<p>Congratulations on getting in! Now the real fun starts! I really hope you choose Yale - it's pretty darn close to ideal, at least for me.</p>
<p>Anyway, rush. Because there are so many groups on campus, and because so many people are interested in joining an a cappella group, there's a monthlong audition and get-to-know-the-group-members process. For the record, the underclassmen groups are: Something Extra (women, aka SE), Proof of the Pudding (women), New Blue (women), Alley Cats (men), Baker's Dozen (men, aka BDs), Spizzwinks (men), Duke's Men (men), Society of Orpheus and Bacchus (men, aka SOBs), Mixed Company (mixed), Out of the Blue (mixed, aka OOTB), Shades (mixed), Redhot and Blue (mixed), and Living Water (mixed). There are also Magevet and Tangled Up in Blue (not technically a cappella, as they have guitars and instruments), but those are not in the Singing Group Council and therefore don't participate in the same rush process.</p>
<p>When the Yale Class of 2009 arrives on Campus on Friday, August 26th, "Camp Yale" begins. It's affectionately called that because life for the first few weeks resembles a mostly rule-less camp more than school. So that Sunday is the Freshman Bazaar, when all the student groups have a booth/table and information for all the freshmen. They collect email addresses, hand out brochures, and generally are just looking for new members for whatever. That night at 10pm is the first a cappella event, called Woolsey Hall Jam. Each a cappella group sings two songs or performs a song and a skit, just to give everyone a taste of how they sound. Because there are so many groups, though, it ends up being really long - finally, the Whiffenpoofs and Whim 'n Rhythm, the all-senior male and female groups, finish it off with three songs each. </p>
<p>After Woolsey Hall Jam, there's nothing a cappella related for a week. The next Friday (I think) is Dwight Hall Jam, which features the same groups, in a different random order, but each group gets three songs and/or skits. After the last group finishes, there's a mad scramble to sign up for auditions at each of the group's tables. A typical rushee (the misnomer that's used to refer to freshmen who audition) rushes somewhere between three and six groups. Auditions are that weekend, on Saturday and Sunday.</p>
<p>After auditions, each group you rush will set you up with at least one rush meal, which is a meal with a current member of the group (or two). The function of rush meals is twofold: the rushee gets to know the group personally, and the group gets to know the rushee personally. Because being a member of one of the a cappella groups is a social and musical thing, it's crucial that a person mesh well with the other members personally, in addition to being a good singer.</p>
<p>The two weeks after auditions contain the first wave of rush meals and the singing desserts, which are spread throughout that period. Each group holds a singing dessert, which is essentially a catered concert. The singing dessert is crucial, because it's a rushee's only opportunity to hear each group in a full-length concert. It's the group's chance to shine. After each group's singing dessert, they have a party of some kind, either in the same place where they had dessert or somewhere else. However, there is no alcohol involved - that's one of the many rules of rush, which are all written into a charter-type document. In fact, there's a Singing Group Council to enforce the rules, which bar gifts, alcohol, and ten kazillion other things.</p>
<p>In any case, two weeks after auditions are callbacks. If you're called back, you go do another audition-type thing, and get more rush meals. Tap night, the culmination of A Cappella Rush, is Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday of that week. For the Class of 2009, that's September 20, 21, or 22. It's always kept a mystery to the freshmen what night Tap Night is, although it usually leaks a day or two in advance.</p>
<p>Tap Night is many people's favorite night of first semester, even if he or she is not rushing a cappella, just because it's so crazy and amped. It starts at the High St. gate to Old Campus at 10pm, when Whim 'n Rhythm and the Whiffenpoofs sing a few songs each. While the senior groups sing, the underclassmen groups are waiting outside the gate to Old Campus, done up in war paint and carrying their tap cups. Each group has a giant silver trophy/goblet thing, carried by the group's designated runner. He or she is the person who leads the group on their mad dash for the freshmen. After the Whiffs finish, the gates open and the groups run for the dorms of the freshmen whom they will "tap" and thereby offer a place in the group. The runner is important because only one group can be in an entryway at any given time. So the groups run around, tapping rushees until they have the people they want.</p>
<p>When a group "taps" you, it means that they sing to you, have you drink juice out of the tap cup (remember, no alcohol allowed!), and then offer you a group t-shirt. You, the lucky "tapee" can say "yes," "no," or "maybe." If you say yes, then you go with them to join in on the fun! If you say maybe, it basically means that you're either undecided or waiting on another group. In reality, nobody says no unless he or she knows that another, preferred, group is on the way.</p>
<p>So, yeah. That's rush. It's long, stressful, fun, crazy, surprising, hard, and worth it. You end up not being "Joe, who plays baseball and sings with the (insert group name here)." Instead, you're "Joe, who is an (insert group name here)." It's at once the most fun, rewarding, exciting, and worthwhile thing that is in my life right now. I know that sounds kind of stupid: "Dude, it's just a singing group." The thing is, though, that it's so much more than that - it's a group of really close friends, who are diverse but are unified by a love for singing and each other. Plus, you go on kickass tours with your group. For example, I went to Los Angeles and Honolulu over spring break with the Alley Cats, and as soon as finals are over we leave for a tour of Southern Europe for five weeks. Did I mention that all the concerts that you sing throughout the year pays for all of your tours?</p>
<p>As far as distinguishing the groups go, each is unique and fun in it's own way. Obviously there's the issue of single- or mixed-sex, and repertoire. They differ in committment and sound quality, too. You'll find that the groups are very different personality-wise. However, I'm not going to say anything about that, because I'm biased. The best piece of advice that I can give anyone who is considering rush is to not have any prejudices against or biases towards any group or groups, especially when it's based on the opinion of someone who has a bias. DO NOT LISTEN TO A CAPPELLA GOSSIP! Judge for yourself - it's like choosing a college. Only you know what's right for you.</p>
<p>So that's my essay on a cappella rush. Sorry it's so long. Again, congratulations on getting into Yale. Now, no matter what you choose, you'll be in a great position to be happy and fulfilled. That being said, come to Yale!</p>