Mixed Company of Yale

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Mixed Company of Yale
Background information
Origin	Yale University
Genre(s)	A Cappella
Years active	1981 – present
Website	http://www.mixedco.net/
Members
Jessica Bian '08 Estelí Gomez '08 Jessica Poter '08 Jenny Baik '09 Stephanie Chan '09 Meg Holden '09 Julian Prokopetz '09 Tyce Walters '09 Allison Bruff '10 Ted Gibson '10 Scott Hillier '10 Chaka Jaliwa '10 Ian Janer '10 Allyson Lieberman '10 Sabrina Karim '11 Sei Young Pyo '11 Eric Randall '11

Mixed Company, founded 1981^[1], is one of Yale University's fifteen official a cappella groups (as recognized by the Singing Group Council of Yale)^[2] and the third-youngest among them. The group has toured around the world, particularly the United States and Europe, and has created 11 albums. The group is known for its eclectic and diverse repertoire and its performance of shtick as well as music. The repertoire covers a wide range of genres, including rock, pop, musical theater, jazz, and rhythm & blues. The group additionally goes by the nickname "The Gump" due to once being called “Mixed Gumpany” at a routine concert.^[3]

Contents 1 History 2 Members 3 Notable Alumni 4 Albums 5 External links 6 References

[edit] History

In the fall of 1981, a small group of Yale undergraduates found themselves torn between the call of sketch comedy and the allure of a cappella singing. Unable to decide between these competing activities, they decided to form a new group that incorporated the best elements of both. Since then, the group has recorded 11 albums and has toured around the country and world. ^[4]

[edit] Members

The members of Mixed Company are all carefully selected as freshmen or sophomores through Yale's long and involved rush process for their singing talent, which takes place every fall at the beginning of the first semester. The rush process is governed by the Singing Group Council of Yale.

The first part of the rush process is Woolsey Jam, a concert at which each group performs two songs. This is followed by Dwight Hall Jam later in the week, directly after which rushees, mostly freshman undergraduates, sign up to audition. That weekend, Mixed Company watches typically over a hundred rushees audition, and in the following few weeks the rushees get to meet the members of each group through a series of "rush meals," where they eat with members of each group they audition for. During these weeks, each group also holds a concert called a "Singing Dessert" where the rushees get to see which group they like best musically. Afterwards, Mixed Company calls back any students they see fit to potentially be in the group to hear them a second time in order to finally decide who to tap. Tap Night, an important Yale tradition, takes place during the next week at midnight on a day not known to rushees until announced by the Singing Group Council that day. ^[5]

[edit] Notable Alumni

The most notable alumni are Ari Shapiro '00, reporter for National Public Radio, and Ben Eakeley '00, actor best known for recent Broadway and National Tour productions of Sweeney Todd and a brief role in Robert DeNiro's "The Good Shepherd"

[edit] Albums

Mixed Company has recorded 11 studio albums:

Album Title	Year	Recording Type
Where's the Stage?	1987	Vinyl Record
Doing Justice	1989	Cassette Tape
Vertical Hold	1991	Cassette Tape
Unplugged	1993	Cassette Tape
Sleeping In The Kitchen	1995	CD
Flow Chart	1997	CD
Change of Plans	1999	CD
Molly Pitcher	2001	CD
Trespassing	2003	CD
Two Steps	2005	CD
Dashboard Buddha	2007	CD

"Change of Plans," "Two Steps," and "Dashboard Buddha" have all been rated by the The Recorded A Cappella Ratings Board.

[edit] External links

• Mixed Company of Yale's Official Website
• The Singing Group Council of Yale

[edit] References