Musical performances will be looking a little different this semester for students at NYU. Due to the state regulations set in place by Governor Cuomo and their specific application to colleges in New York City, NYU decided to prohibit all in-person club meetings for the fall semester. For some groups, this means postponing activities until we (fingers crossed) resume in-person meetings in the spring. For the NYU Cleftomaniacs, this means rolling with the punches and creating innovative ways to perform and connect…Zoom style. Since my freshman year at school, I’ve been a member/E-board member of the Cleftomaniacs, NYU’s premiere all-women, a cappella group. I got to witness, firsthand, these changes and the processes behind them. I sat down with my fellow E-board members (and great friends) to ask them about what this virtual semester means for them, in terms of their role responsibilities, and how they’re feeling about all of these changes in general!
***Many of us mention the ICCAs in our interviews. ICCA stands for “International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella”… think Pitch Perfect, but for college a cappella groups! This international competition, put on by the group “Varsity Vocals” happens every year (usually in the spring semester).
Lizz Delaney (She/Her/Hers) – President
Senior majoring in Biology & minoring in Astronomy
Favorite Cleftos Memory: 2020 ICCA’s! It was so rewarding to finally get to perform something we’d been working on for so long, especially with all my favorite ladies.
Role Responsibilities / Changes this Semester: Traditionally, the president is responsible for room bookings, budget management, general scheduling, and attendance. Being completely virtual has changed these duties quite a bit! With room bookings now being null and void, I’m responsible for setting up weekly virtual rehearsals and formatting rehearsal structure.
Hardest part about being virtual: Virtual rehearsals threw us for a loop initially because we can’t sing live as a group. It took some time to work out the kinks and find ways to rehearse that were effective. Also, it was tricky to land on an idea that would most easily translate live performances to a virtual semester without in-person concerts.
Benefit of being virtual: Honestly, since going completely virtual, I think that rehearsals have become much more efficient. Everyone shows up ready to learn and has an incredible amount of focus despite zoom fatigue.
What she’s excited for this semester: I’m very excited to see how we continue to adapt to our rehearsals and concerts this semester. With in-person options removed, we’ve certainly had to become much more creative in how we will continue to make music together, create performance videos, and compete in virtual competitions are very many aspects of Cleftos. I’m looking forward to this semester.
“While we still don’t know exactly what a virtual semester will look like for our audience, we are all very excited to go on this journey together, and hope to be releasing music again as soon as possible!!”
Jade Navarro (She/Her/Hers) – Vice President/Treasurer
Sophomore in Vocal Performance at Steinhardt
Favorite Cleftos Memory: ICCAs 2020; it was SO much fun, and the last normal memory I had since COVID-19 hit. Everything from rehearsals and the actual performance. I felt like I got so much closer to my Clefto sisters!
Role Responsibilities / Changes this Semester: This position mainly helps the president with the organization and making big decisions and such. They also help schedule events, book rehearsal rooms, and help send out information (emails, etc.). The treasurer aspect deals with anything financial. They help work with NYU on the club budget for things such as concerts, transportation, merchandise, sound equipment, and everything in between. This semester, we don’t have to pay for things like concert set-up, transportation, and sound equipment because there are no in-person events. So we shifted our budget to items that are COVID-friendly. For example, we will put more effort into merch this year and out some of our funding towards virtual concerts and production. I also do not have to do booking duties, but there is a lot more emailing since everything is virtual.
Hardest part about being virtual: One of the hardest parts is figuring out what takes precedence in the budget because there are so many things up in the air. It is less clear about how much we get to use, given to us by the NYU club managers, and how we should use it to optimize this time.
Benefit of being virtual: A benefit of being virtual is that we are a lot more flexible. Like any other time, people have commitments that interfere with meetings/rehearsals like class or other extracurriculars. But because we are online and everyone is home, it is easier to match everyone’s schedules.
What she’s excited for this semester: I’m excited to bond with each other more. Because times are so difficult right now, it’s easy to lose touch of the communities we are in, but having the Cleftomaniacs is a perfect way to feel close to others again, relieve stress, and sing your heart out. We are planning to do Netflix parties, themed rehearsals, and even virtual ICCAs. There are so many changes, but in the end, it is bringing us together. I am happy and excited.
“I’m so glad I have my Clefto family. It is such a fun and safe space where I can truly be myself. During one of the hardest times of my life, or of all of our lives, it feels so good to have a home away from home, all while doing my favorite thing with all these talented ladies: singing <3”
Karine (She/Her/Hers) – Music Director
Senior majoring in Economics & minoring in Business
Favorite Cleftos Memory: Clefto bondings & after parties! I love singing with these lovely ladies, but it’s also refreshing to get to know them on a more personal level.
Role Responsibilities / Changes this Semester: I’m responsible for arranging/teaching music to the group as well as making musical decisions to help the group sound the best it can :)
Hardest part about being virtual: Figuring out the best way to teach music and plan concerts virtually have been the two biggest obstacles I have this semester.
Benefit of being virtual: Since virtual rehearsals began, I’ve realized that I, other E-board members, and Clefto members in general, have been thinking more expansively & creatively in terms of musical capability and storytelling.
What she’s excited for this semester: Again, creativity! I’m curious to see what audio and visual innovations come up.
“All I have to say is that I love my Clefto cuties! Thank you all for bringing so much light into the world <3”
Miranda Commisso (She/Her/Hers) – Assistant Music Director
Senior in Music Education at Steinhardt
Favorite Cleftos Memory: I have had innumerable great memories as part of the Cleftos, but I would have to say that my favorite was the 2020 ICCA’s. We all worked so hard on the set, and I think it came across to the audience just as we intended. It was a super emotional experience for me, and I was so proud. Overall, it was just a great day, getting to spend it with the coolest group of girls, doing what I love, and it was the perfect final memory to have before COVID took over the US.
Role Responsibilities / Changes this Semester: As Assistant Music Director, my primary responsibility is to offer support to our lovely Music Director, Karine, and fill in for her whenever needed. However, I also get the chance to write and teach my arrangements as well! Although this is my first semester as Assistant Music Director, I think the most significant role this semester is that it requires some knowledge of digital recording and recording software since our arrangements can only come to life through recordings at this time.
Hardest part about being virtual: Although I do have some knowledge about recording, I think the biggest challenge about this change is translating what I know to the rest of the group. I know that it will not ultimately be my responsibility to create the final products, but I feel like the process does require me to share what I know effectively.
Benefit of being virtual: Even though my schedule is still insanely busy this semester, I don’t have to leave my room. I feel like it is much easier for me to collect my thoughts and get organized, especially in regards to cleftos stuff, when I’m not always going and going as I would be in NYC. I am already having fun as part of the E-Board. I have questioned why I didn’t even try to do it in the past. I found that the answer is that I didn’t want to be bothered with extra work, but being home makes it a bit more manageable, so I am thankful for that.
What she’s excited for this semester: Although I am super excited to see all the videos we create once finished, I am looking forward to the most this semester is the process! I am so grateful that everyone in the group gets along so well, and I love spending time with everyone (even over Zoom) and making beautiful music! I love this group so much, and I am so excited to see what this semester holds!
Hannah Fuechtman (She/Her/Hers) – Social Media Chair
Junior majoring in Media, Culture, and Communication & minoring in Business of Entertainment and Media and Technology
Favorite Cleftos Memory: My favorite Cleftos memory has to be when we performed at ICCA’s and seeing all of our hardwork and dedication pay off!
Role Responsibilities / Changes this semester: As the Social Media Chair, I am responsible for overseeing all of our social media sites and creating content to post on them.
Hardest part about being virtual: I don’t think there’s been a significant change to my role this semester, as social media is already virtual. Still, I’ve had to find ways to get more NYU students aware of Cleftos without in-person, on-campus events, which has been a bit challenging.
Benefit of being virtual: An unexpected benefit I’ve noticed since becoming entirely virtual is that we get to incorporate more technology into Cleftos, like filming videos for our songs or ICCA’s. Something Cleftos hasn’t done much in the past, so I’m excited to see our creative sides come out!
What she’s excited for this semester: One thing I’m looking forward to this semester in Cleftos is getting to bond further with the group and meeting new members!
“I’m so proud of the group for overcoming the virtual barrier and being flexible during the pandemic!”
Zion Epperson (She/Her/Hers) – Event Coordinator
Senior majoring in Applied Psychology
Favorite Cleftos Memory: My favorite Cleftos memory was my first time performing at our fall concert with the group during my freshman year. I was struggling mentally and socially during my first semester at NYU. Still, I remember hanging out with everyone at the after-party and for the first time, feeling like I belonged at NYU and that I’d found “my people.” I consider all my fellow-Cleftos my closest friends and an integral part of my personal growth during my time at NYU.
Role Responsibilities / Changes this semester: As the Events Coordinator, I assist with promotional materials for events, planning concert themes, and organizing events/gigs with other NYU groups or outside organizations that want us to perform for them. Unfortunately, I can’t see any “collabs” happening in our near future. However, I’m putting all my energy this semester into helping my other E-board members with their work and coordinating virtual events/activities to keep everyone engaged and excited.
Hardest Part about being virtual: The hardest part about being virtual is not getting to see each other as often and hanging out outside of rehearsal. As much as Cleftos is about making music and performing, the social component is also a huge part. I miss our pre-rehearsal dinners at Kimmel and the intimate forced-closeness when we’re squeezing 16 girls into a two-person practice room.
Benefit of being virtual: One benefit of this virtual semester is that people’s schedules are generally more flexible (and mostly online), so we have some members that can join us that had previously taken some time off from the group! Nobody’s excited to be doing school or work virtually, but it makes me so happy to see some beautiful, familiar faces of some friends I joined Cleftos with 3-4 years ago.
What she’s excited for this semester: I’m looking forward to this semester to plan out and execute our ICCAs set and video! This competition is entirely online, so they’re looking for creativity and uniqueness in groups’ musical arrangements/visuals. We have many talented musicians, dancers, and artists in our group, so I know we will be doing something super innovative and quirky- and I cannot wait!
“I’m so proud of everyone in the group for being flexible and enthusiastic so far, even as random issues get thrown our way. We’re taking things day by day and adapting as a group, which takes a lot of patience and tenacity on each member’s part. At the end of the day, we’re all working towards the same common goal, making beautiful music with our beautiful group of friends.”
Make sure to follow the NYU Cleftomaniacs on all their social media accounts to view their virtual performances and see how their virtual semester unfolds!
https://www.instagram.com/nyucleftos/