It was a lively first week for Ackerman Union this year, as various a cappella groups held auditions for talented singers who hoped to join different UCLA performance groups.
One such group was the all-male ensemble Bruin Harmony, who, fresh from its film debut in “The Social Network,” which came out in theaters last Friday, were holding auditions throughout the week. While not all members of Bruin Harmony were present for the auditions, John He, the music director for the group, provided some insight into the auditioning process.
“It’s a five- to 10-minute process and there are two stages. In the first stage we have people sing a few warm-ups to test their vocal range. We play a series of notes and they have to sing them back by memory,” He said.
In doing this, He explained, Bruin Harmony is looking to test the musical ability of the people auditioning, as well as whether they can learn music quickly.
“The second stage is probably most frightening for those auditioning, but it’s the most fun for us,” He said.
“The person gets to sing any song without (accompanying) music.”
The spectrum of songs people choose to sing range from contemporary pop hits to Christmas music.
“It’s a chance to show their personality and vocal style, and we’re allowed to judge their solo voice.” He said.
Before entering the Ackerman meeting room for the auditions, potential members had to fill out a form, which asked them various questions about their musical abilities, such as whether or not they can beatbox, their previous vocal and instrumental experience, their musical experience and how many licks it takes to get the center of a Tootsie Pop.
Tootsie Pops aside, the group’s sense of humor was readily apparent. Before auditions began, the members casually talked, joked and laughed together all while talking about topics ranging from new stars, the new Starcraft II videogame and eventually listening and singing along to Erasure’s “Always.”
He explained that they’re not only looking for talented singers but also dynamic performers that will easily get along with the group.
“Bruin Harmony is always looking for personalities and guys we can be comfortable with. It’s not something you have a rubric for, but we perform twice a week, and we need guys we can click with both on stage and personality wise,” He said.
While the atmosphere within the auditioning room was pleasant and carefree, there was tension and awkwardness outside, where students were awaiting their turn to impress the group and showcase their talent. One student was second-year ethnomusicology student Ryan Thomas, who was about to experience his first audition.
While Thomas did not have much singing experience (he didn’t sign up to audition, but showed up the night of anyway), that did not deter him from trying anyway.
“I sing harmony for a jazz ensemble (on campus), but I want to be a better, more confident singer,” Thomas said.
As a guitar player who is also focusing on jazz studies at UCLA, Thomas said it would be fun to perform the pop songs that Bruin Harmony is known to perform.
First-year psychobiology student Jack Utz was also game to experiment outside his comfort zone. For him, this wasn’t his first time auditioning for an a cappella group.
“The first a cappella audition was pretty intimidating, but most of the groups are social and funny so you don’t need to stress,” Utz said after his audition, where he performed his rendition of the Smashing Pumpkins song “Sweet Sweet.”
Although he auditioned for other a cappella groups such as Awaken and ScatterTones, Utz said he liked the all-male feel of Bruin Harmony.
Fourth-year theater student Ben Goldsmith also said he was drawn to the all-male ensemble.
“I feel like mixed a cappella groups are just people competing to sing the loudest,” Goldsmith said.
As a singer and songwriter, this was also Goldsmith’s first time auditioning for an a cappella group, but that’s not to say he wasn’t accustomed to performing.
“I’ve been singing since high school, and when I got the lead in a musical, I fell in love with it,” Goldsmith said.
He has also been a part of a company for Spring Sing over the past two years and is considering performing this year as a solo artist.
However, Goldsmith said he has some reservations about a cappella groups.
“I don’t like a cappella that much. I don’t like ripping off the latest Lady Gaga song,” Goldsmith said.
Goldsmith said he decided to audition anyway after watching the University of Illinois a cappella group “The Other Guys” just two days before school started.
“I like coming together with people to sing. I respected (Bruin Harmony’s) two Spring Sing performances because they were not cheesy.”
While Goldsmith wasn’t nervous to audition, he did have some difficulty with his song choice. As he hummed and sang songs such as Christina Aguilera’s “Genie in a Bottle,” he continued to debate between singing songs from the Beatles or Sublime.
When it came time to face the judges, he sang Sublime and performed as he joked and interacted with the Bruin Harmony members. Confident and collected, he ran through the warm-ups, and once they were over, he told himself aloud that what he sang was probably right. The members of Bruin Harmony laughed and told him that it was.