02/22/08

Students in the music department are breaking the traditional rules of the classroom.

A new music group at Baker University held its first practice Feb. 14.

The octet, a group of eight singers, meets at 8 p.m. Thursdays in McKibbin Recital Hall.

One of the major differences between this group of singers and the rest of the vocalists at Baker is that a professor does not instruct the group.

Freshmen Phillip Amstutz and Taryn Curry, sophomores Emily Speicher, Michael Stickelman and Jones, junior Saunder James, and seniors Jessica Lenhart and Heather Raby are the eight members that make up this new ensemble.

The group was formed from a mutual desire for a different style of songs from choir.

“We decided to get together to sing a random assortment of songs,” Lenhart said.

The students pick the songs they want from the selection at Baker and, if need be, order their own.

“We are privileged to use Baker’s music collection,” James said.

The group of eight is an invitation-only group.

“It’s a very select group for a moment,” Jones said.

Still, the group is a somewhat diverse faction of people, and the singers are not all connected to the choir.

“It’s a democratic choir,” Lenhart said. “We have a group of music and non-music majors.”

At the moment, the group is happy with the number of participants but does not rule out more members in the future.

“We might invite more people, if the need for a larger group arises,” Jones said.

The group sang Latin renaissance, vocal jazz and other song styles for its first practice.

“We’re still experimenting with what kinds of music we want to perform,” James said.

Despite a couple absences because of Valentine’s Day, the assembly had a productive start.

“The only area of improvement would be the accompanying section,” Jones said. “Other than that, it went really well for the first practice.”

At this point, the singers have no future plans for performances.