1997 Participating Groups
| | Chicago
Chicago Voice Exchange
CVX is an entertaining award-winning five-member a cappella group based in Chicago. CVX is a three -time winner of the Midwest Harmony Sweepstakes competition, and has entertained crowds at venues such as sports events (Cubs, Sox and Bulls games, the World Cup), holiday events, festivals, industry conferences and bake sales.
One of the first actions of the group was to argue long and hard about what the name of the group should be. There were a whole host of possible names: WeWopDoo (from Peter Harlan, master of cheese), New Caboose, Vox Populi, Digital Voice Exchange, Five Guys named Moe, etc. Eventually, a compromise was reached with Chicago Voice Exchange. Hurrah.
Listen to:
Higher And Higher | Listen to:
Spiderman
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 | | Mid-Atlantic
Da Vinci’s Notebook
Da Vinci's Notebook, Washington, D.C.'s award-winning a cappella quartet, takes four part harmony and stands it on its ear. Described as "Bobby McFerrin and 'Weird Al' Yankovic colliding on stage," their tight vocal blend, infectious humor, and madcap antics have made them a favorite on stages and at festivals throughout the country. Since the group's founding in 1993, their eclectic blend of a cappella harmony - a fusion of doo-wop, jazz, bluegrass, calypso, opera, and rock - has evolved into a unique show that the Washington Post called "exuberance...crashing off the walls!"
The quartet has appeared at music clubs and fine arts series throughout the East Coast, including the Bitter End, the Birchmere, the Barns of Wolf Trap, and the Kennedy Center. Equally at home in front of large crowds, they have also performed at Birmingham's City Stages, the Taste of D.C., the Fairfax Fair, and dozens of other festivals. Internationally, they have toured France and the Caribbean. Winners of the 1997 Mid-Atlantic Harmony Sweepstakes Festival, Da Vinci's Notebook has been featured on NBC's Today Show, on Comedy Central, in the Washington Post and Washington City Paper, and are frequent guests on local radio stations.
Listen to:
Stray Cat Strut | Listen to:
Mickey Mouse Club (Theme)
Members: Richard Hsu, Greg "Storm" DiCostanzo, Bernie Muller-Thym, Paul Sabourin
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New York
Five O'Clock Shadow
Five O'Clock Shadow (FOCS) is a Boston based, all vocal rock/pop band. By using amplification and some basic effects added onto their voices, FOCS is able to create the same sound and energy as any rock band....but without using any instruments!
FOCS has been featured on VH-1's "//break.through/", FOX News, WB's Morning Show, A&E, ESPN, PBS, and more. They have also sung for the Boston Celtics, Boston Red Sox, New England Patriots, and the NFL Hall of Fame. And through their Vocal Challenge program, FOCS has presented concerts and workshops to thousands of music students from coast to coast. | | |
Boston
Five o’Clock Shadow
Five O'Clock Shadow (FOCS) is a Boston based, all vocal rock/pop band. By using amplification and some basic effects added onto their voices, FOCS is able to create the same sound and energy as any rock band....but without using any instruments!
FOCS has been featured on VH-1's "//break.through/", FOX News, WB's Morning Show, A&E, ESPN, PBS, and more. They have also sung for the Boston Celtics, Boston Red Sox, New England Patriots, and the NFL Hall of Fame. And through their Vocal Challenge program, FOCS has presented concerts and workshops to thousands of music students from coast to coast.
Listen to:
Get Down Tonight | Listen to:
All I Want
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 | | Rocky Mountain
Graffiti Tribe
Graffiti Tribe was founded in 1990 by Dan Perkins and has had an interesting decade. They took home the awards of Regional Champions in 1995 and again in 1997 for the Denver Regional Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival. Since touring most of the country as one of America's most popular college acts, The Tribe has signed an exclusive record deal with Jakarta Records and will soon be touring and distributing their CDs on an international level. The Tribe is working on a new CD project which will somewhat stray from their a cappella roots. Fear not a cappella fans! This group won't leave their first love all together. Be on the lookout for the Tribe to be doing bigger and better things than ever before in the new millennium!
Listen to:
Nuclear Power | Listen to:
Change The World
Members: Richard Jordan, Dan Perkins, Tim Rosendo, Marc Young
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Pacific Northwest
Kickshaw
Kickshaw has been performing in the Northwest for about five years now. They have been involved in hundreds of shows, where each audience is a part of a unique mouth-music experience.
In early 1997, Kickshaw won first place in the Regional Harmony Sweepstakes competition. This is a title only awarded to nine groups throughout the nation each year. Following the 1997 competition, Kickshaw decided that they were ready to pursue music full time.
In search of their own sound, Kickshaw began working with some effects to extend their already eclectic repertoire. This addition was an instant hit with their audiences as they were able to create the sounds of a full band, effects and all, with just their voices giving Kickshaw a sound all their own.
Listen to:
Some Kind Of Wonderful | Listen to:
Thinkin’ About You
Members: Danny Figgins, Andy Marshall, Blake Lewis, Dan Scheumacher, Jim Castaneda
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 | | Bay Area
SoVoSo
SoVoSo is a highly imaginative a cappella ensemble that sings a unique, rhythmic mix of jazz, gospel, world and R&B music, all rendered in their trademark improvisational style.
The SoVoSo repertoire consists of original compositions and other songs that present a global perspective, from Afro-Latin idioms to traditional funk and jazz arrangements. Two SoVoSo members (Joey Blake, past member, and current member David Worm) are current members of Bobby McFerrin's a cappella group, Voicestra, performing with him from 1993 to present.Currently you will see David Worm, Sunshine Becker, Bryan Dyer and Zoe Ellis in this vocal band line-up, along with other great singers such as Nicolas Bearde, Ashling Cole and Vernon Bush. The SoVoSo family of singers continues to expand as this one of a kind musical project grows and flourishes.
Listen to:
Say | Listen to:
Say A Prayer
Members: David Worm, Joey Blake, Rhiannon, Nicolas Bearde, Melanie Rath, Sunshine Becker
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1997 Judges
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Frank Albinder
Grammy Award-winning conductor and singer Frank Albinder currently directs the Washington Men's Camerata, the Virginia Glee Club at the Univesity of Virginia and the Woodley Ensemble. A native of Hollywood, California, Mr. Albinder hold degrees from Pomona College and the New England Conservatory of Music.
During his tenure with the group, Mr. Albinder performed in all 50 states and in 20 foreign countries. He appears on 20 of the ensemble's recordings, including Wondrous Love, which was recorded under his direction, and the Grammy Award-winning Colors of Love, for which he designed the concept and selected the repertoire. Other performance credits include the Boston Camerata, the Robert Shaw Singers, the Washington Bach Consort, and the Concord Ensemble. He is a past National Chair of Repertoire and Standards for Male Choirs for the American Choral Directors Association, as well as President of Intercollegiate Men's Choruses, Vice-President of ChoralNet, the internet's principal portal for information and resources relating to the choral field and a national board member of the National Collegiate Choral Organization. |
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Olivia Landsberg
Olivia is an award-winning radio producer and Head of Programme Development at an independent radio production company. She produce programmes for BBC Radio on a freelance basis, including the radio series an a cappella called “In Good Voice”. |
Paul Liberatore
Paul Liberatore is a veteran music writer who has been covering the Bay Area music scene for many decades. |
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Narada Michael Walden
Producing Hits for Artists as diverse as Aretha Franklin (including the platinum “Freeway of Love.”), Steve Winwood, Ray Charles, Wynonna Judd, Whitney Houston, George Michael, Mariah Carey, Barbara Streisand, Lionel Ritchie, Lisa Fischer, Stevie Wonder, Tom Jones, Jeff Beck and The Temptations, the EMMY and multi-GRAMMY winner (Producer, Album and Song of The Year) has been at the helm of hit music that spans decades. His music flows freely from pop, rock and soul, to the rarified realms of jazz, fusion and world music.
With Jeff Beck, Narada wrote and played drums on the seminal album “Wired” that earned them both their first Gold Album.
Walden was an integral part of introducing Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey to millions of fans worldwide, producing and writing their breakthrough hits that first brought these divas to the spotlight.
He was awarded Grammys for Producer of the Year in 1988, Album of the Year for the movie soundtrack The Bodyguard in 1993 and the R&B Song of the Year in 1985 for Aretha Franklin''s "Freeway of Love." He was also named as one of the "Top Ten Producers With the Most Number One Hits" by Billboard magazine. |
 
Complete list of 1997 participants
Interested
in
Performing?
We are always seeking groups who would like to participate
in our events.
Groups of any style are welcome, but you must have between
3 and 12 members. We have a rule book which explains many of the
details of the event, which you can see by clicking here. All groups must audition in
order to compete. Generally this is done by sending a current tape
and photo, although live auditions are sometimes arranged. The
purpose of the audition is to make sure the group is appropriate for
the Festival and to help the Director determine the performance
order. If a group has competed previously, the audition process may
be waived.
How to enter
Please send music and photos to the
regional director :
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