Bryn Mawr College boasts five student a cappella groups, a surprisingly high number for a school with such a small student body. The Pro-Palestinian encampment currently located on Merion Green, referred to by organizers as the “People’s College for the Liberation of Palestine,” has presented a cause for which all five groups will unite: the disruption of Bryn Mawr’s May Day celebration on Sunday, May 5.
Traditionally, each a cappella group would perform its repertoire individually on May Day. However, given the unconventional circumstances surrounding the event, which usually takes place primarily on Merion Green, the singers reconsidered their performances. All five groups elected unanimously not to perform their prepared sets. A spokesperson, who asked not to be named for fear of doxxing, for the Night Owls, who according to their club bio on the College website are “the official a cappella group of Bryn Mawr,” stated that they have also “decided collectively and unanimously that [they] will not be singing ‘To the May Pole’ on May Day, which is tradition.” Instead, they explained, all of the groups have opted, again “collectively and unanimously,” to join forces and “sing songs for liberation.”
While collaboration between groups is not unprecedented, each group prides itself on its unique identity and the distinctive experience that it offers members.
Acabellas
History: The Acabellas were founded around 2008, making them the youngest a cappella group on campus.
Genre: “We’re the only a cappella group that’s majority POC and we’ve been that way for about two, three years,” said president and co-music director Graciela Kennally-Presslaff BMC ’24, “so there’s not really a genre of music but we’ve been trying incorporate a lot of Black and brown artists into what we’re singing.
Size: The Acabellas had thirteen members last semester, but currently have seven due to circumstances such as group members taking semesters off or graduating early, Kennally-Presslaff explained.
Dynamic: Kennally-Presslaff described the group as “very chill” and having “a kind of group personality.” During auditions, she said, there are often moments in which she realizes “oh, they’re a Bella, just based off of sheer vibes.” She noted that “a witty sense of humor” is shared by many group members and that their common identities also bring them closer: “Because there’s only one person that’s not of color, I think those identities come out as very central parts of who we are and the conversations that we have.”
Fun fact: The Acabellas have a Community Diversity ASsistant as part of their E-Board.
Extreme Keys
History: The Extreme Keys were founded in 1981 and are potentially Bryn Mawr’s oldest a cappella group; it is unclear whether the Night Owls are older.
Genre: “We do really all types [of music], we have some traditions songs that we like to sing and then mostly it’s just whatever the group decides, so a lot of pop and indie music mostly,” a member of the Extreme Keys explained.
Size: There are currently eleven members of the Extreme Keys.
Dynamic: The group member described the Extreme Keys as “really fun” and “pretty laid-back, pretty relaxed.” For them, singing together is meant to be “de-stressing instead of an additional stressor in students’ lives.” They emphasized a sense of community among group members.
Fun fact: The Extreme Keys are “democratically run” and do not currently have a president, the group member stated.
Lavender’s Blue
History: Lavender’s Blue was founded “sometime after [Extreme] Keys and Night Owls,” which makes them the third group to have been created on campus, according to co-captains Maddy and Abby, who asked to be referred to by first names only for fear of doxxing. They are named after the song “Lavender’s Blue (Dilly, Dilly)” by Tim Hart and Friends.
Genre: “We used to lean a lot more doo-wop and fifties, sixties, seventies, but we’ve branched out a lot more in more recent years. We’ve done a lot of Disney recently,” Abby said. “Each semester we do at least one song that leans a little more into the fifties-sixties oldies,” Maddy added. “Specifically, we repeatedly do the ‘Doo-Wop Medley,’ which is a medley of four sort of old doo-wop songs.”
Size: Lavender’s Blue has fifteen members this semester, which Maddy said is an “ideal” number for them.
Dynamic: Abby described Lavender’s Blue as “chill.” “We pride ourselves on producing good music, but we also know that a lot of our members have other commitments,” Maddy elaborated. Both captains emphasized the group’s collaborative nature, explaining that all members give input on everything from warmups at rehearsal to the music they perform. “I just love our group in general, I love all the people in our group,” Abby said.
Fun fact: Lavender’s Blue is widely beloved by parents and grandparents for the older music that they perform.
Looney Tunes
History: The Looney Tunes “are between thirty and forty years old,” said group member Chiara Ruberto BMC ’24, who believes they were founded in 1992 or 1993.
Genre: The Looney Tunes “try not to limit [them]selves by genre” and instead select music that they think will “perform well,” according to Ruberto. “We’ve done jazz, we’ve done pop, we’ve done indie stuff. I want to say if you go through our archives you’ll find Top 100 stuff, and you’ll find like ‘what is that song, who knows it?'”
Size: The Looney Tunes currently have eleven members.
Dynamic: “We currently operate as an anarchist structure,” Ruberto explained. “Everyone is encouraged to put co-President on their resumes. In practice, what it usually shakes out as is honestly whoever has the time contributes what they can to leadership and to organization. We have positions, like ‘this person does budget’, ‘this person books rooms’, but we don’t have official presidents.” The Looney Tunes aim to foster a collaborative environment and encourage each group member to bring two songs to the table for consideration when choosing music. This helps to create a “tight-knit” community in which all members feel comfortable having fun: “Our group motto is ‘we take our music seriously but not ourselves,'” Ruberto said.
Fun fact: The Looney Tunes are the only Bi-Co a cappella group on campus, which Ruberto believes is “one of [their] greatest strengths because it brings the two campuses together in a very special and powerful way.”
Night Owls
History: The Night Owls have been at Bryn Mawr since the early 1980s. The exact year of their founding is unclear, making the title of “oldest” for either them or the Extreme Keys ambiguous. The Night Owls are, however, considered the official group of the College
Genre: The Night Owls sing “quite a variety” of music, but “lean towards pop,” according to a group member. “Our current setlist is ‘Dog Days’ by Florence and the Machine, ‘Take Me to Church’ by Hozier, ‘Love on the Brain’ by Rihanna, ‘Toxic’ by Britney Spears, ‘Desperados Under the Eaves’ [by Warren Zevon], which is an older song, ‘Would You Be So Kind’ [by Dodie], ‘To Lose Someone’ by Joy Cook, ‘Black Sheep’ [by Metric], ‘Love Song,’ by Sara Bareilles, ‘Brandy’ [by Looking Glass], which is a yacht-rock song from the seventies, and then we have our song we sing every year, which is ‘As Cool as I Am’ by Dar Williams,” they said.
Size: The Night Owls are made up of thirteen members this semester.
Dynamic: The group member characterized their fellow Night Owls as “fun and chill and kind of silly.” They described the group dynamic as a mix between serious and light-hearted: “We all care about the music that we want to produce and we all want it to sound really good, but we also are there to have a fun time with one another and because we enjoy spending time with each other and because we enjoy singing, so it’s this really nice balance between working hard but also having a really good time with the people in the group.”
Fun fact: The Night Owls go on a tour every year over spring break during which they “go sing with other colleges in the Tri-State area, usually New York and New Jersey,” the group member shared.
The joint performance of the five groups will take place in the Great Hall at 11:30 on Sunday, May 5.
