By Caitlin Walsh, News Staff
As it turns out, the “Pitch Perfect” world is very real, and though the Rebel Wilson antics and Elizabeth Banks judging may be fiction, the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCAs) that is emulated in the movie’s ending is legitimate. On April 20, Northeastern a cappella group the Nor’easters took home the first place award. More than that, the group’s journey next competition season will be documented on a new a cappella reality show by the producers of American Idol, another surprise they learned on stage that day.
Though the expected nerves that coincide with such a competition were prevalent for the group, something much bigger came into play the week of finals — the Marathon bombings in Boston were that Monday, and the city locked down on Friday when they were scheduled to be leaving. Nor’easters Music Director Shams Ahmed and President David Crozier explained just what finals meant to them, as a result.
“Due to the Boston Marathon tragedies earlier in the week, our buses had all been cancelled for New York, and the city was on lockdown,” said Ahmed, senior finance major and Crozier, a junior electrical and computer engineering major, in a joint email interview. “We were almost forced to remain in Boston. Luckily, through the support and rallying of our amazing a cappella community, we were able to borrow enough cars to get down there by Saturday morning for the competition. Representing our school and more importantly, our city was crucial, especially after those tragic events.”
The ICCAs, held by tournament facilitator Varsity Vocals, are no easy task to get to in the first place. The biggest a cappella competition in the world, the ICCA’s accept 300 groups to participate based on a two to four minute audition video. The first regional quarterfinal rounds began in January, and from there the top two groups advanced to the semifinals.
Multiple Northeastern groups made it to the semifinal round, including Distilled Harmony, The Downbeats and new all-female group Pitch, Please!
The Nor’easters, however, was the only Northeastern group to advance to the final round.
The atmosphere once they got there was something special. “The energy at finals is simply unparalleled,” Ahmed and Crozier said. “Knowing that you have made it to the final round of this competition and are surrounded by the best groups in the world is truly special.”
Not to mention the successful ticket sales, which they attributed to the success of the 2012 hit musical comedy “Pitch Perfect”.
“The event was actually sold out a month beforehand,” they said.
Though the movie at times depicted dramatic competitiveness between groups backstage, the actual sportsmanship at the competition was much healthier — at least from the Nor’easters.
“The other groups at finals were amazing as well, naturally,” they said. “The groups we liked the best were probably the Scattertones from UCLA, who placed 2nd at finals last year, and the Sons of Pitches from Imperial College of London, who were extremely entertaining. Also Reverb, an all male group from Florida State University sported a really fun and vibrant set.”
Only interested in moving forward, the Nor’easters already have big plans for their future as a group. “We will definitely be travelling to more festivals next year and will continue to compete in those areas,” Ahmed and Crozier said. And their television debut will be in the near future, as well, as they excitedly reiterated.
“If you keep your eyes peeled on your televisions, you might see us.”
