By Michael Beaumont

On April 7th, 2018, The Arts Academy at Benjamin Rush’s Chamber singers competed in the fifth annual A Cappella At The Rock at Council Rock High School North against several other talented groups from across other districts. The Chamber singers arrived at 10 AM on Saturday to receive special lessons about performing and dance choreography under the instruction of professional Italian a cappella group, Cluster. At 7:30 PM the music festival began, and 11 different a cappella groups dominated the stage as they all hoped to snag an award from a variety of categories.

The judging process is divided into the three parts — vocal elements, musical elements, and performance elements — and are all carefully considered when deciding on which group will receive a caption award. The awards include Outstanding Male Vocalist, Outstanding Female Vocalist, Outstanding Vocal Percussion, Best Overall Effect, and Outstanding Music. The special guest judges this year included Dr. Tim Brent, Shane Coe, Kari Francis, and Brody McDonald, all of whom are up and coming names in today’s music industry.

The Rush Art Chamber Singers took the stage with “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt, which was directed by Suzanne Spencer and featured solos by La-Shainnia Peaker and Christine Carey. After a moving performance, vocalist La-Shainnia Peaker was honored with the Outstanding Female Vocalist caption award and beatboxer Joseph West was awarded Outstanding Vocal Percussion.

Once again The Rush Arts Chamber Singers stood their ground at this fierce competition full of rivalry and musicality and managed to shine through with yet another fresh performance. This year’s members are:

Soprano 1’s – Ambria Heartie, Eve Hurwitz, Sheila Joseph, and Nina Smit
Soprano 2’s – Michelina Beaumont, Nia Foreman, Hannah Kalup, Kylie Macker, Jessica Raskauskas
Alto 1’s – Christine Carey, Jessica Fisgaer, Ahyanna Navarro-Foreman, Alanis Schwarzler, and Alice Vaynblat
Alto 2’s/Tenors – Allison Feinstein, Tyanna Johnson-Deshield, Elizabeth Montgomery, Tatiana Montijo-Torres, Arianna Papatolis, Curtis Pierce, and Deborah Sermarini
Baritones/Basses – Ryan Snyder, Justin Stetler, Solomon Sulonma, and Jamal Washington
Percussion – Joseph West