BRATTLEBORO — The annual High School A Cappella Concert is set to take the stage at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center at 8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 2. More than 55 local teens representing six regional high school a cappella ensembles “will sing their hearts out to the delight of an enthusiastic audience of family, friends, and lovers of a great time,” according to a news release.
Created by local artist and community cultural entrepreneur Dede Cummings, the High School A Cappella Concert is more than just the warm-up act for the annual Collegiate A Cappella Concert the following night at the Latchis.
“This concert is about high school kids raising money to help other high school kids,” says Cummings, who founded the annual February Gallery Walk event over a decade ago in support of In-Sight Photography Project, which offers its arts-educational programs regardless of ability to pay.
Taking the BMAC stage once again this year are the Brattleboro Union High School Madrigals and five student-directed independent ensembles - Renegade, Shoulder Narrows, Spiralia, Xpressivo and, for the first time, the newly-formed Local Vocals.
The BUHS Madrigals is a small, auditioned, co-ed choral group under the direction of first-year chorus teacher Elyse Woodward.
Students earn credit for participation by rehearsing, once a week, a wide range of a cappella music including traditional madrigals, world music, new works, and standard pop and jazz. The Madrigals perform in a variety of venues including school concerts and assemblies, madrigal festivals, and town events.
Members of Renegade, an all-girls, student-run a cappella group, hail from different area high schools. They say they perform “songs that empower women and strive to be role models, keeping in mind the fun and love that singing brings.” Renegade formed in 2009.
Shoulder Narrows is an all-boys a cappella group from BUHS. First assembled in 2004, it is the oldest student-run group in Brattleboro.
The ensemble performs vocal music from many genres and traditions and adds their own flavor to new hits and old classics. Jimi Hendrix once expressed what Shoulder Narrows says is their guiding principle: “Music doesn't lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music.”
An all-girls, student-run a cappella group, Spiralia singers come from the Windham County area and have performed at a variety of venues, as they love to share their music.
They say their goal “is to make music while also making memories. It is very important to us that we all get along and have fun.” Spiralia's repertoire ranges from pop to jazz and classic rock and more, and 2018 marks the group's 10th year.
Xpressivo is a small student-run co-ed a cappella group based in Brattleboro. Founded in 2012, the group features a wide variety of music, mainly within the pop/rock genre.
Rounding out the musical cast is the student-run co-ed group, Local Vocals.
Leland & Gray High School's Rebel Clefs, a long-time regular in the line-up, has promised that they'll be back next year.