2017 Participating Groups
 | | Birdland Avenue
Birdland Avenue is a contemporary jazz collective with origins in Boston, MA. The five birds include Haley Castuera, Evan Linsey, Kayla Pichichero, Toria Rainey, and Adrienne Rube. After all meeting in their college a cappella group at Boston University, this collective formed as a side project when they did a cover of Ella Fitzgerald's take on "Summertime." Every since then, the birds have continued singing together, putting their own jazzy spin on songs old and new. Musical influences include Ella Fitzgerald, Andra Day, Lianne La Havas, and ThirdStory.Members: Haley Castuera, Evan Linsey, Kayla Pichichero, Toria Rainey, Adrienne Rube
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Bostonality
Bostonality is a Boston-based a cappella group comprised of young professional 20-somethings who share a passion for music and performance.Members: Jane Margolis, Ben Lang, Brittanty Stein, Janice Nosal, Jeff Bliss, Dan Cormier, Sarah Hill, Susie Ruppe, Garrett Little, Chris Mroczkowski, Mike Defelippo, Evan Desrochers, Kamisha Ferreira, Garrett Little, Tien Tran
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 | | Carpe Singem
Our name, Carpe Singem, is a play on the Latin for Seize the Song! We sing for the sheer joy of singing and hope that in our love of music and singing we bring enjoyment to others. Our performances have included singing at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester and Symphony Hall in Springfield, caroling at Old Sturbridge Village, and performing at various corporate events, clubs, retirement communities, churches, and synagogues.Members: Andrea Goodman, Faith Keskula, Donna Jackson, Megan McDonald
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Drive
Drive is the culmination of four musical journeys, and also just the beginning. Formed in 2016, each of its founding members spent years loving, listening to, and performing a wide variety of vocal music. Sharing a common background of stellar intonation, lyric expression, and expanded, ensemble sound found in barbershop harmony, they knew these fundamentals could allow a group to jump head-first into any piece that excited or moved its singers, regardless of style or genre.
It became a matter of finding the right singers: people with a unique blend of the vocal skills, techniques, and artistry needed for the group sound as well as the openness, collaborative spirit, and passion needed to ignite and sustain the creative spark. A late night of informal singing at a convention brought four singers together and separate, parallel roads converged into one. As they and their audiences are discovering, the drive has just begun...
Members: Josh Beswick, Joey Constantine, Ray Johnson, Dan Allison
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 | | Fermata Town
Founded in 2009, Fermata Town is now the newest member of the Contemporary A Cappella League (CAL). Inspired by the wealth of new talent in the a cappella world, we have worked hard to find our voice and put a unique stamp on the Boston a cappella scene. We pride ourselves in our original arrangements, the sound that we produce, and our ability to maintain a healthy balance between our music and active lifestyles.
Fermata Town was officially founded during the spring of 2009 stemming from the break up of the all male Boston based group The Testostertones (Boston). The founding duo of Dan Campagna and John Baptista recruited former Testostertones Dave Carr and Nathan Pierce to join forces and find other interested singers who shared the same passion for a cappella music. Be it through word or mouth, internet advertisements and craigslist posts - Fermata Town was able to quickly establish itself as one of Boston's freshest co-ed a cappella groups to hit the streets.
Members: Melissa Abreu, Mandy Cook, Chris Giordano, Garrett Little, Taylor Meltzer, Liz Mongrello, Philipp Walzer, Alex Margarite, Becky Vinci, Anna Miller, Johnny DelToro, Jeffrey Herrera
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Fireside Quartet
We are four good friends who love to sing four-part barbershop harmony. We were thrilled to be the 2017 Boston Regional Champions of the Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival, where we also won the Audience Favorite award and our lead David Adams also won the Best Male Soloist award. Fireside is a registered quartet of the Barbershop Harmony Society, and we participate in the Patriot Division and Northeastern District conventions and contests. We also perform at public and private venues, including corporate events, birthday parties, barbershop chapter shows, minor league baseball games, and senior living communities. Members: Jesse Heines, David Adams, Manoj Padki, Daniel Schwartz
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 | | Harmonious Soul
Harmonious Soul has a solid reputation of high caliber performances. Dedicated to peace and equality, this group boasts an incredible record, having entertained at many popular state events and venues in Connecticut. With an eclectic array of covers from traditional a cappella to country, jazz, and rock and roll, this group's music is as thought provoking as their sonority is deep. While drawing audiences with their blended sound and extensive range, this ensemble continues to perform throughout the New England area, singing from a self-invigorating and socially conscious repertoire.Members: Beth D'Amato, Maureen Goulet, Tobi Krutt, Siobhan Leonard, Ashley Sheridan, Kristin Peterson
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2017 Judges
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Jodi Jenkins Ainsworth
Jodi Jenkins Ainsworth is the soprano in Vox One, an award-winning a cappella jazz quintet from the Boston area that formed at Berklee College of Music. Vox One has performed internationally and has opened for Ray Charles, Chicago, the Persuasions, the Bobs, the Woody Herman Orchestra, and the Count Basie Orchestra. The group earns wide acclaim for their performances and CDs. As a studio singer, Jodi has been heard commercially across the US and in Japan in radio and television spots as well as film-scores for major motion pictures. She has been teaching private voice for over 15 years and is currently on faculty as an Associate Professor in the Voice Department at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA. Jodi teaches all styles and vocal technique, but specializes in Gospel, R&B, and Jazz. Jodi enjoys working as a clinician/adjudicator with various vocal jazz and a cappella groups around the country and is also an active worship leader and pianist. |
Terry Clarke
Terry Clarke, an A Cappella enthusiast since elementary school (where his teachers incorporated Fred Waring's weekly radio show into the their curricula), can't recall a period in his life when he wasn't singing -- in choruses, choirs, duets, trios and quartets. Two quartets with which he is identified are the Boston Common, 1980 International Barbershop Quartet Champions and members of the BHS Hall of Fame, and Our Town, 2009 winners of Boston Harmony Sweepstakes. He also bears the distinction of having served as judge of one of the earlier Northeast Harmony Sweepstakes in the 1970's. |
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Giorgia Renosto
Giorgia Renosto, a native of Italy, was selected at 17 as one of the winners of the "Giovani Proposte" of the Italian contest "Sanremo Giovani". While pursuing her Bachelor's degree in History of Art, her passion for music was very much alive, touring Europe with the award-winning acappella group L'Una e Cinque and various other ensembles. Giorgia was twice awarded as a recipient of the World Scholarship Tour from Berklee College of Music and graduated Summa Cum Laude from the prestigious institution with a degree in Performance. Giorgia is one of the founding members of Women of the World, the 2014 National Champions of the Harmony Sweepstakes who have been touring steadily since. |
Yumiko Matsuoka
Yumiko Matsuoka, originally from Tokyo, Japan, is professor of ear training at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. She is the founder and one of the principal arrangers/composers of Boston-based a cappella quintet Vox One whose albums Vox One (1993), Out There (1995), Chameleon (1997) and Pure Imagination (2005) have won multiple awards from the Contemporary A Cappella Society of America (CASA). In 2008 Yumiko released an anthology album To Every Thing There Is A Season featuring a cappella and instrumental music spanning 20 years of her writing career. Her arrangements are published by UNC Jazz Press and can also be heard on recordings by other a cappella groups around the globe, as well as TV commercials in Japan. Yumiko is an active clinician, adjudicator and choral director, working locally, nationally and worldwide. |
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Complete list of 2017 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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Dan Campagna (Boston)
has been a part of the a cappella community for over 10 years and is the co-founder and business manager of the Boston-based group, Fermata Town. Behind his leadership, Fermata Town has released two award-winning albums, performed at international festivals and appeared on network TV. In 2013, Fermata Town captured the Boston Harmony Sweepstakes championship before placing third overall at Nationals where they took home "Best Original Song" honors. He is a founding board member of the Contemporary A Cappella League and voluteer program manager for the Contemporary A Cappella Society of America (CASA). An active member in the Boston a cappella community, Dan enjoys attending local shows and volunteering for Varsity Vocals during ICCA season.
Prior to Fermata Town, Dan sang collegiate a cappella at Emmanuel College in Encore!, the college’s first-ever coed group which later changed its name to In Good Company.
Outside of a cappella, Dan works fulltime at Emmanuel College as the Director of Athletic Communications. Dan is also an Assistant Coach to the University of Massachusetts Boston Women’s Soccer Team and an adjunct professor at Lasell College where he teaches a sports journalism course.
860-874-5191
FermataTown@gmail.com
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