The University of Rochester’s co-ed a cappella group After Hours emerged victorious at the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella Mid-Atlantic Quarterfinals at Penn State on Saturday, February 9th, beating 10 other highly competitive groups and placing first in the competition.

The ICCA competition, of which popular comedy “Pitch Perfect” is based, is the only international tournament that showcases the art of collegiate a cappella.  Each year, the tournament takes place from January through April in six regions: West, Midwest, South, Mid-Atlantic, Northeast America, and Europe. Each region holds several quarterfinal events and the top two college groups advance to semifinals. A final event is held in New York City’s Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, where groups compete for cash prizes and the coveted title of Grand Champion.

After Hours’ set of three songs featured the smooth solo vocals of Rei Ramos ’15 on “Too Close” by Alex Clare, which stunned the audience and the judges with its dub-step drop in the last chorus. And, according to The A Cappella Blog, “Too Close” showcased the “monster vocal percussion” skills of Ethan Lobenstine ’12 (T5). The set also included a choral take on Regina Spektor’s “Samson” featuring soloist Michaela Reichert ’16 and David Guetta’s “Titanium” featuring powerhouse soloist Rohini Rege ’14.

Video: After Hours Performs at ICCAs

In addition to winning the competition, musical director Ben McCormack ’13 and Lobenstine were given a special award for “Best Arrangement” for all three songs in the set.  After Hours, along with the 2nd place group, the Penn State Statesmen, will perform at the Mid-Atlantic semi-finals at Rutgers University in New Jersey on March 30.

In other University a cappella news, Rochester all-male group, The Yellowjackets, were recently named a “Top 10 Must-Hear College A Cappella Group” by schools.com.  The website praised the Jackets new album “United We Sing” and their after-school program (also called “United We Sing”) designed to cultivate a passion for a cappella in local schools.

Audio: Hear “Wavin’ Flag” from “United We Sing”

 The group also was recently nominated for a 2013 Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award (CARA) for their song “I Smile” off of “United We Sing” in the Best Religious Song category. The winners will be announced on April 5 at a live awards ceremony at BOSS, Boston Sings, and then posted to casa.org.

Polec has been busy this year. In October, he starred in URITP’s production of An Absolute Turkey just as his Kauffman Entrepreneurial Year was getting underway.  His project: starting a student-run record label at the University of Rochester, signing a band, recording an album, and releasing the record.  Polec and his colleagues were successful in all of these aims.  The label is called “yoUR Record Label,” and they signed Polec’s own band, Khat House.  They released their EP, “Welcome to Khat House,” at a sold-out concert on April 14. They also performed on April 27 as part of Dandelion Day’s performance line-up. They have sold a lot of albums, Polec said, and they hope to sell many more. “The life lessons that I’ve learned while being with that band have been nothing short of tremendous,” Polec said, reflecting on his time with Khat House.

The future of the band is currently up in the air as this coming fall Polec will pursue an MFA in acting at Brown University. Unsure of the extent to which the program will prepare him for dealing with the business of being an actor, Polec expressed his gratitude for all he has learned at UR about the arts industry. “Learning the process of how to get gigs, how to fund recording and album and all the nit-picky stuff in between has showed me that business managers are really important.  And agents.  No matter who you are as an artist, you better know the business, or you better have a friend who knows that business cold.”

Having had a good deal of experience learning the nitty-gritty about show business as a Key Scholar, Polec is eager to start learning the artist trade this fall. The undisputed star of URITP, he’ll be entering into a group of peers that will undoubtedly be made up of 15 other college theatre program stars. “It’s good to be with a bunch of talented people, because then you can see how you are able to improve and grow,” he said.

“Andrew is a born performer and he’s also a wonderful singer.  I’ve watched him grow over the years as his range has expanded,” said Nigel Maister, artistic director of URITP, who has been working with Polec since his freshman year. “I think that an MFA program will be able to hone—on a technical level—his skills as a general performer and deepen his understanding of the process and needs of acting and character development.”

Polec’s undergraduate acting career has come full circle in the past few months.  He performed in URITP’s first musical production, Hello Again, his freshman year and he ends his tenure here starring in its second. He leads a focused ensemble of remarkably mature and talented performers in what is a visually alarming, intellectually challenging, and genuinely entertaining production.  Maister said of Polec’s performance as Mr. Zero in Adding Machine, “[He] shows a more controlled and dramatically focused side of his abilities.”

Polec said that the role has “been a great final note to go out on” as he looks forward to working towards his dream of performing on Broadway.  The future of this soon-to-be-UR-graduate, it would seem, promises to “add up” to quite a lot.

Article written by Leah Barish ’12, a public relations intern with the International Theatre Program and a member of theater troupe, The Opposite of People.

In The Photos: Jacob Goritski ’14 (back) and Andrew Polec appear in Adding Machine: The Musical. Photos courtesy of J. Adam Fenster, University Photographer.

In the video, released on Wednesday, March 7, popular all-male campus a cappella group, the Midnight Ramblers, rap in more than 20 locations, including the iconic Rush Rhees Library, I.M. Pei-designed Wilson Commons, and Rochester’s underground subway tunnel. The video’s chorus promises “one hundred percent reason you remember our name.”

“We wanted high school students to see the many options available,” said Satyajit Dattagupta, director of enrollment communications, who initiated the concept. “The music video captures the energy, enthusiasm, and creativity here.”

Admissions counselor Michael Shea ’09, ’11W (MS) lent his talents as an amateur lyricist, drawing on his own experiences in Rochester courses including History of Jazz, taught by senior presidential advisor and University Dean Paul Burgett, and an address from energy secretary and Nobel physics laureate Steven Chu ’70. Incorporating Rochester’s flexibility for students to build their own curriculum and its place on Kaplan’s 2007 “25 New Ivies” list made for an unusual rap challenge.

Along the way, Shea hoped high school students also will catch pop culture references like the Kardashian sisters and unique slices of Rochester life. “If we could have made it even better, we would see Alec Baldwin shopping with his mother,” Shea joked, referencing local ads from regionally-headquartered grocery giant Wegmans.

Shea’s collaborators included in-house videographer Chris Niswonger, who selected showcase University and city locations that would resonate with students. “You can watch it over and over again and learn something new,” Niswonger said. “If someone doesn’t know about the University, they can dig deeper and get a different experience each time.”

Noah Berg ’12, the general manager for the Ramblers, blended Shea’s lyrics with a derivative interpretation of Fort Minor’s Remember the Name. The fast rap at 2:14 shows Aaron Michalko ’14 riffing in real time from an Admissions Office brochure.

“We were reading the facts sheet and it just flowed,” Michalko, a native of Canandaigua, N.Y., explained. “What you hear is nearly verbatim.”

“The video was a way for us to spread our passion for the University musically and explain why it’s awesome to come here,” explained Jared Suresky ’12, a Ramblers soloist. “It adds spice and flare to Rochester. I think Mike and Chris fused that message.”

Added Shea, “We want proud alumni to say, ‘That’s where I went to college.’ ”

Article written by Melissa Greco Lopes, editor of The Buzz and student life publicist in University Communications. Photos courtesy of the Office of Admissions.

VIDEO: YellowJackets Recieve Key to City, Perform with World of Inquiry School

“The YellowJackets have spent countless hours working with youth here in our city and have taken their mission across the world to Kenya,” said Richards, who also is a University Trustee. “We are proud that they are making lives more fulfilling through their commitment to music and education. That’s why it is an honor to present the University of Rochester YellowJackets with a key to our city.”

For Pittsford native Aaron Sperber ’11, who has been a member of the YellowJackets for five years, receiving a key to Rochester is an unparalleled honor.

“We have had the privilege of traveling far and wide to share our music and our message, and while being on national television was an honor that we only dreamed of, nothing is quite like home,” said Sperber, an international relations major in the College and a vocal performance major at the Eastman School of Music. “As proud Rochesterians, we found that more exciting than the glamour of Hollywood is the knowledge that we are representing all the people who have supported us and made us who we are.”

Jamal Moore ’11, also a voice performance major at Eastman and a four-year member of the YellowJackets, agreed.

“Being given a key to the city is an amazing honor that few people receive,” Moore, a native of Augusta, Ga., explained. “I am so grateful that we were selected as the latest recipients of it.”

The YellowJackets, who recently competed on NBC’s hit reality television show The Sing-Off, have a history of community service in the city. Over the last decade, they have performed concerts and hosted workshops throughout the Rochester City School District.

In 2009, the group organized the Harmony for Hope concert in honor of one of its members, Alexander Hunter, who was undergoing treatment for lymphoma. Through a benefit concert, the YellowJackets raised funds for the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center.

This past summer, the group traveled to Maseno, Kenya, on a goodwill tour and musical exchange. The group spent three weeks in the African village, where they conducted workshops in the village schools, learned traditional native songs from local children, and taught students popular songs from the United States. Additionally, the group participated in community outreach, working with victims of AIDS through the nonprofit organization Joining Hearts and Hands. For the group, the trip underscored the importance of music programs in schools as a way of providing students with a fun, creative way to engage in learning, said Sperber.

This fall, the YellowJackets took that message to heart and teamed up with the Rochester City School District to create an extra-curricular a cappella group at the World of Inquiry School. Nearly 100 students at the school spend two hours every Thursday with the YellowJackets, learning a cappella arrangements and vocal performance tips. The group, called ROC-appella, will join the YellowJackets on stage at two sold-out concerts on Dec. 11. See a video about the partnership here.

Article written by Melissa Greco Lopes, editor of The Buzz and student life publicist in University Communications. Photos courtesy of University Communications.

The next episode airs on Monday, Oct. 24, at 8 p.m. EST.

VOTE FOR THE ‘JACKETS: Make the YellowJackets your #1 pick this week.

For more updates, visit http://www.rochester.edu/news/singoff/.

The YellowJackets, the University’s oldest male a cappella group, will compete against 15 of the country’s best groups, working to win over celebrity judges Ben Folds (Ben Folds Five), Shawn Stockman (Boyz II Men) and solo artist Sara Bareilles, while vying for the ultimate prize – a Sony Music recording contract and a $200,000 cash prize.

The series premiere is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. on NBC. Watch extended sneak previews for the show here and here. Tune in to see if the YellowJackets advance through the multi-episode series.

Be a part of the “Sea of Yellow” Sing-Off Campus Watch Party

Members of the community are invited to come out and rally behind the YellowJackets at a free, campus-wide Sing-Off Watch Party on Monday, Sept. 19, in Hoyt Auditorium on the River Campus. Doors open at 7 p.m. Members of the YellowJackets will perform a selection of songs from their repertoire prior to the start of the pre-taped premiere, and will take questions from the audience during commercial breaks. The evening also includes a free t-shirt give away, and in an effort to create a “Sea of Yellow,” audience members are asked to wear yellow t-shirts.

Connect with the Jackets through Social Media

Connect with members of the YellowJackets on Twitter @ URYellowJackets and on Facebook, or follow updates from the series premiere at the University’s official twitter account @UofR. Connect with the show on its official handle @thesingoff or use the hash tag #thesingoff.

(Photo Courtesy of NBC Universal.)

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