Making music with nothing but your mouth has been around for centuries. (Seriously, it has been.) However, recently, a cappella has been picking up in popularity! Why? Look no further than Pitch Perfect and Pentatonix. The success of the Pitch Perfect movies has brought the world of a cappella to the forefront. Additionally, you have Pentatonix, bringing attention by winning two Grammy Awards in the last two years. Yet both of these examples of a cappella don't show you exactly what collegiate a cappella is really like, so let me enlighten you.

UNC Greensboro is lucky to have four incredible a cappella groups on campus. There's the UNCG Spartones, the all-male group, the UNCG Chariots, the co-ed group, the UNCG Sapphires, one of the all-female groups, and the UNCG Seraphim, which is also an all female group. I just happen to be part of the UNCG Seraphim! As we're preparing for our Spring Concert, I wanted to share with you some truths and myths about a cappella!

1. Riff Offs are totally normal

Oh, so wrong. Riff Offs actually couldn't happen normally, unless your entire group has perfect pitch (which is highly abnormal). Most groups need pitches before starting a song, which is why we have pitch pipes. For a true riff off, you would have to sing one song, then someone else would sing one song. It'd be relatively pre-planned. Kind of like the riff off James Corden did with Anna Kendrick and the Fillharmonics! (See the performance here!)

2. No group could ever be as close as the Barden Bellas get

This one is actually wrong too. For me, I've noticed that after retreat the Seraphim sound is much better, much more in sync. The better the people in the group know each other, the more they tend to blend. You could say that they're all in harmony! (Oooh, bad music pun.)

3. Breaking out into song is normal a cappella behavior

For me, this one is the complete truth. I don't know if it's normal for other groups too, but UNCG Seraphim has been known to burst out into song randomly. Someone will say something and it sets the whole group off. Our president has been known to laugh at us and say that we're "such an a cappella group!" I can't say I'm complaining.

4. A cappella groups do insane choreography for their competition numbers

This one is also a myth. Whoops! Now, Seraphim doesn't compete, but the UNCG Sapphires do. While they do have choreography, they don't run around the entire stage like "Das Sound Machine" or "The Treblemakers" tend to do. Their choreography looks much more like this. (That's their ICCA performance from 2015!) As for the rest of us, most of us just "aca-bop", which is swaying or moving to the beat of whatever our song is. Very little cardio neccessary, I assure you.

5. Original songs are a no-no

False! Original songs in the a cappella world are actually very common! It's harder to compose a brand new song, complete with lyrics, background vocals, and vocal percussion, than to arrange a song around something that's already been done. While Seraphim doesn't have a completely original song in our repertoire right now, we do have an original mash-up that was created by our music director! You can see part of our performance of it here.

6. Live performances are very authentic

This one is so right. It's actually very difficult to capture the authenticity of an a cappella performance when you're in a studio. There's no audience, and you're only hearing one part while you're recording - and it's yours. Trust me, I know. Recording is weird when you're in an a cappella group. But the live performances, that's where we shine. As most performers do, we thrive and work off of the audience energy. Plus everything sounds super great together in person. And when we mess up, it's not like we can re-record that part, as if we were in the studio. We just move on. It all adds together for some authentic music.

7. Sound equipment is at every concert and gig for a cappella groups

Yes and no. Typically, there are one or two microphones. However, unlike the Barden Bellas and their counterparts, not everyone can have a microphone. Unless you're willing to pay for it. Typically at the Seraphim concerts, there are three microphones. One for the soloist, one for the vocal percussionist/beat boxer, and one for the harmony part (if needed). Everyone else just has to project. Oh, and we don't sound auto-tuned at the concerts because we are live.

8. The "Pitch Perfect" auditions are how all a cappella groups audition

I can't vouch for every school in the nation, but UNCG definitely doesn't do that. Each a capella group has separate audition dates and different requirements for each audition. I know some of the groups prefer you not to sing Broadway, mostly because they don't want to hear Wicked or Les Mis over and over again. Mostly, they just want you to showcase your voice by singing a verse and a chorus of your song. Then it's up to you!

9. The group has necessary initiation rites, like The Bellas

If I were to guess, I'd wager that most groups do initiation. Seraphim definitely does. Now, I'm sure each group does it differently but I know for a fact that Seraphim doesn't swear the new girls in by "drinking the blood of sisters past." Now, as for our initiation, I can't tell you anything else. It's top secret.

10. Group sizes can be as big or small as the group wants

I struggled with this one, but overall I'd say this is a myth. Generally, an a cappella group has to remain small to keep all the voices blending together and harmonies sounding right. Seraphim has 17 people in it right now, which is right about the size we want to be. It allows us to have about three or four people on each part. "Das Sound Machine" in "Pitch Perfect" is way too big, it's like a choir as opposed to an a cappella group. Pentatonix is the notable exception, with only five members. However, when your group is that small you have to be careful with your arrangements because each person has a part. Without that person, the part is missing and you're out of luck. For a professional group like Pentatonix, it's not an issue. For a collegiate group like Seraphim, that could cause a problem really quick.

While this isn't every difference or similarity between Pitch Perfect and the a cappella world, I hope this will serve as a decent introduction to the world of a cappella. If you're interested in finding out more, UNCG Seraphim's brand new album, "Still Standing", dropped on April 10th and can be found on iTunes, Spotify, or ordered on our website! Additionally, Seraphim's Spring Concert is open to the public and will be on Saturday, Apr. 16, at 7:00 on UNCG's campus. Check out our event on Facebook for more information! UNCG's other a cappella groups will also be holding their spring concerts soon, so check out their pages (linked above) for information regarding that!