A-Cappella Club to Perform at Spring Concert

The Plainview Old-Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School student-run a-cappella club will be performing in its annual spring concert in the auditorium next Friday.

The school’s eight groups will sing a list of pop music chart-toppers, in addition to their traditional classics, during performances at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.

Rehearsals for the concert began months ago for the groups, and will continue to intensify until hours before they take the stage. The rigorous schedule brings the participants closer together, and gives the group members the chance to bond.

“My favorite part of the program has to be all the amazing people,” said sophomore Jenna Robinson, a member of groups Drastic Measures and the Rolling Tones. “I am in two groups and I feel as though I’ve bonded with everyone in each group.”

In the early stages, there is a lot of attention paid to music selection and determining which arrangements best suit the abilities of each group. Once the set list is created, the students are able to work on the particulars of making the music come to life.

“After we get the basics down, it’s having energy and emphasizing dynamics to give the songs contrast,” said junior Chelsea Basedow, a member of groups Drastic Measures and Chock Full of Notes. “When we come to the weeks nearing the concert, we drill the arrangements in our heads until we’ve got them memorized and then we focus on minor details.”

Those last weeks before the performance are known amongst the students as “hell week.” As the last opportunity they have to perfect their craft before going in front of an audience of hundreds, they drill their arrangements and add final touches to their act.

“The most difficult part is definitely trying to perfect everything before the concert,” Basedow said. “Both the unisex group and mixed group that I’m in are incredible groups, but we are always very critical of our sound up until the week of the concert.”

By the students’ admission, the final stretch can be tough. With one rehearsal every night of the week before the performance, a-cappella becomes nearly all consuming.

“It can be a little hectic that week, but it’s totally worth it,” Robinson said.

The groups have enjoyed media attention on programs such as Lifetime’s Pitch Slapped, MSG Varsity’s Talent Show and ABC’s Good Morning America. For groups run entirely by students, these accomplishments are significant.

“[My favorite part] is probably that every group is student run,” Basedow said. “It gives us something extra to be proud of since we know we did this all on our own.”

Tickets for the spring concert are $12 in advance and $15 at the door, and can be purchased at the high school before 7:30 a.m. or after 2:30 p.m.