Tufts Beelzebubs feat. SMU Voix

we're happy to announce the PAssion card promotion for our upcoming concert with The Tufts Beelzebubs. PAssion card members will get $5 off the ticket price, which makes it $30 for the 17 January concert at The Arts House Chamber, tickets at the arts house box office.

Christmas caroling

our xmas caroling season has officially begun today. it will again be a very busy period for our singers caroling all over the country. if you hear them at one of the HDB shopping centers or any of the other venues, make sure to give them a good cheer!

December newsletter

December is here again and as every year it's time for Christmas caroling. All our singers will be kept very busy during this period singing all over the country. There's a good chance that you may encounter them somewhere, so make sure you'll give them a good cheer if you do!

Looking ahead to 2010, we've already programmed our events. We'll start off the year with the Tufts Beelzebubs concert in January! In April, our Vocal Mania will take on a new shape and a new dimension, being transformed into a full day vocal music event. If you or your group want to be a part of this exciting event, just let us know and contact us as soon as possible.

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Read the full December newsletter on our website if you don't receive it in your inbox!

The Yale Spizzwinks (?)

we're happy to announce the Singapore concert of the Yale Spizzwinks (?), 31 May 2010 at The Arts House Chamber, make sure to put the date in your calendar!

Christmas Is Coming

A Post-Concert Report for

Christmas Jam with NANU, 21 November 2009

A brief review:

With a fun and interactive programme, the Christmas Jam featured local band, NANU and special guests. The music consists of a cappella renditions of Christmas music and included new arrangements from the NANU repertoire. There were some jazz harmonies along with the pop hits. The performances were of high standard, and the atmosphere was very relaxed and intimate, which was warm and inviting for the audiences to participate in the show. The audiences not only sang along, they were also very responsive to the performers and the host. The event which was separated into two shows (afternoon and evening), allowed The A cappella Society and performers to better tailor for the needs and interest of the different target audiences for each show.

The afternoon show was a children’s matinee, and had special guest performances from Swiss School’s students and the TAS children’s choir. Catered specifically for children, the performers and host had interacted with them by teaching them a couple of vocal techniques, which included beat boxing. The audiences were asked to practice and even come on stage to show off what they had just learned!

The evening show targeted the youths and young at heart. It also featured Beatz, a group that offers beat box and rap, which is the genre well liked by contemporary youths. Their performance offered an alternative rendition of Christmas tunes. Again, the show was interactive and the atmosphere was every energetic.

The event was successful in bringing the audiences an enjoyable time.

Ticket Sales

The capacity of the location was 245 seats for each show. The ticket sales were excellent, with over half the tickets being sold for the afternoon show and an almost sold out for the evening show.

Audiences

The majority of the audiences were from the schools, which consisted of primary students (afternoon show), secondary students and youths (evening show) and their teachers. Some of these schools had attended shows organized by The A Cappella Society in the past while some had not. There were also parents and friends of the performers. Other audiences included a small group from a girl’s home charity organisation, and the general public who had bought tickets from Keppel nights.

THE PROGRAM

Date: 21 November 09

Times: 3pm-4pm Children's matinee

7.30pm-8:45pm Evening show

Location: Esplanade Recital Studio

TICKETS

$20-$25

Beatz at RGS, 30 October 2009

We performed with Triple B, students from Raffles Girls’ Secondary School for their school event, called Talent Vogue. It is a talent show competition and Halloween concert merged into one. It was held in their school hall.
We did a remixed version of Onegai DJ (Miss You) by M Flo, Bongo Bong by Manu Chao, Disturbia by Rihanna and our hit song, Move It. Christopher and Samuel were the beatboxers, Arif rapped and Kathy sang, a bit under-prepared though as Kathy joined the group only a week prior to the event.
The sound system was really bad. We not only did not manage to get a final sound check despite asking for it, the sound crew also lost one microphone, so Christopher had to be left off stage for our first song. In the end, they took out the clip on microphone for Arif, and they did not adjust the sound system for us at all, so we sounded pretty bad.
The crowd however was brilliant and enthusiastic. They seemed to be enjoying the songs tremendously. They went wild when Sam, Chris and Arif did a special with Triple B- dancing to Beyonce’s Single Ladies.
We mostly loved Move It and the dance segment, because we managed to hype up the crowd and even get them to sing and dance along.

International A Cappella Festival

The International A Cappella Festival expanded to 5 nights featuring 4 international A Cappella groups. Permanent Fish (Japan) on 14th October, Rock4 (The Netherlands) on 15th and 16th October with two different programmes, all at Esplanade Recital Studio, and MayTree (Korea) on the 17th and Tux (The Philippines) on the 18th at The Arts House Chamber. All concerts were opened by a local group, TAS Youth Voices, Beatz, NANU and Key Elements. The programming provided a well balanced and varied selection of fine a cappella groups which did not overlap in style, approach and song selections and provided a good mixture for presentation, flavour, style and genres.

Each night, the audience members came out of the concerts asking for CDs from all the teams as well as many well-wishes for the festival. They enjoyed the performances and excellent singing of all the groups.

Ticket sales for the first two nights were very bad though and only picked up for the weekend shows but still remained below expectation. Marketing was limited due to the small budget of the event, which was part of Encore! The European Season in Singapore and the Keppel Nights ticket subsidy scheme. There were also promotional performances by Permanent Fish at NTU as part of NIE's concert series and at ITE College East, which were very well received and led some members of the audience to buy tickets for the Esplanade concert. Rock4 was also interviewed on Channel News Asia's Primetime Morning show.

The audience feedback was very positive and thus we will keep developing this festival for vocal music into one that is of international quality and one with a wide variety of acts.

We will also continue to look for ways to include local groups in the festival to continue in their development in an international context and to provide an opportunity for them to exchange ideas and learn from the international groups.

TAS newsletter

our November newsletter is out, read it online on our website if you don't receive it in your inbox.

Christmas Is Coming

Christmas Is Coming soon, but before that comes our A Cappella Jam to ring in the season. The Keppel Nights tickets for the evening show are already sold out and the rest of the tickets are selling fast. Hurry to get one of the seats for the afternoon if you have a young child or the evening show, discounted tickets are available for PAssion Card members and students.

International A Cappella Festival - Rock4

Rock4 has put some of the photos they took during their stay in Singapore on their Facebook-page : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rock4/153010847113?v=photos&ref=ts#/album.php?aid=116693&id=153010847113

Christmas Vocal Jam

we've tied up with PAssion Card again for our next event, Christmas Is Coming - an A Cappella vocal jam with nanu and friends, there is a 3.30pm show for primary school kids and a 7.30pm show, 21 nov at Esplanade Recital Studio. as a PAssion Card member you'll get $5 off the ticket price.

International A Cappella Festival

I just want to say a big thank you to the A Cappella society for organising such a wonderful event! I attended both Permanent Fish and Maytree acappella concerts and I absolutely enjoyed their performances! How I wish the festival could be longer so I could see more acappella groups from overseas performing. Nevertheless, I want to compliment the society for being able to invite prestigious acappella groups to Singapore. I really hope to see the performance by Permanent Fish again, so please consider bringing back Permanent Fish for the festival next year!!! Thank you very much!

Zi Ling

I attended MayTree's concert and I enjoyed it very much.

Chian Chian

It was a fantastic concert. Thanks again for bringing in such a class act.
Looking forward to more.

Kong Chiu

Please get PERMANENT FISH back in Singapore again.
Their performance is really AWESOME!
Can't wait to hear them sing again!

Jia Jia

International A Cappella Festival

our Festival has begun! Permanent Fish is already in Singapore and has done its first performance today at ITE College East. if you haven't gotten your tickets yet, we have a very special offer for you, 1-for-1 Permanent Fish tickets, buy one ticket and you get one free!

International A Cappella Festival - Permanent Fish

our festival is now only 1 week away and we can announce a few promo performances by our Japanese guests. you can catch Permanent Fish on tuesday 13 oct at ITE College East and Wednesday 14 Oct at NIE/NTU, it's free!

Tux workshop and Voices for Hospices

sat 10 oct is the annual Voices for Hospices charity concert, this year at Lasalle Auditorium, a part of the entertainment is Beatz with some modern music and SMU Voix with more traditional a cappella music.
also, make sure to sign up for our masterclass with Tux, sharing their expertise of many years of singing a cappella and more! check our website www.a-cappella.org.sg for all the details.

Newsletter

our latest newsletter, October issue, is ready, if you didn't receive it in your inbox you can read it on our website.

Festival & Vocal Jam

Keppel Nights tickets for the MayTree concert on 17 Oct at The Arts House are now sold out.

Christmas Is Coming, our vocal jam in nov at recital studio is Tote Board approved, schools can use the fund for 60% of the ticket purchase.

International A Cappella Festival

find the first draft of the song list from Tux for their concert at our International A Cappella Festival on our website now, go to events - festival and open the programme sheet. Tux will perform on 18 october at The Arts House Chamber.

also, check out the latest infos from VoCollision on the groups page.

Pop Vocals course

our Oct-Nov course has been postponed a week, it will now start on 8 Oct, you can still register for it.
announcing some more promotions for our International A Cappella Festival, if you're working at one of the Ministries or are a Kinokuniya member, you can get the discounted tickets.

A Cappella Festival videos

Derrick has sifted through youtube for some sample videos of the performing groups:
Just to keep all excited for the IACF09, I've found some very interesting clips on YouTube with regards to the feature groups!
Permanent Fish at a Christmas gig: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfVim_ipt8w
For videos of Rock 4, check out http://www.youtube.com/user/jrondas (i'm particularly in love with the one for Sting and Police)
"Mmmbop" by MayTree: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB_n-jGXES0 (ooh! i love!!!)
Tux, with Regine Velasquez "On The Wings of Love" : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJBOuv0ex2g (LOVE! This is love!!)

Pop Vocals course

our next Pop Vocals course will start on 1 October, register now, it's the last course this year!
also, we've confirmed the concert with the Tufts Beelzebubs for 17 January 2010 at The Arts House Chamber, more details will be on our website shortly.

press release september

read our latest press release with details of our International A Cappella Festival and Christmas Is Coming - An A Cappella Vocal Jam on our website.

PAssion Card promotion for A Cappella Festival

if you are a member of PAssion Card, watch out for the latest promotions including $5 off for tickets to our International A Cappella Festival.
also, we've put info about our latest group on our website, Beatz will keep us in touch with the youth culture of today with their beatbox and rap music.

A Cappella Festival

We've just received copies of Rock4' s latest CD, Bring On The Night. You can find it in our shop and order a copy through TAS. Also, check out the Rock4 videos on youtube, visit our youtube channel for the link.
Tickets for all Festival concerts are still available through TAS!

YouTube Channel

We finally got our own YouTube Channel! I know, it took a very long time, but anyways, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheACappellaSociety
You will find a lot of great A Cappella clips, from our events, our groups and more. Check back often to catch the latest uploads!

A Cappella Championships 09 Review

The A Cappella Championships 09 were held on 31 July at The Arts House Chamber and 1 & 2 August at Esplanade Recital Studio. Due to the large number of registrations, in total 32 groups signed up, the competition was held over 2 rounds for the first time. The first day at The Arts House saw the competition within the categories of High School, College and Open Ensembles. As the event proceeded into the evening hours, we recorded a full house which saw fine performances throughout from all the groups. The prevalent opinion from the international judges and audience members was that the standard of A Cappella groups in Singapore has increased drastically and is very high as witnessed in the competition.
On 1 August was the Choir Final at Esplanade Recital Studio. We again saw a wide range in the age of participating choirs and still a rather low number of participants as most choirs are reluctant to include contemporary music in their repertoire. However, there is a growing interest and response and we'll continue to reach out to the choirs and hope to get more choirs to take part and fill the various categories for a more contested competition over the next years.
On 2 August was the Ensemble Final at Esplanade Recital Studio, where the best 9 groups from the 1st round competed for the overall A Cappella Champion. The evening was again a sold out success with great performances by all groups and an enthusiastic audience cheering for all participants led by the 09 Champions, SHaca.

The A Cappella Championships 09, a SHINE Festival event supported by the National Youth Council and the National Arts Council, was a great success. There was a surge in the number of participants and also an increase in the audience figure which attests to the healthy state of A Cappella in Singapore. Furthermore, the quality of singing was hailed as very high in general which strengthens our hope that the past work is bearing fruit and can be sustained in the future.

CAMP A CAPPELLA REPORT

(1) Programme

The programme was initially planned for 2 tracks of workshops for the beginners and for the slightly more experienced singers.

Due to a smaller turn out this year, we had to scale the workshops to fit the wide age group and experience of the singers. We had singers from age 10 to 20.

On the first day we spent time working on simpler a cappella tunes to allow the younger singers a chance to work in teams outside of their own choirs. On the second day we worked on more sophisticated skills and songs plus a cappella arranging which allowed the more experienced singers a chance to flex their musical skills.

(2) Clinicians

We engaged local clinicians for Camp 09. They bring a good wealth of experience in a cappella performance but because our campers are beginning to attend our camps annual, we need to source for external trainers with international staging and directing experience. This will prove to add to the continued attractiveness of the camp for the more experienced singers. We should also consider 2 separate camps for the experienced and inexperienced.

We worked with recently graduated David Thian who directed several groups at Duke University. We also worked with Angelina Choo, the Director of TAS and Ms Lim Huimin, resident singer of NANU.

(3) Tickets Sales

This year we had about 80 singers who attended the camp. We should work on bringing this number back up to at least 120 – 150 per camp.

We will also look into bringing the camp directly to schools for a greater reach.

(4) Production

We utilised the theatre at Tampines Safra and this space was excellent with a stage and theatre style seats. It was a little dim at times but was still a great venue. We did not touch on extensively progressive workshops which meant that we did not need too much technical support.

(5) Summary

We will aim to change the way the camp is offered and also aim to work with international groups and clinicians to challenge our singers and fellow local clinicians. We hope to continually enfore positive reinforcement to all singers and trainers.

THE YALE ALLEY CATS REPORT

(1) Programme
The A Cappella Society organised a host of activities for the group and this included a cross section of audience.
• 93.8FM Radio Interview
• Prime Time Morning Appearance and interview & performance
• Tan Tock Seng Lunchtime Concert
• Esplanade Concourse Performances (2 sets)
• 1-Night Concert at the Arts House
The estimated exposure rate for all the activities is approximated at 1,200 audience members and thousands of Radio / TV viewers. The society was also acknowledged at all of these shows.
(2) Concert
The concert was a sold-out success. The programme was neo-classical in nature and highly engaging and entertaining. Feedback from vocal sources said that whilst the concert was very enjoyable, the singing was good but was not comparable to teams from Harvard and other outstanding college groups. The overall feedback nonetheless was very positive overall for the concert.
The repertoire of pop, classic hits and Jazz tunes done in older and more current a cappella arrangement styles and coupled with the collegiate touch of an expanded barbershop group (sound) was well received.
(3) Tickets Sales
The concert was sold out and we hope to continue supporting such groups on their visits to Singapore.
(4) Production
The group was well rehearsed and was always mentally and physically ready for their next show. This showed a good level of professionalism from a college team, something that our local groups can emulate.
(5) Summary
All in all, the concert was a tremendous success. The audience at the concert was mainly made up of Yale Alumni members and some general public and from American & singing community. We are happy that we organised a show at Tan Tock Seng and The Esplanade which allowed the team to sing to the younger crowd (school holidays) as well as the older crowd.

Youth Voices - 16 May 2009, Esplanade Recital Studio

Youth Voices was our very successful first attempt at staging The A Cappella Society's youth singers in a full-length concert. It featured the TAS Children's Pop & Jazz choir and TAS Youth Voices in various formations and group sizes, from Pop choir to A Cappella group, produced and staged by the groups' Director Angelina Choo and was already sold out before show day. It was generally acclaimed as an entertaining and vibrant performance. The audience, mainly friends and family of the singers but also a large number from the general public due to Keppel Nights tickets available with a 50% subsidy, gave very positive feedback having enjoyed the concert very much.

The concert featured a good selection of a cappella music ranging from pop, jazz, rhythm & blues to original a cappella pieces. It also charmed audiences with an eclectic mix of traditional and contemporary pieces, choir and group songs.

Youth Voices has shown that there is a growing interest not only in youth productions but also in a cappella music in general and that such shows can be staged successfully. It has also set the standard for a cappella singing and performance for youths.

There were some issues encountered in the process of the production though, most notably concerning sound. The amplification and mixing of the various groups and sizes poses a challenge that has to be addressed and improved. We will do so in the coming year as we intend to establish Youth Voices as a yearly showcase concert for the youth singers after this successful beginning.