A cappella group presents first conference Saturday
Singing is a release.
It's a natural way to cope through hard times.
Stephani Schmidt was born to sing.
"If I am having a stressful or bad day, I can sing and most of the time my bad mood will slip away," she said. "Sometimes, it even helps me figure out my true feelings on a subject; it has always been something I wanted to pursue."
At 18 months old, she could already belt out tunes, her mother said. And this Oxford freshman plans to continue to do so for the rest of her life.
This weekend, Schmidt will continue to pursue her passion with the a cappella group Central Harmony, which is presenting their first a cappella conference in Mount Pleasant called "Acastock."
The conference runs from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday at Mount Pleasant Community Church, 1400 W. Broomfield Road. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and tickets are $5 each.
The conference includes Central Harmony's sister group On The Rox, along with seven other a cappella groups totaling to seven from across the state including: Top Shelf from CMU, Euphoria and After School Special from Grand Valley State University, the Dicks and Janes from the University of Michigan and Ladies First from Michigan State.
"The best thing about being in this group is getting together with some of my closest friends and making incredible music," said president of Central Harmony and Lapeer junior, Thomas Younger. "It is amazing to be able to take songs that everyone already knows and put our own little twist on them. I wish I could do this every day for the rest of my life."
"Music is one of those things that everyone can come together and enjoy," Younger said. "It's the one universal language that everyone understands. It is the most expressive activity one can take part in."
Grandville senior Chris Mueller is one of the original members of Central Harmony from when the group was formed four years ago, he hopes this conference will create more interest and awareness in this style of music.
"I think this upcoming event is phenomenal and the biggest thing in a cappella that the university has ever seen," Mueller said. "This type of music is not really talked about or really known by the students," he said.
It's a different kind of experience, Mueller said.
"It's going to be hilarious musical and it is fun to listen to and watch," he said, "and I would encourage people to investigate or to learn about all types of music and realize a cappella is one of the most fun musical experiences that they would see."
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