The lyrics and rhythm of the Beatles’ “Obladi Oblada” resonated throughout Paresky Commons as the Yorkies, Andover’s all-male a cappella group, began their concert last Sunday evening in Lower Left.
Despite a delayed start to the performance, a big crowd filled the room and cheered on the Yorkies as they sang “Stand by Me,” featuring solos by Rem Remmel ’14 and Clint Yoo ’14, and “My Girl,” featuring solos by Adam Brody ’14 and Auggie Horner ’14.
The soloists’ voices resonated above those of the rest of the Yorkies members, who provided steady beats that kept the songs dynamic.
“‘My Girl’ was my favorite song because they got really into it, their dancing and swaying, and it was pretty cool,” said Thomi Pamplin ’14, who attended the concert.
After the Yorkies’ performance, Azure, Andover’s all-female a cappella group, made a guest appearance.
Featuring soloists Tasmiah Ahmad ’14, Cara Daly ’13, Jordan Miller-Surratt ’12 and Chelsea Ward ’12. Azure performed “Where Is the Love?” Some of the group members rapped parts of the piece, an aspect of the performance which many audience members enjoyed.
Miller-Surratt began Azure’s next song, “Stop and Stare,” with her melodic and ringing voice, accompanied by the rest of the Azure singers. Ahmad and Caroline Sambuco ’14 took the spotlight as the soloists for the piece.
The audience recognized the popular and modern repertoire of songs that the Yorkies and Azure chose for the concert.
“They have some very catchy, upbeat songs that were really enjoyable,” said Jessica Yin ’14.
Performing in Commons during dinner hours was a convenient choice as students could easily drop by and watch while grabbing something to eat.
“They all sounded great, as usual. It was really fun to have some music at dinner,” said Mayze Teitler ’14.
After Azure’s appearance, the Yorkies continued the concert with their last two songs, the upbeat and amusing “Grace Kelly” by Mika and heartfelt “Use Somebody” by Kings of Leon.
“Grace Kelly” spotlighted Ben Croen ’13, who performed as the soloist. Croen’s falsetto provided a noticeable contrast from the previous songs performed, which featured lower melodies and keys by the soloists.
The finale performance, “Use Somebody,” was especially popular among the audience members, who recognized the piece from the Yorkies’ performance at Grasshopper Night 2011.
Hemang Kaul ’13, Angelo Morlani ’13, Co-Head of the Yorkies, and Peter Nelson ’12 were the soloists for “Use Somebody.” They sang the lyrics with deep and dynamic tones.
“I think the show was a success … My favorite piece was ‘Use Somebody’ as always because it’s a classic piece,” said Ahmad.
“I think the show went well overall. ‘Use Somebody’ [was my favorite song] because it was our Grasshopper song and everybody likes it,” said Morlani.
The concert proved to be a great success as the Yorkies and the guest performers from Azure received a loud and enthusiastic applause from the packed audience.
