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Wednesday March 24, 2021 vol. CXLV no. 23
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FEATURES
Designed by: Abby Nishiwaki
Synchronized heartbeats: A cappella groups fight to stay connected on the virtual stage By Julie Levey
Staff Reporter
It has been almost a year since the arches of Princeton University swelled with the sounds of a cappella and audience members watched from the steps as groups showed off their repertoire. The arches are quiet at night now; a passerby may hear only the sound of their own voice. Since March 2020, a cappella, like so many other pillars of campus life and tradition, has migrated to the virtual realm. A cappella has become one of the most dangerous activities students could engage in — studies have shown that singing in groups is much more likely to spread COVID-19 than speaking, therefore presenting major risks. Despite the barriers presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, many of Princeton’s 14 a cappella groups have banded together to continue to do what they do best: create music. At the start of the fall semester, the eight a cappella groups under the jurisdiction of “Acaprez” — a collection of eight Princeton a cappella groups governed by certain rules — decided not to hold auditions. According to Chaz Bethel-Brescia ’22, music director of the Princeton Footnotes, this decision was “pretty unanimous.” “The main concern is competition among the groups and making sure that membership is steady throughout those eight groups,” he explained. Sean Crites ’22, president of the Nassoons, expressed similar thoughts. “The concern was solidarity amongst the other a cappella
groups … because it is a competitive process, it has to be collaborative as well,” he said. Sally Root ’22, president of Shere Khan, a group not under the jurisdiction of Acaprez, explained that her group also decided not to hold auditions, mostly because the majority of groups were also not holding auditions. “We didn’t feel like we could muster up the energy,” she said. This semester, though, Shere Khan is strongly considering holding auditions. “It’s going to take a lot of planning so it will probably be much later in the semester,” Root explained. Koleinu and Kindred Spirit held auditions last semester and will be doing the same this semester. Acappellago, Princeton’s non-audition a cappella group, also took new members in the fall. While VTone and Old NasSoul did not accept new members in the fall, both groups held auditions this spring. Nancy Xu ’24, a new member of VTone, described the audition process. “There was a Google form that we had to submit … which [included] scales, vocal swells, a short a cappella excerpt, and a solo,” she wrote in a statement to The Daily Princetonian. “I’ve never been involved in an [a capella] group and was more of a singing-in-theshowers type,” she continued. “I think the virtual aspect might have actually been an encouragement for me because the audition process doesn’t seem as daunting.” Moreen Rezkalla ’23, fellowship chair of Kindred Spirit, Princeton’s Christian a cappella group, explained their
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group’s decision in an email to the ‘Prince.’ “While KS is an a cappella group, we do have a space that is used for more than just singing, and we wanted to open up our group to people in any class year to be able to be a part of this smaller fellowship and interact with others who share the same interests and passions,” Rezkalla said. Just as the a cappella groups are taking advantage of the spring in different ways, so too did they find a variety of creative opportunities in the fall. While some chose not to create music, others brought their voices together in impressive ways. Over the summer and the fall semester, Footnotes created several a cappella videos. However, the group met only
a couple of times over the semester. With virtual projects, Bethel-Brescia explained, there’s “less urgency around meeting.” “The biggest downside to virtual a cappella is that it takes away from the process of music-making and puts all the emphasis on the product,” Bethel-Brescia said. The Tigertones have also stayed connected by putting videos together. The group was featured on Good Morning America on Christmas morning, sharing two videos they had made. The Nassoons released an arrangement to celebrate the start of the spring semester and have a few arrangements they’re working on. “This year is our 80th anniversary,” Crites noted. To commemorate the milestone,
Crites said that the group is looking at digitizing some of their old albums Julie Wilson ’23, incoming social chair of Roaring 20, shared, “For our virtual reunions event, we cut together a video of us and a bunch of alumni singing “Time After Time,” which is a song that has been in our repertoire for years. It was really sweet to hear voices from so many generations come together for the final product.” Carina Lewandowski ’21, a member and former business manager of the Tigressions, explained that the group had taken in a lot of new members in spring 2020. “I think the focus is just going to still be a lot of learning, working on getting our new members up to speed because See FEATURES for more
PROSPECT
Stuck on studying? Try these playlists By Paige Cromley Staff Writer
Midterms are over, and the snow is melting, but as you break out the spring clothes, you’re probably realizing that you have weeks of tough course loads ahead of you before summer hits. As you gear up for the rest of the semester, consider trying out some fresh
study music to get you through those late-night essays and endless problem sets. Break out of the Lo-Fi Beats rut with these equally-atmospheric Spotify playlists and albums, tested and rated by yours truly over the first half of the semester. Coffee Table Jazz: This is my go-to study playlist, which I recommend for any subject. It’s the perfect blend for focusing:
smooth and soft enough to relax you, but energetic enough to keep you awake. Spotify has multiple jazz playlists suited to specific tastes, all of which suffice for studying background music. However, though adequate, Late Night Jazz and Jazz Classics just don’t focus your brain the same way this one does. Don’t simply take my word for it; this playlist has
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In Opinion
In her inaugural column, Faculty Columnist Melissa Reynolds argues that inequalities in return to campus expose the need for public higher education funding.
over 2 million likes on Spotify, and I’d wager a good chunk of them are students. Instrumental Celtic Folk: Here’s another Spotify-curated playlist to try. In my personal opinion, this one’s perfect for writing essays; these Irish and Scottish traditional tunes have gotten me through many writing seminar assignments. If Celtic music isn’t your thing, try out some other forms of traditional music, like Native American flutes. There is some incredible history and culture to these genres, so be sure to delve into that! The Division Bell, by Pink Floyd: Or any Pink Floyd album, really. Just start at the beginning and let it play through as if you had it on vinyl. In my personal opinion, Pink Floyd’s albums set the mood perfectly for physics problems. That is, besides “The Wall,” which is far too dismal if you’re already struggling with STEM homework. Many of the songs feature long instrumental stretches, though they’re probably not the best if you can’t focus with lyrics. Personally, I like the intermittent words, especially when a chorus hits to which I can mouth the lyrics; it provides a nice little brain break from the calculations in front of me. Claude Debussy Radio: You may think you’re not a classical music fan, but I guarantee
you’ll enjoy at least some, if not all, of the pieces on this radio. It’s perfect for reading a history book or writing a grandiose discussion board response. I promise you will feel as if you’re sitting in a coffeehouse in Vienna, reading a poetry book in a field, or doing something equally romantic and picturesque; this dreamy feeling will be especially strong when Saint-Saëns’ “Carnival of the Animals” plays. Nightmare Forever, by Nolan Potter’s Nightmare Band: This might just be me, so feel free to take this suggestion with a grain of salt. I’m not entirely sure how I stumbled upon the song “Caberfae Peaks,” but for some reason, the discordant, fantastical tune puts me in a terrific headspace for math. Plus, by listening to Nolan Potter’s Nightmare Band, you’re supporting a small artist: they only have 1,204 monthly listeners. Next time you’re looking to set the mood just right for a deep study session, you now have a few more options. Whether it’s the Celtic instrumentals or those rarefied classical melodies, hopefully one of these will help you stay concentrated on that engrossing stack of homework you have. While I can’t promise that this music will magically boost your GPA, See PROSPECT for more
Columnist Brittani Telfair argues that History Month celebrations, while important symbolically, can do more to address systemic injustices.