PSU A CAPPELLA: Sing until you’re Blue in the FACE

Hello everyone! My name is Brandi Wingate and I am going to be a Senior in Aerospace Engineering this year at Penn State. I know that you all will be hearing over and over “get involved” but the truth is you really should get involved. Getting involved is pretty much the best thing you can do at Penn State in addition to your academic work. My philosophy of extracurricular activities is kind of different from most engineers, however. As much as I love engineering and the engineering clubs Penn State has to offer, I really love participating in non-engineering activities to keep the non-technical part of my brain active. For me, my favorite thing to do outside of engineering is singing!

The 2^nd semester of my freshman year I realized that I was in desperate need of something to do that had NOTHING to do with numbers and problem solving. I had always loved singing so I decided to check out an a cappella group on campus. I auditioned for Blue in the FACE and got in! That was probably one of the best things that has happened to me during my time at Penn State. My a cappella group meets twice a week for 2 hours. It’s not a huge time commitment but it’s enough to get your mind off of technical stuff and to have some fun with non-engineers. Our group is a mix of 25 different majored kids, most of which have never had vocal training before. We are different from all other a cappella groups due to our “small group” approach in which members can arrange music of their own, teach it to a small group of other members, and then perform the piece at our semester concert and other events throughout the semester. One of my favorite parts of the group is that we aren’t a bunch of kids who get together twice a week to hang out. We are all one giant family and we LOVE what we do. We hang out a ton and I have a group of non-engineering friends that can keep me sane and involved at Penn State.

Another different part about Blue in the FACE is that we are a THON organization. I started the THON group 2 years ago and have been THON chair since. We’ve raised over $20,000 for kids with cancer within the past 2 years! We also are very fortunate to be paired with a THON family of 4 who we keep in close contact and set up lots of hang out times to see the kids. Our THON child, Isabella Rinier, is 4 now and has had Neuroblastoma for over a year. Our love and support has helped her a ton to fight her cancer and we will continue to be there for her and her family for many years to come. This is an incredible part of FACE and I am so proud to be involved.

Ok, so anyway…back to a cappela! There are a bunch of groups you can get involved with at Penn State. Some are better than others (in my opinion..) . Here is my personal breakdown of the groups:

1)      Blue in the FACE-- 25+ co-ed members who form small groups within the group, allowing members to have their own chance at arranging, directing and performing music at numerous concerts throughout the year. We have so much fun that we all turn Blue in the FACE! (check out our youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/BlueInTheFACEpsu)

2)      NOTA—one of PSU’s older co-ed a cappella groups. They are super fun and even compete in a cappella competitions. They are a Penn State organization and are funded by the University for concerts/road trips/etc.

3)      Pennharmonics—these guys are NOT a PSU organization and are not funded (this also means they do not need to have 20+ members which makes them small and competitive). They have been around for a while and are pretty good, but very competitive.

4)      Shades of Blue—one of the smaller co-ed groups on campus that I have always looked up to. They do some really neat arrangements of songs, but are also EXTREMELY competitive.

5)      Savoire Faire—an all-girls a cappella group on campus. They were really great last year! It’s not too hard to get into this group and they seem to have a lot of fun together J

6)      Grace Notes—a Christian co-ed a cappella group on campus. I don’t know too much about them, but when I’ve seen them perform they looked like they were having a blast!

So overall, get involved and if music is your thing—DO A CAPPELLA! Look for flyers hanging up in the HUB and the commons around campus to see when auditions are. The activity fair during the first week of classes is also a great place to find more information about auditioning and other music groups at Penn State. A cappella is so much fun and a great experience to have at college. You’ll meet so many people and will have a great stress reliever to counteract the tough engineering classes.

I hope this helps. Can’t wait to see everyone at WEPO! If you have any questions, please call/text or email me (610-739-5073 or brandi.wingate@gmail.com)

WE ARE! PENN STATE!

<3 Brandi Wingate