University of Michigan - Michiganensian Yearbook (Ann Arbor, MI)

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A C fter finishing their warm-up, the Friars take a short break. In the 1980s and ' 90s, Friars were found at the White House, the Rose Bowl, the Miss Hawaii Pageant, Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, and several Carib- bean Islands. Of course, they always found their way back to the home of the Wolverines to perform. hapterCOG perform Robinson Crusoe. Mem- bers of the U-M chapter automatically became a part of the Ann Arbor Comic Opera Guild. Membership in Chapter COG was not limited to those who could sing or dance. There were positions available in promotions, lighting, stag- ing, artwork, publications, and advertising. They ' ve Go Story by Stephanie Smip The Beat I photo courtesy of Chapter COG The performing arts were alive and well in the City of Ann Arbor and on the U-M campus. Students got involved in singing groups either because they hoped to become professional vocalists or just to have some fun. The University had many groups to get involved in, ranging from a capella to comic opera. The Friars, an all-male a capella singing group, was formed in 1955. It began with two rival quartets within the University ' s Men ' s Glee Club : the Arbors and the Whatchamacallits. The Friars got their name from a prestigious drinking society that existed on campus in the early 1900s. The group ' s logo, a beer mug, represented the spontaneity that the group stood for. According to Friar Trevor Sprik, the group was only lookin ' to have a good time! 1995 represented the 40th anniversary of the Friars. They held a reunion concert in February where old membij returned to the University to sing with current members. In addition to the reunion concert, the Friars performed in the 40th Anni I Study Break Concert and the 40th Annual Best Concert Ever. The Friars also worked on their third CD. The Harmonettes was an all-women a capella subset of the Women ' s Glee Club. While the group performed music from m time periods, its main focus was popular music. The Harmonettes performed with the Women ' s Glee Club twice each year, addition to appearances in the Monsters of A Capella concert with the Friars and Amazin ' Blue. They also performed one cono per semester alone. Chapter Comic Opera Guild (COG) was the daughter organization of the Comic Opera Guild, which was started in the ea 1970s in Ann Arbor. A University chapter was founded in 1993 because the local opera audience was dying out. Chapter CC tried to focus on comic opera as opposed to tragic opera. The group ' s main purpose was to get students involved in opera agai well as to integrate the community and the University. Chapter created a core of students that, along with COG, produced running shows each year. In 1995 they performed the second part of the operetta Your Hit Parade, which premiered in 19 Inspired by the television show from the late 1950s, Your Hit Parade featured Rock ' n ' Roll songs from the 1950s. 134 Organizations

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D ; photo courtesy of the Men ' s Glee Club MEN ' S GLEE CLUB: FRONT: Howard Watkins (accompanist), Joe Nisonov, Brian Grant, Paul Glover, Mark Thomford, Ross Benoliel, Mike Hsu, Drew Quinn. Mark Sur prenant, Randy Morcland, ' aris Bank . Michael Peters, Matt Claph.un, Mike Burke, Ben Freed, Dave Yoon, Scott Hanoian,Josh Osburn, Dr. Jerry Blackstone (director). ROW 2:Joe Rang, Eric Patton, Pat Cress, Jcft Hcilvcil, Ashutosh Tyagi, Ben Salsbury, Vaughn Lamer, Brad Sierens, Nate Pierantoni, Mike Herrera, Rob Wirthlin, Joe Bushey, Matt Bejin. Jon Palant, Pat Burns, Pat Niven, Todd Schebor. BiU Stevenson. Venn Viswanath. ROW 3: Roger Lacayo, Andy Adams, Bob Stevenson. Steve Mitchell, Chris Rozell. Pat Garrett, John Tang. Dan Ryan, Ryan Mintz. Dan Christensen, Michael Covarrubias, BenoyChacko, Jesse Tryon, Pete Woodhams, Sam ir Gupta, Rob Yuille, Greg Fortner, Dave Plevan, Pat Evoe, Craig LeMoyne. ROW 4: Allan Haggar, Matt Miller, Pete Arnold, Jcrry Kowal. Matt Brown, Matt Christians, Brian Long, Chris Conrad, Chris Smith, Steve Christensen, Chris King, John King, James Stephens, Young-Tae Cha, Jeft Douma, Rob LeVan, Hugo Vcra, Trevor Sprik, Roshan Vatthyam. BACK: Simon Palko, Steve Poposki, Jon Boeke, Andy Watchorn, Rick Lowe, David Chute, Paul Senger, JctTHom, Tom Vesbit, GeoffGreenlee, Scott Sizcmore, Bill .M. lone, Mike Remyn, Paul Mow, Kris Flautner, Jet} Hogg, Brian Young, Steve Miller, Chris Dwan, Mike Lee. NOT PICTURED: Joe Salazar, Sam Davis, Brad Joseph . Mike Anayas. t6e finafoea, I The Sound Story by George Pokorny of Music ts Chorale members reht I Chip Peterson i Vocal music was all the rage at the University. Ijhree student-run vocal groups enjoyed successes ey had not seen in years past. The Men ' s Glee Club 136th Fall Concert high- ;hted Parent ' s Weekend. In the winter, the mem- :rs performed at Orchestra Hall in Detroit and at a Stival in Cincinnati, Ohio. While at home they ped young high school men from across the state their Sixth Annual Vocal Arts Day, a time for dents to learn more about singing in college. These events helped them raise money for their summer tour, the highlight of the ar. Finally, members performed with professional groups in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile and Peru. The Women ' s Glee Club experienced much success during the year as well. They took part in a University ensemble that rformed Beethoven ' s Ninth Symphony. Their Fall Concert moved into Hill Auditorium, marking the popularity of the group. ;ey, too, hosted a vocal arts day for Michigan high school students. Three-hundred fifty girls came to the University to get pointers ji their craft and to learn more about what it meant to perform in college. The Women ' s Glee Club ' s Spring Concert helped raise (oney for their tour of Pennsylvania, Washington D. C., and Cincinnati, Ohio. It was their first tour since 1989. IThe Arts Chorale ' s size grew to over 100 members this year, bigger than they had been in a long time said member Hugh Floyd, raduate mathematics student. Floyd said, A few hours a week can really make great music happen. This was the first year for irector Bob Johnson. His leadership gave a new feel to the group, which was made up of mostly non-music majors who simply d a passion for vocal music. i,;: Organizations 133

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Michelle Rae THE HARMONETTES: FRONT: Lauren Abrams, Lucille Frank, Lauren Korn, Kimberly Sitz, Rachel Ermann. BACK: Nicole Rabaut, Melissa Miller, Rachael Harrell, Rebecca Becker, Erin C. Kelly, J. Bo Young Lee. photo courtesy of Chapter COG CHAPTER COG: FRONT: Dave Ploot , Eliza Warner, Brenda McEldowney. Erik Hildinger, Lisa Nielsen, Antionette Torres Tucker, Margret Counihan, Bob Kidd, Carolyn Ferguson, Tom Detiet. BACK: Edi Pasalis, Brad Rondeau, Carolyn Leyh, Charlie Lovelace, George Estabrook, Cathleen Kenny. photo courtesy of The Friars RIARS: FRONT: Greg Former, Trevor Sprik, Mart Bejin, Tom Vesbit. ROW Glover, Patrick Garret, Matt Brown. BACK: Joe Salazar. Michelle Rae arming up in the Modern Languages Building, members of the Harmonettes practice various medleys. Made up of mostly non-music majors, the Harmonettes were completely student-run, directing and arranging most of their own songs. Organizations 135