feel that the results weren't accurate... but are there judges out there who don't have ALL of their a cappella experience in all-male groups?

There is a lot of potential out there for mixed groups to get the shaft.

[Leto]

Vocal Point and the Other Guys were great singers, and you could not fault either group technically, but having not heard them before, as soon as each group sang a few bars, what popped in my mind for both of them was "Barbershop."

Great barbershop, yes - flawlessly executed barbershop, but IMO, not what I personally think of as "collegiate a cappella." I've listened to a LOT of barbershop/sweet adelines - professional, college, and high school, and have been to a number of competitions. I do love the sound, but wasn't expecting that genre in this venue (e.g., Beatles medleys). I also was lukewarm about the religious songs - IMO, best left to chamber singers or madrigal groups.

I strongly disagree with the opinion stated about the mixed groups (I'm not associated in any way with any of them) - except about the black outfits (did they all have the same costume designer?). By the end of the show, I had placed Reverse Osmosis first, and I couldn't decide between All Night Yahtzee and Out of the Blue for second. I also thought the Effusions arrangements were effective and very thoughtful - a more laid back sound, even somewhat hypnotic, but very pleasing.

The judges had impeccable credentials, but all five were men - could there perhaps have been a bias toward the all-male sound?

[Leto]

Vocal Point and the Other Guys were great singers, and you could not fault either group technically, but having not heard them before, as soon as each group sang a few bars, what popped in my mind for both of them was "Barbershop."

Great barbershop, yes - flawlessly executed barbershop, but IMO, not what I personally think of as "collegiate a cappella." I've listened to a LOT of barbershop/sweet adelines - professional, college, and high school, and have been to a number of competitions. I do love the sound, but wasn't expecting that genre in this venue (e.g., Beatles medleys). I also was lukewarm about the religious songs - IMO, best left to chamber singers or madrigal groups.

I strongly disagree with the opinion stated about the mixed groups (I'm not associated in any way with any of them) - except about the black outfits (did they all have the same costume designer?). By the end of the show, I had placed Reverse Osmosis first, and I couldn't decide between All Night Yahtzee and Out of the Blue for second. I also thought the Effusions arrangements were effective and very thoughtful - a more laid back sound, even somewhat hypnotic, but very pleasing.

The judges had impeccable credentials, but all five were men - could there perhaps have been a bias toward the all-male sound?

[Chris]

The judges had impeccable credentials, but all five were men - could there perhaps have been a bias toward the all-male sound?

Who were the judges?

[ptoms]

The judges had impeccable credentials, but all five were men - could there perhaps have been a bias toward the all-male sound?

Interesting idea, if only because last year the "bias" (if there was one) was the exact opposite -- the male judges scored the female group highest, the female judge scored the male groups highest.

[AC Fan Too]

[From the program - excerpts/summary - judges]:

Warren Bloom - director of the Invisible Men, former director of The Hyannis Sound, sang with Doo*Wa*Zoo, founding member of Spur of the Moment at Brandeis, sang with Jazz Vocal 2 U Miami, MA music education

Simon Carrington - director Yale Schola Cantorum, professor of choral conducting Yale Institute of Sacred Music and School of Music, choral activities director at University of Kansas, co-founded the King's Singers at Cambridge, freelance conductor, choral clinician

Barry Carl - actor, singer, composer, teacher, writer, bass for Rockapella, Broadway, opera, cantorial solist, advanced degrees Julliard

Peter Hollens - co-founded On the Rocks, former member of Ball in the House, records, edits, produces award-winning albums, faculty member Oregon Festival of Music

Steve Jamison - barbershop singer 37 years, Barbershop Harmony Society judge 24 years, BHS Music Category Specialist, faculty BHS Judging Category School, Harmony College, Directors College, judged nine international barbershop competitions, two ICCA finals, arranged more than 200 pieces.

[Johnsapella]

I don't mean to sound like I have sour grapes or feel that the results weren't accurate... but are there judges out there who don't have ALL of their a cappella experience in all-male groups?

Yes, there are. At our quarterfinal, there was a judge who actually had no a cappella experience; he was an opera guy.

On a completely different note, Simon Carrington was one of the Finals judges this year? That's completely kick-ass. He was our conductor when I was in the All-Eastern Choir in 2003, and he was completely amazing.

[billhare]

The judges had impeccable credentials, but all five were men - could there perhaps have been a bias toward the all-male sound?

As one of the 5 judges from the West region, I can say our panel of 3 men and 2 women had no problem coming to agreements, and besides the gender thing, we had very different experience as well - Jon Pilat and Julia Hoffman (both Stanford Harmonics alums, run the CARA Awards, so they know the cutting edge of A Cappella), Angie Doctor who sings Vocal Jazz with Clockwork, Greg Casper who sings with various groups but not necessarily the most "contemporary aca" stuff, and myself. I think that Jon, Julia, and myself have a bias toward edgy mixed groups if anything, and I don't remember it even being a contest that we all rated Vocal Point first.

-B

[dekesharon]

The judges had impeccable credentials, but all five were men - could there perhaps have been a bias toward the all-male sound?

Don't forget that Divisi would have won last year were it not for the considerably lower score from the female judge.

[supersixonemedia]

The judges had impeccable credentials, but all five were men - could there perhaps have been a bias toward the all-male sound?

Don't forget that Divisi would have won last year were it not for the considerably lower score from the female judge.

speaking as a female with an admittedly strong bias towards all-male a cappella...

i fully thought divisi should have won last year.

[thisbowlofstars]

I was confused by the ICCA finals results.

I agree with the judges that Vocal Point and Other Guys should have been in the top three (top 2 in my view). They were musically impeccable (which is why I would guess they would be in the top 2), but as an audience member I got a little tired of the "barbershop" sound and glee club comedy (acting like you're playing air instruments (Vocal Point)? Give me a break.)

But I take issue with Out of the Blue being in the top 3.

Out of the Blue had one kick-ass rockin' good song - their queen bit. But the other two songs were below average. Their first number (Sex Bomb) was entertaining but definitely not memorable. I disliked their version of "Fix You," at least when compared the much richer version presented by Reverse Osmosis later in the evening; I thought the arrangement was blah and the soloist sounded like a choirboy, even taking breaths in the middle of words. In my opinion, a group shouldn't be awarded the top three if only one of their songs was a standout.

Instead of OOTB, I would have put Effusion and Reverse Osmosis in the top 4, for different reasons.

- Effusion had really good energy for being such a small group, and I was very impressed musically. They had some awesome creative arrangements, they knew how to sing quietly while still captivating an audience, and their unison sound was perfect. They were definitely in the top 3 musically.

- Reverse Osmosis put on the best total show. Musically, there was nothing wrong, but the reason I don't put them in the "musical" top 3 is because they didn't choose to show off any particularly difficult "musical gymnastics" like Vocal Point, Other Guys, and Effusion. I loved their big sound, and big, rich arrangements. Their "fix you" arrangement added many layers to the original song, while I thought OOTB's version was a thin replication of the original. Now let me get to the choreography: I was blown away, especially by "Fix you" and "I would do anything for love." They had by far the most staging and the most original choreography of any group. I also liked how their whole set was what I would call contemporary collegiate a cappella (unlike "Spiderman" and Beatles medleys). So reverse osmosis: great arrangements, best total show to watch. Loved it.

[stupidramblings]

Vocal Point and the Other Guys were great singers, and you could not fault either group technically, but having not heard them before, as soon as each group sang a few bars, what popped in my mind for both of them was "Barbershop."

Great barbershop, yes - flawlessly executed barbershop, but IMO, not what I personally think of as "collegiate a cappella." I've listened to a LOT of barbershop/sweet adelines - professional, college, and high school, and have been to a number of competitions.

Barbershop really? I can't see that. VP did nine parts. Granted, they were Jazz chords, but Barbershop? I don't think so.

And--of course you wouldn't think of Vocal Point as "collegiate a cappella." They have fewer people so everyone carries their own part, they don't stand in a semicircle, and the tenors are always screaming falsetto. No, I don't think that's very traditional for college groups. Isn't it great?

[stupidramblings]

I also liked how their whole set was what I would call contemporary collegiate a cappella (unlike "Spiderman" and Beatles medleys). So reverse osmosis: great arrangements, best total show to watch. Loved it.

Again, you are pigeon-holing collegiate a cappella to find within a very narrow window. What's wrong with a Beatles medley or a big-band sounding song like "Spiderman?" How is that not worthy of college a cappella's biggest award?

I don't criticize your point of view, and I am obviously from the other camp since I came from the likes of Vocal Point, but I fail to see how having a different sound and a smaller group makes Vocal Point and Other Guys less deserving than Reverse Osmosis or other huge groups.

Also, calling them "Barbershop" still doesn't fit in my mind. Barbershop's rules are very, very strict. Only Vocal Point's encore song would even come close to barbershop. No, I don't think nine part vocal jazz is very barbershop-ish. Not at all.