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Essentials in
Collegiate Quartet Contest
Men In Black Win 2005 College Championship
Updated: 10/15/2007 10:34:43 AM
High resolution electronic photos available upon request
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PLEASE
MEN IN BLACK TAKES COLLEGIATE TROPHY IN BARBERSHOP CONTEST
Salt Lake City, Utah (July 8, 2005)— Men in Black took the gold in today’s MBNA America Collegiate Barbershop Quartet Contest held here in conjunction with the Barbershop Harmony Society’s 67th annual convention and contests.
The quartet from the University of Hartford beat out a field of 21 other collegiate quartets from the U.S., Canada and New Zealand. Members are: tenor Tony Nasto, lead Oliver Merrill, baritone Raymond Johnson, and bass Karl Hudson. They competed in the contest for the first time in 2002 and placed last, but moved up every year since then. Three are musical theater majors and the fourth is vocal performance major.
Other medalists include:
Second place: New Release of Hagerstown Business College, Cuyahoga Community College and Penn State University. Members are: tenor Ryan Griffith, lead Shawn Thomas, baritone Noah Morrison, and bass Joe Eckert.
Third place: Musical Island Boys of New Zealand’s Victoria University. Members are: tenor Jeffrey Hunkin, lead Marcellus Washburn, baritone William Hunkin, and bass Matthew C. Gifford. The quartet, which placed third last year, formed while all members were in high school.
Fourth place: Afternoon Delight from Chapman University, University of San Diego, University of Southern California and Whittier College. Members are tenor Justin Miller, lead Matt Whiffen, David Rakita and Sam Papageorge. This is the group’s first year competing together.
Fifth place: Fortissimo from the University of Miami and Palm Beach Community College. Members are tenor Daniel Cochran, lead Paul Saca, baritone Juan J. Amarilla and bass Amos Velez. Fortissimo competed last year and placed fifth then as well.
Like their counterparts in the Society's regular quartet contest, these groups have come through qualifying competitions to earn a spot in the finals. Medals and trophies await the top five finishers.
The college quartet contest is judged under the same rules and criteria as regular Society quartets in international competition. Previous collegiate champions have enjoyed touring careers and continued to be active in the barbershop world. Vocal Spectrum, last year’s collegiate winner, will compete in the regular contest finals this year. The 1996 collegiate champion—Four Voices—went on to win the gold in the 2002 regular contest, becoming the first-ever former collegiate champion to do so.
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About barbershop-style a cappella music: Barbershop harmony is a uniquely American musical art form. It is known for its four-part harmony and the “expanded sound” created by its unique chord structure.
About the Barbershop Harmony Society: Founded in 1938 in Tulsa, Okla., the Barbershop Harmony Society is the largest all-male singing organization in the world. There are eight official foreign affiliates of the Society, but barbershop harmony is sung in more than 40 countries including Japan, Russia and China.
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