Pitch Perfect was based on a competition called ICCA, which stands for International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella. While the movie does not lie about the competition dramatics, they did overhype rival university group drama. Pace University’s very own a cappella groups can attest!
Frequency and Tonal Recall are two competing a cappella groups on campus, and they co-hosted an event on Feb. 10 to perform their ICCA sets for peers to send them off before quarterfinals. I got the chance to talk to the presidents of both groups to hear about the event and their upcoming competition.
Ryan Murray and Brady Mannion, Tonal Recalls Presidents, shared, “The send-off is an annual event that Tonal Recall & Frequency shares to showcase our talent and the hard work we’ve put into our ICCA sets before we go off to competition!”
Not only is it an opportunity to showcase their sets and hard work, but it’s a great way to perform in front of an audience.
Lauren Kube, co-President of Frequency, mentioned, “We’re able to practice performing in front of an audience, get their reaction, and figure out what may need to be changed.”
Ben Zack, also co-President of Frequency, continued, “Because you can perform in rehearsal, but the nerves of an audience add layers that affect your stress, your breath support, and sometimes your performance, so this is important for us to do to note those spots and then we can continue to drill it before our real performance!”
Something that Pitch Perfect did get right was the pressure to do your best as a group. New York City is a very talented region, competing against schools like New York University, Fordham University, The New School, Hunter College, and Columbia University. All groups deserve recognition, but only a few receive it.
There is a lot of preparation before Sendoff. Kube said, “There is months-long preparation leading up to Sendoff and our ICCA Quarterfinals competition. We meet for at least 8 hours each week to work on singing, dynamics, choreography, and more.”
The groups are now working extra hours in this crunch time to change anything that didn’t land at Sendoff. However, the event itself was a huge success!
Zack commented, “The event ran super smoothly, Lauren and I were very thrilled. The turnout was awesome, and there were so many supporting friends. We loved hearing them scream and cheer for us, and we were very happy about our performance! We think we put on a great performance that the audience enjoyed, and we also were able to note points in the set that we need to work on further and things we need to change, which is exactly what this event was for!”
Murray and Mannion reiterated, “Yes! The event was successful and had a great turnout. All Tonal Recall members really performed and showcased their individual talents, as well as our performance as a group.”
I don’t know about you, but I think they are more than ready for ICCA!
Finally, the groups wanted to share some upcoming events this semester and hoped to see you there.
Kube shared, “Frequency is excited to be hosting a brand new event called Duet Roulette on March 3rd at 8 PM. Everyone in Frequency has been randomly paired up and will be performing duets for our friends and family. Be sure to stay up to date via our Instagram, @frequencyacappella.”
Murray shared, “In March, we are hosting a Queer-aoke night with the LGBTQA+ center! Come and sing one of your favorite songs on this pride-themed night of fun! More information will be available on our Instagram @pace.tonal.recall soon!”
Wishing both groups the best of luck in their upcoming competition!