There was a hype going around as I anticipated the Brown Derbies special performance at the arch between Morris and Champlin. There was not actually any hype about the performance amongst students on campus, and it wasn’t one of the things that you had to go to or else you’d be missing out on a critical college experience, it was just an acapella performance. Nevertheless, I was excited to attend my first arch sing ever, which could be why I was more enthusiastic than the average attendee. Sadly, in all my excitement I didn’t leave for the performance until 10:35, but when I got there they had just begun their performance, so I didn’t miss much.
The first thing that took me by surprise was the amount of people gathered under the arch. Although there were only about thirty or so people, I always thought of acapella as something that only the performers’ close friends would come to attend. But the fact that they had regular attendants and actual fans surprised me. While wearing my soccer sweatshirt and sweatpants, I felt very out of place as I looked around at the audience who thought of “casual” clothes as jeans, layered tops, jackets, and scarves. I was completely out of place, but once the Brown Derbies began to sing I could have cared less about what I was wearing. I don’t know what kind of songs I thought they were going to sing, but I never would have expected to hear a song by Yellowcard, an alternative band, at an acapella performance. From that point on, I looked exactly like every other person in the audience; I was smiling and truly enjoying myself.
I watched for a few minutes when I realized that the Brown Derbies usually perform in Wayland arch, but they were making a special appearance on the Pembroke side of campus because that is where their newest member, Austin Boxler, lives. Their acts were centered on the introduction of Austin into the Brown Derbies, which alluded to Simba being brought into the circle of life from the Lion King. In each of their acts the whole group would form a semi-circle around one or two “lead singers.” For each song that they sang, there was a different person singing the lead for the song. I had never been to an acapella performance before so I had no idea what to expect, but the fact that they each shared the spotlight gives me the impression that an acapella group functions as a unit where each member is important, a very “family” type of atmosphere. There was also a part of their performance that stood as a sort of “initiation” for Austin as a new member of the team; he had to tell a joke. Although he completed the task with ease, it was interesting to see the other members encouraging him with some jokes of their own. The fact that the Brown Derbies would come across campus to make a special performance just for their newest member portrays the acapella scene, in my point of view as an acapella rookie, as a friendly, courteous, and intimate scene.
For their main performance the Brown Derbies sang songs like “Say Yes,” by Elliot Smith, “Way Away,” by Yellowcard, and other songs that are available on their albums. Each song was executed so well, I even thought that they wrote one of the songs themselves because I’d never heard it before, but when they sang it sounded like it could have been. There were also a couple of the Brown Derbies that were not bass or alto’s, but they were beat boxers. Something like beat boxing, which is usually associated with hip-hop and rap, was a very interesting aspect of the performance. It enhanced the sound of the song as a whole by creating more dimensions, other than voices and humming. A key characteristic of acapella seems to be the ability for a group to make natural voices sound like instruments. The sound of multiple voices overlapping into a harmony is beautiful. When they sang “Say yes,” I was moved by the softness in their voices as the tempo of the song slowed and the emphasis on certain beats decreased. I even noticed a girl in the audience fanning away the tears that were accumulating in her eyes. The power of the human voice is not something that is limited to only speeches, but also includes songs and singing.
During the half hour that they performed, the Brown Derbies not only entertained the audience with their amazing voices, but also with some humorous improvisation antics and interaction with the crowd. As an old man walked through the arch during one of their songs, a Brown Derby exaggerated a courteous gesture to let the man through. In another song, the lead singer said, “If I could play a guitar it would look like this,” while pretending to play a guitar. These little parts that they creatively made up as they went made the performance more enjoyable by relieving and tension with humor. By creating an enjoyable atmosphere, the Brown Derbies were able to manipulate and connect with the audience on a level beyond the sound of their music.
After being surprised by the number of people that attended the acapella singing and how much I enjoyed the performance, I realized why there is an acapella scene. In a sad attempt at being a good ethnographer and talking with the members of the Brown Derbies and some of the people who were there, I was able to exchange a few words with one of the singers. However, due to the cold weather conditions and the fact that the Derbies were all going to the Blue State coffee shop, I wasn’t able to talk long. Just as he was walking away, the singer I was about to interview invited me to the coffee shop with the Derbies, and their close friends, to continue the interview. At this point I was convinced that the reason a scene that seems very uninteresting and slow paced like the acapella scene is still around is because they show the same respect and kindness to their audience that they do towards each other.
Although they only performed for a short thirty minutes, I was able to learn about the acapella scene at Brown University simply through observation. The courteousness that the Brown Derbies exercise amongst each other permeates into the audiences that come to watch them, creating a scene that holds these ideals in high regards. With a perfect balance between their comedic improvisation and uniformed outfits, the Brown Derbies are an example of an acapella group that captures the ears and hearts of its listeners. (1126 words)
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