<p>Hi everyone!</p>
<p>So, i am attending Smith next year as a first year and I wanted to know if anyone has had any experience with the Acapella groups on campus. How competitive are they? Will I be able to get into one as a first year? </p>
<p>Thanks in advance :)</p>
<p>I wasn’t a member of one, but while the groups are pretty competitive you may be able to get into one as a first-year.</p>
<p>I <3 The Vibes. (As does my mom.)</p>
<p>People do get accepted as first years, but even with a bunch of groups (what are there, like 7? and that’s including Crap-apella) there aren’t always a ton of spots to be filled every year, it really depends on how much turnover there is. </p>
<p>Basically the groups will hold open auditions around the beginning of school (they’ll be advertised), and you come and perform a song. So if you’re comfortable solo performing, that will help a lot. </p>
<p>A lot of the groups have facebook pages or websites (the smifenpoofs, the noteables, the vibes, I know for sure have them) and some of their sites have music clips on them if you want to get a feel for them.</p>
<p>Side comment: we attended a couple of multi-group performance thingies (that’s a technical term) over the years and heard quite a few of the a capella groups, plus the handbell group, etc. </p>
<p>Competitive or not, the a capella groups range from “very good” to “what <em>were</em> they thinking?”</p>
<p>I’ll be auditioning for a couple in the fall. I talked to a few groups at the activities fair they had at Open Campus, and it definitely seems like while some of them are at a higher level musically (i.e. asking you to be able to read music), most of them are willing to work with you if you have a good enough voice and the right sort of personality for the group.</p>
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<p>Perhaps you reacted to Crapapella, which is a group composed of those who can NOT sing in tune. [Crapapella![/url</a>] Anyone who has tried out for one of the other singing groups is not allowed to audition for Crapapella. It is an “alternative” group, specifically for those who can’t sing, and the performances of this group are pure farce. </p>
<p>My D (who was herself in Glee Club) had a good friend at Smith who is deaf, and she joined Crapapella!</p>
<p>Only at Smith (so far as I know). ;)</p>
<p>Edited to add:
You can read about this neat Smithie I mentioned, whom I have had the pleasure of hosting at my home, at <a href=“http://www.smith.edu/newssmith/spring2006/becca.php[/url]”>Smith College: NewsSmith](<a href=“http://sophia.smith.edu/crapapella/index.htm]Crapapella![/url”>http://sophia.smith.edu/crapapella/index.htm)</a>
The article mentions her Crapapella involvement.</p>
<p>JEM, your daughter’s friend, Becca, is wonderfully open to new adventures. Thanks for the link; she’s an inspiration. I wish her well, although I think she’ll land on her feet wherever she goes.</p>
<p>My daughter was in the Smith Chorus this year (the first-year chorus); their singing in the choral concerts was fabulous, an excellent choral experience. She also auditioned several times this year for a cappella groups as she was in and led an a cappella group in high school. She made it through a couple of rounds, but somehow never made it. Our family is very musical, she played violin in a youth orchestra and sang in chorus all through high school, so she’s a good sight-reader. The auditions run by the groups themselves are definitely a learning experience (one second-round audition was 2 hours long), but as I don’t know the details of all her auditions, I hesitate to comment further. She’s just been notified she’s been accepted into the upperclassmen chorus, the Glee Club, for next year, so I’m happy she has that to look forward to. She says she’ll audition again for a cappella groups next year as she figures she can always find a wonderful choral experience in community choruses later in life but she can’t always sing in an a cappella group. Auditioning is always worth a try!</p>
<p>^ Carolyn, congrats to your D on her Glee Club acceptance! (I believe first-year chorus is open to all, but Glee Club is for those beyond first year and members are chosen by competitive audition.) Glee Club was a highlight of my D’s Smith experience and she had a bunch of very nice inter-school experiences. During my D’s time, the Glee Club partnered with male choral groups at U Penn, the Naval Academy, and U Michigan. The groups performed at each others’ campuses and it was really special for her to be hosted for a weekend at the Naval Academy, staying on site. Midshipmen were assigned to escort the Smithies to all rehearsals, meals, etc. – picking them up and returning them to where they were staying – it was a true culture change for the Smithies!</p>
<p>The members of the Glee Club really bond, and some alumnae return to sing with the club at the Commencement Weekend performance. Being on campus for Commencement Weekend each year is an additional bonus to being in Glee Club.</p>
<p>Enjoy! :)</p>
<p>And yes, you are correct, Becca has continued to lead an interesting life – including living in India for a period, where, among other things, she taught English to deaf Indian children.</p>
<p>JEM, I just recently saw how bonding the Glee Club is. As we live 1-1/2 hours away and we’re always supportive of our daughter’s musical efforts, I attended the exquisite Spring Serenade concert with the Smith Chorus, Glee Club and Chamber Chorus. The next day there was the beautiful Anniversary Alumnae Concert with the Glee Club, the Smith Chorus and an alumnae chorus. It was the 125th anniversary of the Glee Club and I think about 125 Glee Club alumnae members came to sing from all over the country and the world, the farthest from France. I think the oldest member graduated in 1951. That’s really impressive bonding!</p>
<p>I can imagine your daughter’s visit to the Naval Academy was a real eye-opener!</p>
<p>Chorus is not precisely open to all. Anyone can audition, but it is an audition process and some are not accepted. Also if you want to be in chorus you’re going to need to be able to read music as that will be part of the audition process.</p>
<p>I’m in the Vibes and I’m also a first-year, so I promise that a year ago I was feeling exactly the same way as you do now. The audition process is essentially the same for every group. They’ll ask you to sing some scales to test your range, pick a note out of a chord, sing back a short melody, and perform a solo. I auditioned for all the groups, save crapappella and groove, and they made the process as comfortable and painless as possible. Every group has their own unique style and feel, so a lot of the time they may not just be looking for the person with the best voice or the greatest skill level. I, for one, felt that many of the women at my callbacks for the Vibes were far more outstanding singers than myself, and I was really surprised when I got in and they didn’t. That being said, don’t judge yourself as a singer based on whether or not you make it into one of Smith’s groups. They’re all very diverse and looking for different dynamics every year. </p>
<p>I do recommend auditioning if you love to sing. The Vibes completely defined my first year, and we grew to be really close over the past two semesters. I honestly can’t imagine what kind of person I might be if I hadn’t been able to form relationships with those talented, amazing women. I have first-year friends in the Poofs who say exactly the same thing. All the groups are great, so its really a matter of finding which one fits you best. </p>
<p>…Vibes <3</p>
<p>ALazyNay, I’m glad you’ve had such a great experience this year with the Vibes and you’ve had such a wonderful opportunity to sing! Thanks for taking the time out during reading period to share your thoughts about the whole a cappella process and experience.</p>
<p>I plan on auditioning for Crapapella!!! What I lack in talent, I make up for in volumne</p>
<p>Rocket6louise, you crack me up! :D</p>