TCU’s a cappella society turned the movie “Pitch Perfect” into a reality.
Both the men’s group, “The Horned Tones,” and the mixed gender group, “License to Trill” are set to attend the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) regional quarterfinals Saturday in San Antonio.
“It’s an exciting time for both groups,” said Raymond Shideler, the president of both the a cappella society and men’s group. “We’ve only been here for a year but we are already doing this.”
Billy Perez, the vice president of the society, and Sabrina Harb, the president of the mixed gender group, agreed with Shideler and said both groups are nervous because it is the first year they are competing in the ICCA’s.
“I’ve been trying to emphasize we aren’t there to win,” Harb said. “We are there to have fun and have our own personal growth.”
The two groups, along with the society itself, started in the spring of 2015.
Perez said the men’s group benefits from having both diverse members and style. The men’s group recently opened for the Jesse McCartney concert at TCU.
Only ten groups from the southwest region’s application pool were selected to attend regionals. The top two groups at regionals will head to California for semifinals, followed by finals in New York.
TCU also has a women’s group, “Here Comes Treble,” formed by Demi Fritz in the fall of 2015. The women are not competing in the ICCA’s.
Both of TCU’s groups that are competing will have 12 minutes to perform three song mashups and choreography to match, said Shideler.
The mixed gender group’s performance is choreographed by Simone Stamelos, a member of the group and previous TCU Showgirl. The men’s performance is choreographed by Rachel Manning, a member of the TCU dance group, Calling in Action.
“They picked up everything very quickly,” Manning said. “Their stage presence is really killer. I’m really excited to see how they do.”
The three TCU a cappella groups plan to hold a concert in April.