Kaitlyn Hughes | editor-in-chief

For Margaret Baker, having an a cappella group on campus is just the escape she needs from her studies at Duquesne University in the physician assistant program.

“I think for a school that is very rooted in science, having a music and art background … I think it’s really great for student morale,” Baker said. “It’s a great way to relax and just get in tune with something that you’re not doing every single day.”

Baker is president of Duquesne’s Mic Drop A Cappella, which hosted Beats on the Bluff on Friday. The annual event welcomes a cappella groups from schools in Pennsylvania to perform two to three songs from their repertoire in front of an audience.

This helps the performers to hear how other groups are arranging their music and build bonds with other people interested in a cappella, according to Baker.

Friday was the earliest the event was held in the school year out of the five years the group has put it on, so Baker was proud that every group was able to show up and perform with minimal practice.

“I’m really specifically proud of our group. We’ve pulled together four songs in four weeks with a majority of our members being new to the a cappella scene,” she said. The members of Mic Drop practice anywhere from four to nine hours a week.

Friday’s performance came at a time when Mic Drop is getting ready to release their latest EP, “Off the Record,” which will come out Oct. 9 on Spotify. It includes five cover songs that range from country to true pop.

A cappella differs from a typical choir because everything during a performance comes from a person’s voice or body without the assistance of musical instruments.

“I love that a cappella allows you to really work on not only your musical talent as yourself, but within a group. Because in order to sing well a cappella, you not only have to be good at your part, but be good at blending with other people,” Baker said. “Creating a sound that’s not only yours as a collective is something really neat.”

Although each of the eight groups was full of college kids wearing jeans and the same color shirt, the sound that they produced came across as they did it as a full time job, drawing out goosebumps and deep silence in the audience, which was followed by long applauses after each performance.

The members of each group kept deep focus throughout the entirety of each song. Their faces read as if they didn’t want to be anywhere else on a Friday night.

Each group explored different genres and vibes of music in their performance.

The Crimson Chords from Indiana University of Pennsylvania performed pop music with songs such as “This Love” by Maroon 5 and “Rain on Me” by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande.

Sargam A Cappella from the University of Pittsburgh incorporated elements of South Asian music into their performances.

Another group from Pitt, Tonal Disruption, sang more alternative music such as “Bring Me to Life” by Evanescence.

There are eight a cappella groups at Pitt. Veronica Willaims, president of Tonal Disruption, said that the different a cappella groups encourage people to audition for multiple organizations.

“Every group has their own niche. We sing a lot more alternative music, like we’re singing Evanescence today, so that’s the people we attract. We like a darker vibe and we like more alternative music,” Williams said. “There’s more opportunities for people to do a cappella at Pitt.”

She chalked the interest in a cappella up to one thing: The 2012 movie “Pitch Perfect.”

“People always ask, ‘Is it like “Pitch Perfect?”’ Williams said.

“Like yes, exactly,” joked Dorothy Vogel, music director for Tonal Disruption.

A cappella is also a choice for students who performed in high school whether it be in theater or in a choir, and don’t want to do it in college or major in music.

“A cappella is a secret third option,” Williams said. “I can still continue music, do it in a group setting without it being so strict.”

Carrie Panek, who is the business manager for Tonal Disruption, said it is easier to get closer with everyone in an a cappella group because it is smaller. The group went to hangout at Bottlerocket after Friday’s performance.

Williams said it was her first established friend group on Pitt’s campus.

“It helped bring stability as I was transitioning into college,” she said.

While five of the groups traveled down Fifth Avenue from Pitt’s campus to get to the performance, the group Chromatic traveled about four hours from Millersville University to perform.

Zoey Fizz, who left her college campus in Millersville at 7:30 a.m., said the reason they drove across the state was two fold: They wanted to experience Pittsburgh and meet other people in the a cappella community.

“Our main goal is to really just get our name out there,” Fizz said.

To Shyire Evans, who is also a part of Chromatic, events like Beats on the Bluff are vital to Chromatic because they are isolated from other a cappella groups.

“I just think it’s really important that everybody gets to connect and collaborate because I feel like all these different a cappella groups have so many different styles,” Evans said.

You can reach Kaitlyn Hughes at hughesk10@duq.edu