Singing a cappella

Perfect Pitch

You might have heard them at college fests singing their way into everyone’s heart.

These nine young, like-minded singers from St Joseph’s College of Commerce sing a cappella — in simpler words, they perform without any instrument.

Meet ‘The Acoustic Project’ (TAP) consisting of Pilith Pericho, Tony Joy, Stinabelle Paulson, Kevin Polson, Bertrand Albert, Miriam John, Adrian Jeffrey, Shireen T Thomas and Jonathan Prem.

Though Pilith, Adrian, Jonathan and Shireen would do several shows together earlier, the current group was formed in February 2013.

“We all were always passionate about singing. However, we started taking it seriously in our first year, thanks to a senior named Johan Andrews, who wanted us to continue even after he graduated,” explains Shireen. Kevin, the only one in the group who has passed out and is working part-time as a graphic designer, was the one who came up with the name of the group last year when it performed together for the first time in Kammanahalli for an NGO called Crossroads.

 “Post the concert, we were at a hangout in the area when Kevin came up with the name of the group,” explains Pilith.

“The name is very simple and speaks about the music we make. More interesting is the abbreviation TAP, which defines the music we make,” explains Kevin.

Post the formation, there has been no looking back for TAP as it has been performing at various musical shows, corporate events and college fests.

One of its most memorable performances was at the Nokia India Fest where it came second in Bangalore during the qualifying round and third in Goa at the finals. “Though it was a rock competition, we ended up coming third,” recalls Bertrand.

 “We also performed at the Renault factory in Chennai for the launch of the new car Datsun Go,” adds Pilith.

Recently, the band was even invited to perform at ‘Cul-Ah’ and the Rotaract Conference and now, is all set to sing at the cultural fest of Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology as well. TAP performs a fusion of popular English songs and swears by its original arrangement.

Be it a rock song like the ‘Mission Impossible’ title track or an EDM track like Swedish House Mafia’s ‘Don’t You Worry Child’ or a gospel track like ‘When The Saints Go Marching In’, it makes sure that there is something for everyone in the audience. “Our music was gospel in the beginning. But slowly, we started to cover other genres as well. In fact, we sing so many metal songs now that our music can even be called ‘a cappella metal’,” explains Pilith.

While Jonathan sings bass, Adrian, the beat-boxer in the group, gets the music and prepares the group to perform it in its own style. “Though it’s a hobby, we want to push it as much as we can,” notes Jonathan who also keeps the rhythm of the group in tact with Adrian.

The group’s practice sessions depend on the number of shows it gets.
With most of them passing out soon, they say they will somehow take time out for their passion. “We might be working in different places but we plan to meet up at least on weekends and practise,” says Pilith while Kevin
informs that music-lovers can listen to their music on SoundCloud.

One can also find about more about TAP and its upcoming shows on www.facebook.com/theofficialTAP