The Art of A Cappella Exploring the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition

The world of a cappella is a mesmerizing one – a perfect harmony of voices coming together to create a beautiful musical experience. And what better way to explore this art than through the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition? This event brings together some of the most talented a cappella groups from around the country to showcase their skills and compete for the top spot. Join us as we dive into the world of a cappella and discover the magic of this unique competition.

What is A Cappella music?

A Cappella music is a style of music where singers perform without any instrumental accompaniment, relying solely on their voices to produce the music.

What is the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition?

The Harmony Sweepstakes Competition is an annual A Cappella music competition that brings together some of the best A Cappella groups from around the world to compete against each other.

What are the different categories in the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition?

The Harmony Sweepstakes Competition has several categories, including Best Original Song, Best Arrangement, Best Soloist, and Best Performance.

How can someone prepare for the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition?

To prepare for the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition, one should practice singing, work on harmonizing with others, and develop a unique style that sets them apart from other groups.

What makes the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition unique?

The Harmony Sweepstakes Competition is unique because it highlights the artistry and creativity of A Cappella music and brings together some of the most talented A Cappella groups from around the world.

Based on the user experience, the benefits of exploring the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition are numerous. Participants get to experience the joy of creating music without any instrumental accompaniment, which is a unique and rewarding experience. Additionally, they get to compete with other talented artists, receive valuable feedback from the judges, and showcase their skills to a wider audience. The competition also provides a platform for networking and building lasting relationships with fellow singers and music enthusiasts. Overall, the Harmony Sweepstakes Competition is a must-attend event for anyone interested in the art of a cappella singing.

The Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival is an annual showcase and competition for a cappella groups of all vocal styles. The competition is organized into seven regional events across the United States, with each winning group advancing to the National Finals in San Rafael, California. Highlighting performances by hundreds of up and coming vocal groups from around the country, The Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival begins the season with regional competitions in seven major urban markets during the Spring months, followed by the gala National Finals to be held in San Rafael, California in early May. Called the granddaddy of all the singing contests for vocal harmony groups, 1 The Harmony Sweepstakes embraces all styles of music performed a cappella, from the traditional forms of doo-wop and barbershop, gospel, and jazz to the exciting and innovative directions of contemporary vocal harmony. The festival has helped to legitimize a cappella singing, once dismissed as a vocal novelty act associated with guys in straw hats singing barbershop harmonies. The human voice and its endless possibilities have brought many diverse people together, and in a musical world increasingly dominated by technology, the appreciation of vocal music is a human connection that we can all share. The roots of the event began in a weekly sing-a-long that was held in the British pub The Mayflower in San Rafael, California. Everybody had such a fine time singing they formed the community chorus the Mayflower Chorus and held regular concerts and performances. As it is not always easy to find performance opportunities for a large chorus several members also formed smaller a cappella ensembles and began performing around the region. In , chorus member Lisa Collins had the idea to start a competition for the a cappella groups as a way to further develop an audience for vocal harmony singing. For the first few years the show was part on the annual In Performance at Forrest Meadows performing arts series at Dominican University and the Festival soon became a local audience favorite. After a few years theatrical producer John Neal attended a concert and was thoroughly enthralled by the singing, the show and the concept of this first-of-its-kind music festival. John approached Lisa and offered to help develop the show and to expand to other cities and to make it a national event. They immediately became partners and other cities were added and the venue for the National Finals was moved to the much larger Marin Veterans Auditorium. Over the next few years the concerts grew in popularity and most every up and coming vocal harmony group across the land has performed in at least one show. After a while groups from overseas also started to participate and to date there has been two Champions from overseas namely Vocaldente Germany and The Idea of North Australia. The Festival is now firmly established as the leading showcase for vocal harmony groups and has helped further the careers of many artists. Most of the groups that have earned the title of Harmony Sweepstakes National Champions have continued their careers to great success. After 30 plus years of competition the majority of national champions still continue to perform in some form or other. Finalists 3. Finalists 5. Finalists 6. Finalists 7. Hosted by National Champions, Hi-Fidelity. Hosted by Groove for Thought , National Champions. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Marin Independent Journal. Novato, California via ProQuest Central. Harmony Sweepstakes. Retrieved 22 February Retrieved 10 April San Francisco Chronicle. Namespaces Article Talk. Views Read Edit View history. Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file. Download as PDF Printable version. Add links. The Sound Exchange. Straighter Road. Women of the World. Honey Whiskey Trio. Plumbers of Rome. MAXX Factor. Groove For Thought.
Stay in the know Subscribe. For over three decades the Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival has been delighting Bay Area audiences and has grown to become the leading showcase for talented vocal groups from the region. From vocal jazz to doo wop, gospel to pop and all styles in between, you will be amazed at the versatility of the human voice on display in this most exhilarating evening of vocal harmony singing. This event always sells out so get your tickets early! While you might be tempted to take a right at the first stop light Lyon Street and pull directly into the Palace of Fine Arts, pass the Lyon Street entrance and proceed straight on Marina Boulevard. You can then make your way back to the Palace of Fine Arts through the Presidio or retry the directions from above. Cross the Bay Bridge. Follow the signs to the 9th Street exit. Stay in the right-hand lane.