The road through competition season in the world of a cappella has paid its dividends for The Amateurs, one of Washington University’s well known a cappella groups, who placed second at the 2024 ICCA (International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella) Midwestern Semifinals in Harrison, Ohio, on March 16. This marks the best performance both The Amateurs and WashU a cappella groups have performed in competition in eight years, a major mark for the University.

When speaking about the group’s journey throughout the 2023–2024 season, senior and group coordinator Shraya Sandhir described the logistical process behind their competition strategy. 

“We usually start off after we accept new members into the group. A couple weeks in, we have our competition discussion, where we kind of decide what our goals for the semester are and whether or not we want to compete. The decision must be a unanimous one among all the team members,” Sandhir said. 

“This year we decided to compete in something called the ICCA … that’s like the ‘Pitch Perfect’ competition and there’s several levels. The first is your quarterfinal … This year it was in Kansas City, Missouri, on Feb. 17. The top two groups from quarterfinals move onto the semifinals. So that’s the top ten groups from the whole Midwest.”

When describing the experience at semifinals, senior and soloist Kaitie McGary spoke about the anxious passion that was felt by the group in the moment.

Members of The Amateurs a capella group pose with their awards after placing second at the Midwest ICCA Semifinals (Courtesy of Gaby Musickant, Camila Garcia Novelli, Dr. Catherine Han)

“Personally, a little anxiety inducing…but, I think our approach going into semifinals was ‘go do it and have fun’, show them the amount of time and effort that we put in, the passion that we put into the set, to make sure that we’re actually enjoying every moment of what we’re doing. Our motto for this was ‘be present in this moment’, ‘be intentional with the work you’re doing and the performance you’re giving.’ And then make sure you’re telling the story we set out to tell.”

Adding onto this, senior and co-music director Aiden Krogh said, “I think it can be really scary to show your set to people for the first time … but it was a really rewarding experience to see that people enjoyed our set, and we had such a good time performing it for everyone.”

The ensuing runner-up victory for The Amateurs at the Ohio semifinals cast a positive light onto the entire a cappella community at WashU, a sentiment and an honor expressed by the team members.

“There’s a big honor associated with the a cappella community at Washington University. I don’t think this is just an us thing, like we also love the community and we’re a supportive space. It feels good to do well, and it was a really good feeling that something that you put a lot of emotion and hard work and love into was received really well,” explained Sandhir. 

Working from within the set, junior and business manager Julia Kirpalani mentioned the role the graduating senior class of The Amateurs played in deciding the vocal direction and showcase of the set. 

“This set highlighted our seniors in such a celebratory way that was really special, and I think the way we did so well really has a lot to do with the talent of our senior class. So I think that’s the most special part of it, like how well we’ve done is really because of them.”

This uniqueness and speciality found within The Amateurs specifically is expressed through a joint love of competition and focus on excellence, while loving the art of performance. Kirpalani elaborated on this, saying:

“This is a group … that can dial back on perfectionism and focus on the excellence of the music that we do, and it is still a very healthy environment throughout the whole competition season and we do it for the sake of becoming better performers. We experienced this really beautiful growth in ourselves and in our connection with each other that is at the forefront of our intentions with doing this competition, which I think differs us.”

McGary echoed this tone in her own statement, reflecting on her time in the group from her vantage point as a senior. 

“What makes being a part of this group so special to me is that, I feel like all the people in this group care about me and are also my friends, and I feel like I have a genuine connection with every single person in this group, not just as a performer or a singer but as a better human being, so I really appreciate them all for that,” she said.

Finally, adding a unique flair signature of the group, Sandhir emphasized the team’s motto: “The definition of an amateur is someone that does it because they love it. We are that; we are The Amateurs, that’s our motto, and truly every single person stays true to that motto. Always.”

The group now faces a wildcard round selection as a result of their second-place win in Ohio. They will vie with other second and third-place groups to win a spot at the ICCA Finals at Town Hall in New York City.