A Cappella ‘Under My Skin’

All-female a cappella group Key of She will host and perform at Harmonic Convergence, a gathering of contemporary a cappella groups at Nassau Presbyterian Church in Princeton, Oct. 13.

By: Susan Van Dongen

"All-female
All-female


a cappella group Key of She will host and perform at Harmonic Convergence,
a gathering of contemporary a cappella groups at Nassau Presbyterian Church
in Princeton, Oct. 13.

   Now that the women in Key of She have mastered the art of
singing through microphones, they’ve doubled their volume, although they’ve
shrunk in size. As the premier all-female a cappella group in the area, Key
of She remains true to its "street corner serenade" roots, even though the name
has changed and the sound has gone electric. The only difference is the group
— formerly known as Double Treble — will now travel with three vehicles
full of electronic sound gizmos.
   "It’s going to be strange hauling the mikes and monitors and
all that big stuff around," says co-founder Sue Jaques. "It won’t be just six
ladies in one car laughing all the way to the show."
   Key of She has been making sonic waves at several Pennsylvania
performances this year, but hasn’t appeared in its adopted hometown of Princeton.
The six women will debut their smooth, sultry sound and on-stage antics at Harmonic
Convergence, a concert featuring some of the East Coast’s best contemporary
a cappella groups, at Nassau Presbyterian Church, Oct. 13 at 2 p.m.
   The concert also will feature area favorites Jersey Transit,
Jones Falls Express from Baltimore, The Conn Artists from Westport, Conn., and
Boston’s The Works. Ms. Jaques says it’s a chance for the groups — who
are all friends in the brotherhood of a cappella — to reunite, compare
notes and, of course, sing together.
   This year’s concert holds special meaning, since proceeds
will be donated to the American Red Cross general fund to benefit families of
the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks.
   The concert had originally been planned as a casual gathering
of friends, something the various groups have been doing for about six years.
"Within a day after Sept. 11, we all decided to turn it into a benefit," Ms.
Jaques says.
   Singing was also a way for the individual vocalists to heal.
   "We rehearsed about four days after Sept. 11," Ms. Jaques
says. "It really brought us out of our funk. We get so much joy from singing
and making harmony."
   Ms. Jaques won’t give her age but is old enough to remember
singing along with The Four Freshman and The Chiffons on the AM radio of her
parents’ car. She fell in love with the harmonies of the doo-wop era, sang harmony
herself at age 4 and was writing arrangements when she was 7.
   She directed an a cappella group at Smith College, then founded
the Boudinotes, a pun on Colonial-era politician Elias Boudinot, after she and
her husband moved to Princeton in the early ’70s. The Boudinotes evolved into
Double Treble, which was famous for hosting "Singsation." For seven years, the
popular Princeton event had been an annual destination for some of the 10,000
a cappella groups from the United States and abroad. The plug was pulled after
the concert in June, 2000, however, thanks to a bizarre lawsuit over an "unintentional
trademark infringement," Ms. Jaques says.
   Double Treble officially disbanded, but several members expressed
interested in re-grouping and started rehearsing a whole new sound in January,
2001.
   The addition of electronics has allowed Key of She to experiment
with imitating instrumental parts, especially "vocal percussion," à la
Bobby McFerrin. In fact, it was Mr. McFerrin’s 1988 recording of "Don’t Worry,
Be Happy" that kicked off a resurgence of interest in a cappella music. Once
associated with barbershop and collegiate ensembles, a cappella groups now do
everything from gospel to heavy metal music.
   "We’re doing a more cutting edge type of material," Ms. Jaques
says. "There are no sopranos in the group — we’re all altos, which makes
for a much lower sound and tighter harmony. So our range is a little decreased,
but there’s a lot more rhythm in what we’re doing now."
   Key of She’s repertoire includes a rocking version of "Seasons
of Love" from the Broadway show Rent, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’
"I’ve Got You Under My Skin" and a generous helping of Shania Twain’s music.
The group is also hoping to perform Sarah MacLachlan’s poignant "Angel."
   "It would be a very good song to do, if our soloist can get
through it. It’s very emotional. The words are incredible and have more meaning
than they’ve ever had before," Ms. Jaques says. "We’re going to close with a
gorgeous arrangement of ‘America the Beautiful,’ with all the groups performing."
   Perhaps the act of creation is one way for man to stand up
to destruction. Or maybe it’s just purely physical — you have to breathe
deeply to sing well, which helps send calming, clarifying oxygen to the brain.
Ms. Jaques acknowledges the therapeutic value of making and sharing music, whatever
the explanation might be.
   "For people who are still suffering, we hope this might be
a way to feel better. There’ll be a lot of fun and laughter. Being foolish is
one of our trademarks."
Key of She hosts and performs at Harmonic Convergence, a gathering of contemporary
a cappella groups, at Nassau Presbyterian Church, 61 Nassau St., Princeton,
Oct. 13, 2 p.m. Tickets cost $12. For information, call (609) 466-2494.