Big Rapids’ Festival of the Arts offers multiple artistic shows and workshops throughout February and local artists such as painters, photographers and musicians gather together to showcase their talents.
Valentine’s Day was as unique as any other day. On the night of Feb. 14, Immanuel Lutheran Church was filled not with worship music but barbershop harmony. Three groups were hosted by Big Rapids’ Festival of the Arts. The 8 Man Vocal Band was a non-traditional octet, while Cruise Control and Vintage Blend sang in traditional quartets.
The church was full, and the performers received multiple standing ovations. From Roger Miller’s “King of the Road” to “Evermore” from Disney’s live-action “Beauty and the Beast,” all three groups chose a crowd-pleasing mix of classic and modern songs.
Cruise Control has an interesting conception story. Lead singer Catie Carey reflected on how the group originally came to be.
“Our bass singer, Cole Carey was competing in a district competition where he was singing in three quartets, and he was singing tenor, lead and baritone,” Carey said. “In a barbershop quartet, the melody is almost always sung by the leador second tenor. The first tenor harmonizes above the melody, the bass sings the lowest harmonizing notes, and the baritone finishes off the chord. He is not a bass, but he thought it would be fun for us to compete in all four parts. So he called us ‘Cruise Control.'”
Before they knew it, Cruise Control was Pioneer District’s 2024 Collegiate Quartet Champions.
Barbershop harmony has been around since the 1800s. It is rooted in southern Black culture and was even an inspiration for jazz music. Barbershop style is a type of unaccompanied vocal music or a-cappella music, that uses four-part chords for every melody note.
Barbershop is also known for scat singing, just like jazz music. Scat singing or “scatting” involves singing improvised vowels, syllables or no words. It is used to fill in the gap left by the genre’s lack of musical instruments, as a cappella music means the forgoing of all musical instruments in favor of your voice. A master scatter can bring excellent harmony and timing to a barbershop group.
Not to be overshadowed, Vintage Blend was Pioneer District’s 2024 senior quartet champion. Their expressiveness on stage had the crowd laughing and tapping their toes. Their arrangement of “Evermore” from “Beauty and the Beast” brought the crowd to their feet.
Vintage Blend bass singer James Masalskis led the song in a powerful voice and knew that it would be a hit at this performance.
“There are certain things that we know work, you know, you have to end with something big that everyone likes,” Masalskis said.
Every group has its personality. The 8 Man Vocal Band advertises themselves as eight men with over 200 years of singing experience between them. Their traditional roots and friendly bond with each other even inspired a cassette tape called “Just Among Friends.”
As a surprise, once the concert was finished, all three groups came together and performed two songs as a chorus. The arrangements of Ricky Nelson’s “Hello Mary Lou” and The Turtles’ “Happy Together” were a strong finish to an already stacked concert.
The 8 Man Vocal Band lead singer Bill Woodbeck described why it is important to uphold camaraderie with other groups.
“Some of those songs are ones that several groups from around the state know. So we knew we could sing them with others,” Woodbeck said. “Having songs in common isn’t seen as competition but rather a chance to grow and sing with other groups. In a genre that places the highest importance on harmony, this is an excellent practice to uphold.”
The Festival of the Arts offers such a wide selection of art, like these three groups. The sheer variety showcased by this month-long event is a must-see festival. It’s important that the Big Rapids community has a way to connect and work together with Ferris.