Rockapella Returns for Presidential Concert Series
The Lee University Presidential Concert Series will welcome Rockapella, the nation’s original acapella superstars, in concert on Tuesday, Jan. 16. Returning for their third appearance at Lee, the group will perform at 7:30 p.m. in Pangle Hall on Lee’s campus.
“In their earlier concerts at Lee, in 2005 and 2010, our crowds loved Rockapella,” said Darlia Conn, director of Lee’s Presidential Concert Series. “They are the perfect combination of pop appeal and amazing musicality. It’s a program for all musical tastes and all ages. I’m eager for all our friends here in Cleveland and the surrounding area to hear them.”
Based in New York City, Rockapella has become one of the world’s most sophisticated, lasting, and imitated vocal groups around today. The ensemble has toured the globe, made guest appearances on the Today Show, The Tonight Show, and TV specials, and provided a funky powerful soundtrack to several generations of vocal music fans, keeping it fresh all along the way.
Rockapella achieved national television fame in the early ‘90’s on PBS’s “Where In The World Is Carmen Sandiego?” With catchy original pop songs, and complete contemporary revisions of sparkling pop and soul classics, plus a popular Christmas tour which Lee University hosted in 2010, the group has been hailed by New York Times as “Pure entertainment!”
“My husband Paul and I first heard Rockapella 20 years ago,” recalls Conn. “They were guest artists with the Boston Pops Orchestra, and we immediately agreed, ‘we’ve got to get this group to our Presidential Concert Series!’ They came the next year, and the Cleveland crowd loved them just as the Boston audience did. We’re so pleased to welcome them back.”
The current Rockapella lineup features Scott Leonard, high tenor and arranger; Jeff Thacher, vocal percussionist; Calvin Jones, tenor; Manny Houston, tenor; and Armand Hutton, bass.
“The Voices of Lee, directed by Danny Murray, has created a huge audience for acapella singing here in Cleveland, and as a result we’re always looking for acapella artists to invite to the Presidential Concert Series,” said Conn. “These guys are among the best groups in the country, and anyone who enjoys the Voices of Lee will certainly not want to miss this concert.”
Tickets for the Presidential Concert are $15 for adults and $5 for students, seniors, and children. Tickets are available for purchase on Eventbrite.com, at the Lee University Box Office in the Dixon Center, or by contacting (423) 614-8343, between 3-6 p.m., beginning January 9.
Designated parking will be available for the event.
For more information about the Presidential Concert Series, call Lee’s School of Music at (423) 614-8240.
