It’s Curtains for Oy Caps 2022 A Cappella Season
Story and Photos by Tessa Maddaloni
Oy Cap’s performance season came to a close April 26th with their fifth invitational. After rescheduling three times, the group was ecstatic to finally take the stage. Oy Caps is a co-ed, primarily Jewish a cappella group, currently consisting of 15 members from varied majors and year levels at Syracuse University. Normally with two to four rehearsals a week, plus “Hell Week” before the performance, the Caps were more than ready to show the audience the fruits of their labor.
Cheers erupted as the Caps took the dimly lit stage, starting with the traditional song of Al Hanissim, a traditional Jewish prayer, that is sung before every performance. James Hyman, president, and Juliette Milber, music director, gave a brief speech about the show, along with the fundraiser for the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC)’s Ukraine Response Fund.
The Caps’ renditions of both Billie Eilish’s “bellyache” and Sam Smith’s “I’m Ready,” were unexpected song choices for an a cappella concert, but the 15 voices on stage perfectly executed the intricate instrumentals in both tracks.
The ensemble filled the space with clean harmonies and beatboxing, along with Rachel Kelly taking the first song’s solo and Bella Zonderman and Emily Ref taking the second.
The last song of act one was an a cappella version of Bruno Mars’ current hit, “Smoking Out the Window.” With solos by Hannah Starorypinski, who arranged the piece, and Nicki MacMaster, this song is energetic and full of life, clearly a favorite of the Caps.
“Hannah and I definitely go off of each other well and had a lot of fun doing the duet together,” said Macmaster, a freshman in the alto section and an occasional beatboxer. “We just kept feeding off of each other’s energy.”
The second act opened with speeches from the graduating seniors, a new tradition started in this invitational. An emotional time for the entire ensemble, the speeches were full of thanks to their peers and cherished memories that have shaped each senior’s experience in Oy Caps and at Syracuse.
Anna Fleisher discussed how important Oy Caps is to her. Singing has always been an integral part of her life until she almost quit her senior year of high school because of discouraging vocal instructors that almost ruined her passion completely.
“The people you see up here, and others who graduated and those who are abroad right now have served me as nothing less than family and my roots for all of my four years,” Fleisher told the audience during her speech.
Oy Caps are a true family, one that shares a passion for music and genuinely enjoy each other’s company.
The second act was filled with classics like Gwen Stefani’s “the Sweet Escape” and P!nk and Wrabel’s “90 Days.” A standout of the entire performance was freshman Dani Saril’s solo in “Runaway Baby,” by Bruno Mars.
“Dani Saril IS Bruno Mars,” said MacMaster. “She brings such an awesome energy that gets us all hyped up.”
As MacMaster said, Saril’s energy spreads through the entire group as each individual part meshes into one voice.
Billy Joel’s “Vienna” closed the night. Tackling a classic like this is no easy feat, but the Oy Caps brought new life and a truthful tone to it. Music director Sarah Goldman’s voice carries a smooth cadence throughout the song, with clean riffs and a soulful rendition of Joel’s lyrics. The ensemble joined together in an embrace, swaying with the rhythm, emotions running high.
As the show came to a close, they reminded everyone again about the donations to JDC.
All of the proceeds from this past invitational are going to JDC’s Ukraine Response Fund. JDC is the number one Jewish humanitarian organization, and they have a specific section to donate for global crises.
“Conflict in Ukraine right now is something we all felt strongly about that we wanted to help however we could,” said MacMaster.