A few weeks ago, I tried to convince a friend to accompany me to an a capella concert at Joe's Pub. Once again, I received the same reaction from this friend that I always get when the term "a capella" is brought up - a mixture of aversion and near terror, followed by the simple explanation, "You know how I feel about a capella."
Cut to Labor Day, when that same friend waited in anticipation with me at Gould Plaza to see the cast of "Spring Awakening." I neglected to mention that first we would be treated to a brief a capella performance. No sooner did the group take to the stage and start belting its brains out than my friend started to bob her head and dance to the music.
""I thought you hate a capella," I said.
She froze, smacked her hands against her cheeks and exclaimed, "That's what this is? This is that? This is good!"
This, ladies and gents, was N'Harmonics. You know, the Tisch-sponsored a capella group that successfully upstaged "Spring Awakening" on the Plaza that day. And it is one of the best parts of the New York and NYU theater scene that you may be missing.
Now in their 10th season at NYU, the N'Harmonics are unlike most a capella groups here at NYU or anywhere else, which contributed to my friend's astonishment upon hearing them. For one, they defy the stereotype of a stiff, stuffy and classical ensemble. Recent auditions consisted of a verse and chorus from one contemporary piece of music. The only stipulation: no musicals allowed, which brings me to my second point. Most, though not all, of the students in N'Harmonics are in CAP21, Tisch's musical theater studio, meaning they're as close to being seasoned college performers as they're going to get. One past member even took leave from the group to star in the national tour of "Mama Mia!" There are no nerve-wracked performances and shaky vibratos in this crowd, guaranteeing a wealth of energy and riffs galore at every show.
The group is well-respected by more reputable sources than me (and the 90 members of the N'Harmonics Fans Facebook group). They compete in the International Championship for Collegiate A Capella, where current members Alyse Wojciechowski and LaRaisha Burnette have both been honored as outstanding soloists and beat boxer Tim Noble was awarded for Outstanding Vocal Percussion. Then there's Shaina Taub, the group's musical director, whose gospel-esque arrangement of Bonnie Raitt's "Something to Talk About" won for Outstanding Arrangement. Not to mention their sold-out performance at Joe's Pub at the end of August.
I was lucky enough to sit in on their first rehearsal last week to see how they put it all together and initiate the "newbies" fresh from auditions. What struck me most is their "once an N'Harm, always an N'Harm" policy. The group's rapport is so lively and strong it cannot help but show in performances.
What's more, they are aware of their talents and tailor their songs to their varying voices. They highlight the nuances in the music they choose, breaking songs down not into vocal parts, but into instrumental parts. In other words, rather than being assigned as soprano, alto or tenor, members may take the place of the bass guitar or - my personal favorite - the so-called "funky piano."
This brings a diversity to their arrangements lacking in so many a capella choruses. At rehearsal, they threw around some new song ideas to add to their repertoire, including a medley of Sam Cooke's "A Change is Gonna Come," the Allman Brothers' "Whipping Post" and even N'Sync's "I Want You Back," which was devastatingly outvoted.
This group, made up of our peers, is shockingly professional and undeniably skilled at what it does. It's easy to forget they are just now harvesting this craft and, for the most part, only intend to grow with time. President Shane Orser told me a CD featuring songs like "The Chain" and "Bohemian Rhapsody" will be available this fall. In the meantime, it's worth waiting until Oct. 26 for the fall concert, which, based on this season's first rehearsal, promises to be as irreverent, boisterous and badass as ever.
Issie Lapowsky is the theater editor. E-mail her at ilapowsky@nyunews.com
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