2002 Pacific Northwest Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival

18th Annual

The Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival is the premier American showcase for vocal harmony music. The annual national competition draws from hundreds of vocal groups from around the country with regional competitions in eight cities. The winning group from each festival is flown to perform in front of celebrity judges and a sold out house of enthusiastic a cappella fans at the National Finals.

2002 Pacific Northwest Champions

Standards

True that it is rare to find such a talent like this among five brothers. A brotherhood that is sure to inspire, motivate and entertain anyone. The Standards - Music for everyone. The human voice, that's how it all started for five brothers who shared a passion for music. Singing together at an early age, they began the makings of this one of a kind vocal group, forging a relationship beyond brotherhood and taking harmony to perfection. Today, they are known as The Standards.The Standards have taken vocal music to a new dimension by creating their own unique style of music with an infectious harmony that speaks to all generations and cultures of music lovers.

2002 Results
1st	Standards
2nd	Unplugged
3rd	Mockingbird
Best Original Arrangement	"Gotta Lotta Lemons."

2002 Participating Groups

The Akafellas

The Akafellas hail from Olympia, Washington and have been a group for over five years. This six-member male a cappella group sings several styles of music from Doo-Wop to Barbershop to Pop and everything in between, including Country and Comedy. They describe their performances as "unique" because of "our own warped brand of humor." The group's self-titled CD was recently released.

Members: Tony Benjamins, Lee Tran, Jon Morgan, Greg Fryhling, Scott Stilson, Jon Murdock

Backbeat

Backbeat is Harmonious Funk and covers Motown, Classic Rock, Disco, Soul, R&B, 80's Wave, 90's Rock and Millennium Hits. This six-member ensemble (4 men, 2 women) enjoys bringing their unique sound to nostalgic music to make it fresh and exciting. Each member has individual experiences and strengths which range from composing Indie Rock tunes to training in African music and from performances in musical theater to creating a wide repertoire in vocal percussion. When they put their voices together, the results are a musical feast.

Members: Emily Debow, Andrew Nunez, Mike Giles, Brian Kinyon, Chava Mirel, Otha Major

Groove For Thought

Infectious grooves, stunning arrangements, and electrifying solos are just some of the phrases used to describe Seattle based vocal group Groove For Thought. Since 1998, GFT has brought their unique brand of jazz and R&B infused tunes to festival, concert, school, and nightclub audiences throughout the United States and abroad.

Members: Hannah Vierness, James Niles, Kelly Kunz, Kevin Kuna, Randy Taylor, Jeff Horenstein

Mockingbird

Mockingbird is comprised of three women who are good friends who have brought their musical interests and diversity together to form a blend of a cappella harmonies. They have been making music together for seven years and sing a wide variety of songs, including several originals. They have released two CDs, "Drenched" and "Magic Everywhere," and have plans for a third. A recent review of "Drenched" in Victory Review stated, "These women are obviously having fun. You can hear their warmth and friendship. What a delightful album they've created."

Members: Sherrie Lutsch, Lesley Rigg, Robin Wallbridge

The Righteous Mothers

The Righteous Mothers are four women who have performed together for over 20 years, while raising seven children and having dual careers as a high school teacher, professors, a children's book author and a lawyer. This feminist, folk-rock group pride themselves on songs surrounded by warm sentiments and mind-bending tales and on fearless displays on wit, drama, and choreography. Each performance is a celebration of the human spirit, warts (and courage) and all.

Members: Wendy Crocker, Marla Beth, Lisa Brodoff

Slugger Jones

Slugger Jones combines four distinct voices and musical backgrounds to create a new and unique show for every audience. Infusing elements of Jazz, Funk, Rock, and Classical into their original arrangements, these four men perform their energetic style of music around Western Washington. With members coming from such groups as Kickshaw, Soundsation, Seattle's VocalPoint!, and Rapid Pulse, their wealth of experience is visible in both their unique arrangements and obvious joy of performing.

Members: Brian Atkinson, Russ Bright, Joe Johnson, Brian Kirkness

Standards

True that it is rare to find such a talent like this among five brothers. A brotherhood that is sure to inspire, motivate and entertain anyone. The Standards - Music for everyone. The human voice, that's how it all started for five brothers who shared a passion for music. Singing together at an early age, they began the makings of this one of a kind vocal group, forging a relationship beyond brotherhood and taking harmony to perfection. Today, they are known as The Standards.The Standards have taken vocal music to a new dimension by creating their own unique style of music with an infectious harmony that speaks to all generations and cultures of music lovers.

Listen to: Nothing But Love | Listen to: Prayer Of The Children

Members: Morgan Williams, Nicholas Williams, Jordan Williams, Nathan Williams

Unplugged

Unplugged...the name says it all! These four talented women wow audiences with their distinctive sound, dynamic expression and delightful comedy. They came together from a variety of award-winning ensembles to form Unplugged in January 2001, and went straight to the top of the a cappella/barbershop scene in the Pacific Northwest. Teresa, Julie and Anna live in the Seattle/Tacoma area and Judy hails from Vancouver, BC, making Unplugged truly an international experience of harmony. An eight-hour round-trip drive is just a normal part of rehearsals.

Members: Julie Hagstrom, Anna Chamberlain, Judy Pozsgay, Teresa McCafferty

2002 Judges TBA

Complete list of 2002 participants

National Finals Recordings

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Interested in Performing?

We are always seeking groups who would like to participate in our events.

Groups of any style are welcome, but you must have between 3 and 12 members. We have a rule book which explains many of the details of the event, which you can see by clicking here. All groups must audition in order to compete. Generally this is done by sending a current tape and photo, although live auditions are sometimes arranged. The purpose of the audition is to make sure the group is appropriate for the Festival and to help the Director determine the performance order. If a group has competed previously, the audition process may be waived.

How to enter

Please send music and photos to the regional director :

Gary Witley (Pacific Northwest) The Pacific Northwest Regional Festival is sponsored and produced by Masterworks Choral Ensemble (MCE). Gary Witley is the Artistic Director & Conductor of MCE. MCE is a Southwestern Washington community chorus dedicated to performance, community service, music education and leadership in the arts. Our mission is to perform sacred and secular choral, orchestral and newly commissioned works; to participate in community service activities and to provide a leadership role in developing, sponsoring and broadening the vocal arts.

PO Box 1091, Olympia, WA 98501-1090
360-339-0532
info (at) mce.org

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2002 Results

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