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I’m an incoming sophomore in a collegiate mixed a cappella group, and I’m looking for some advice/perspective from people who have been Music Directors or Assistant Music Directors.
I had basically zero interest in arranging when I joined my group as a freshman. I loved a cappella music, but I never really saw myself as an arranger. During the second semester, I started getting more interested in it, although at the time I wouldn’t even consider what I was doing “serious arranging.” I was mostly just experimenting and putting notes into notation software.
It wasn’t until the last couple months of my freshman year that I started thinking, “i wasn’t to actually do this” Unfortunately, we were incredibly busy with ICCA, so I didn’t really have much time to learn more about the Music Director role or talk to people about it.
I ended up running for Assistant Music Director and won unopposed. Now I’m going into my sophomore year as Assistant MD, and I’ve started working on my first song for the group. This will also be my first year actually serving in the role.
The slightly terrifying part is that I’m very likely going to become our group’s next Music Director after this year. Our current MD is graduating, and neither of us had opposition when we ran. There isn’t really anyone else currently on the team who is interested in taking on the arranging/MD role, so I’m essentially being thrust into a position that I didn’t even realize I wanted until very recently.
I absolutely love collegiate a cappella. I listen to groups like Ithacappella and the Hullabahoos constantly, and I’ve become kind of obsessed with learning how different groups approach arranging. I know I want my arrangements to be fun and interesting, but I’m still figuring out what my actual arranging style is.
That’s probably my biggest insecurity right now. I don’t really know what my “voice” as an arranger is yet. Sometimes I’ll listen back to something I’ve written and think it’s really fun, and other times I’ll realize I’ve made something too repetitive or that I could have approached a section much more creatively. I don’t have enough experience yet to always recognize why something isn’t working.
I’m planning to use this year to learn as much as possible from our current MD, arrange more songs, get feedback from other experienced arrangers, and learn what it actually takes to run the musical side of a group.
For anyone who has been an MD/Assistant MD, especially if you became one relatively early in college:
What do you wish you had known when you first started?
How did you develop your arranging style? How did you learn to critique your own arrangements? And what did you do during your Assistant MD year to prepare yourself to eventually become Music Director?
I’d really appreciate any advice, even if it’s something you wish someone had told you when you were starting out!

We are Rest Stops Acapella, a no experience required, all female singing group from north/central NJ and we are looking for up to 5 more members to help round out our sound! Approximately: 3 bass/tenor, 1 tenor/alto, and 1 alto/soprano. We are always accepting beatboxers!

We meet mostly between Union and Morris county, but we have members from all across north and central NJ, with all kinds of singing backgrounds, ranging in ages (currently) between 23 to 36. We have 15 members right now with a maximum of 20.

If you or someone you know loves to sing (and/or beatbox) and might be interested, please send them our flyer, or our audition form. https://forms.gle/P9JJBDVKoLn5rDc58. If you have any questions, please feel free to send us a DM on Instagram or email NJRestStops@gmail.com.

Vibes: https://youtube.com/shorts/gpm8RaaMpcI?feature=share

You can find all of our links at: unit.link/njreststops

(*Our current members are from Union, Morris, Essex, Bergen, Passaic, Somerset, and Middlesex counties. We welcome anyone willing to make the trip, with any vocal background! Send in an audition and we'll get back to you shortly!)

SoundBites community a cappella is holding auditions for all voice parts, especially ALTOS! Come to one of our Open Rehearsals, every Monday evening in September, 2026 in Lexington, MA. Videos, pics, and lots more information available on our website: https://www.soundbitesma.com/?page_id=59

Hello,

Can someone please tell me a story about how they achieved the right to arrange, post a video of, and perform a musical work not in the public domain?

I am currently arranging mostly public domain christmas music for my choir, but I have never navigated copyrighted works before and would appreciate a step-by-step from someone who's actually done it themselves without paying for a service like EasySong.

I sell my public domain arrangements to local schools. I would appreciate if any public school choir or marching band directors could give me some insight too.

Thanks in advance. xx

Hello, I had a quick question and I apologize if this is already a frequently asked question but I wanted to ask: is it possible to do A Cappella and to become successful at it? Would double tracking be necessary?

I have been thinking of maybe pursuing a cappella music but I have struggled making it sound like an actual song and I’m not very good at beatboxing. I appreciate anyone who can help and again I apologize if this is a dumb question.

I have arranged the song "Test Drive" from How To Train Your Dragon for choir (SATB a cappella) and want to share it. I'm still looking for a choir or ensemble to sing it, so feel free to contact me, if you're interested!

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https://www.castingcall.club/projects/music-to-my-ears

I think it's a really good video!

I made this a couple of hours ago and it lowkey sounds familiar but idk.

hi. so my group had one SA issue in the past with two members who were not dating. this year, members are wanting to say no dating at all but there are people who are already dating in the group. does anyone have any advice or knowledge or any constitution clauses ??

this is an all girls college group for reference.

So I'm a freshman auditioning for my college's a cappella group and I can't decide which song to do. There are two groups I'm looking at one of which says they mostly do contemporary pop, r&b, and alternative while the other just says to sing a song that showcases your talent. I'm a classically trained soprano 2 but almost all my experience is in choral singing and I have very little experience in a cappella. My mom wants me to sing Man In the Mirror by Michael Jackson (which I soloed in 8 years ago for my elementary school graduation and haven't touched since) but I kind of hate that song and I don't really remember how to sing it. I was thinking either Pink Pony Club or Rolling in the Deep but I worry those songs don't show off enough of my range. I have a week to prepare and submit my audition, any advice on song or anything else would be much appreciated!

I'm so scared. I have auditions for my school A Capellas in a month and I found out they ask for a sight-reading demonstration.

I've always learned songs by ear, and if I get a starting note sometimes I can follow along with music very roughly, but I've never sight-read anything since I'm completely self-taught.

I know I'm likely just gonna have to study(?) / practice and work away at learning, but does anyone have tips that help with the learning process that might save me (or at least make things a little more efficient)?

I've also heard we'll have a "blending" section where I'll be singing my part within a quartet. I have no clue how to practice for this---is it just luck of the draw for if my voice is a good blend with the group?

I don’t have much to add other than the title. I just need a cappella versions of the songs if anyone has please get in touch with me.

I'm Marco, software dev and hobby musician. Recording even a short song by myself always meant a laptop, a DAW, a video editor - and then getting it all back in sync. The part that was supposed to be fun turned into work.

Maybe you struggled with the same, so I want to give you some info about the app.

Musaic does the whole thing on your phone, in three modes:

• Mosaic - a split-pane layout that can change over the song
• Live Studio - tap a layer to cut to it live, the audio layers keep all playing
• Twin (beta) - cut yourself out and stand next to yourself in one shot

Plus audio FX per layer, a timeline, built-in instruments, MIDI keyboard support, air instruments and automatic lyrics (pro). You can see the homepage below for more information about the modes & features.

How it compares:

• vs Acapella (Mixcord) - the app most people in this corner already use, and where I started too. What I kept wishing for and built in:
  • sync correction per layer, with a saved default per microphone
  • instruments: e.g. add a bass layer, with the on-screen keys or a real MIDI keyboard
  • audio-only layers, not just video ones
  • panes that switch over the course of the song, instead of one fixed grid
  • automatic lyrics, and export in both 9:16 and 16:9
  • two more modes: cut between layers live, or stand next to yourself in Twin mode
• vs GarageBand + CapCut/iMovie - sound and picture stay in one app. A layer is its take, its effects and its pane in the layout, not three things in two apps.

Not a DAW replacement. This is for the insta/tiktok/youtube video you want to finish tonight (or just for fun without publishing like me ;)). 

Musaic Studio on the App Store - musaic.likwest.com 

I built it mainly for myself - but if you want to try it, I'd genuinely like to hear your feedback, feature requests and bug reports.

It's only on iOS till date, as I don't see any downloads there I stopped my efforts for the Android variant for now 😄 But let's see.

Ok so for context I have zero musical experience (I don’t know my vocal range, I can’t read music, and I’ve never performed) But I love to sing and i (think?) i’m decent so i wanted to try something new and audition for a few of my college acapella groups. The problem is i’ve been so worked up about picking a song and i’m nervous about singing in front of people (to be in acapella you have to sing, crazyyy thought guys) I think I fall somewhere between mezzo soprano or alt but I don’t know what song etiquette really is for these types of auditions. Can i belt? should i be chest voice the whole time? should the song be slower or pop-ish? Pls help your girl out auditons are a week away and i still don’t know what to sing. I have a list of songs that are maybe’s but I don’t know which is better for standard.

South Creek Revival’s new album “Life Itself” is now streaming everywhere! You can find it at https://li.sten.to/scr-lifeitself or by searching for South Creek Revival on your favorite streaming service. We're super proud of it and we hope you enjoy it!

Like ICCA, regional competitions, stuff like that. Some golden number that'll hit the limits for a lot of competitive stuff like that and keep doors open.