This past Friday, students gathered in the Attic to partake in an annual tradition at Gettysburg, Acatoberfest. This seasonal celebration is a way for every a cappella group on campus to perform together, making it an exciting time for group members and fans alike.
Each group brought their A game this year, with a variety of musical genres and standout songs capturing the audience’s attention.
Upscale, Gettysburg’s all-female a cappella group, kicked the event off with their signature song, Rainbow 2.0, written by previous musical director Jean Holland. This mashup of Somewhere Over the Rainbow and Jean’s own original composition started off a great set. The group also sang a powerful rendition of Royals by Lorde and a touching performance of Happier by Marshmello and Bastille.
Drop the Octave, the campus’s all-male a cappella group, had the audience waiting with bated breath as they announced their first song . . . and proceeded to sing Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley. After charming the audience with this fakeout, the group continued to wow us with Sunday Morning by Maroon 5 and ended their set on their signature song, Good Old A Cappella, which lived up to its name, as always.
Gettysburg’s six-member a cappella group, Spark Notes, opened strong with their signature song, Come and Get Your Love, and continued to rock the house with a medley of Post Malone songs. They also sang an arrangement of Sucker by the Jonas Brothers, featuring some wonderfully creative beatboxing. Sparknotes’ set also had an original twist: they were the only group to forgo the solo mic, instead having many members sing solos in each song.
Last, but certainly not least, Gettysburg’s coed a cappella group Four Scores began their set with a stirring mashup of Stay by Rihanna and Unsteady by X Ambassadors. After getting a little spooky with She Wolf by Shakira, they ended the night with a bang. Their crowd-pleasing arrangement of September by Earth, Wind & Fire was a great way to close out the show.
This event is an amazing opportunity for the a cappella groups to all perform together. Speaking as a member of a group myself, I treasure the chance to cheer on our fellow singers! I love to perform, but my favorite part of the night was listening to the amazing singing from all of the a cappella groups at the event.
If you have never seen an a cappella performance at Gettysburg, Acatoberfest is a great way to check out a lot of groups at once. It’s also a super fun night! A chance to eat, drink, and be merry, all while enjoying some great music. Make sure to keep this event on your radar next year, because it’s an aca-mazing time!
Images courtesy of @upscalegburg on Instagram