About The Amateurs
WHO WE ARE
The Amateurs are a co-ed a cappella group from Washington University in St. Louis. "A cappella" is a voices-only style of music, meaning we sing without instruments, accompanying each other only with our voices.
Sometimes, the best way to get a feel for a group’s dynamic is to catch a glimpse of members together outside of a performance setting. With a singing group, it can be hard to tell whether the smiles you see on stage are real or simply part of the performance.
But every year, new members figure out that there’s something different about the Amateurs. Somewhere between the retreats, the practices, the parties, and the performances, there comes a moment when performances are no longer the goal of our many rehearsals but simply another place where we have fun together. The smiles we show on stage aren’t produced or forced; they’re spilling over from backstage and from laughs that began behind the scenes. We look like a co–ed a cappella group. We feel like friends who happen to sing together. Look through our pictures, listen to our music: when you love what you do, something amazing happens. Without that love, no one can make the jump from good to great. Our credo marks both our music and our members alike: do it because you love it.
WHAT WE DO
Living out this motto has made the Amateurs an integral group on Washington University’s vibrant campus. Each year, we bring fresh repertoire to the stage as we perform at events from a cappella showcases (such as our annual concert, Goin’ Pro) to university–sponsored events, from international competitions to private birthday parties. Our love for great music has not only brought us together as a group, but it has also won us acclaim both at the university and within the competitive a cappella sphere. Every year, the Amateurs sing for Washington University’s alumni reunions and commencement ceremonies. We have qualified for the International Championship for Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA), and won awards there for individual and group excellence. We have released six full–length studio albums, including our most recent CD, Amalgamation, and are currently working on our seventh. Despite all of this, the Amateurs consider our sense of commitment to each other and love for what we do to be our crowning achievement. We believe that a cappella music should be fun, and we hold that the best way to create enjoyable music is first to enjoy it ourselves, and then to invite those who watch and listen to join in on the fun.
OUR PAST
Formed in the fall of 1991, the Amateurs started as an accompanied choir of around 30 members. Back then, collegiate a cappella was in its infancy, and the Amateurs endeavored to bring something new, exciting, and different to Washington University’s musical scene. Our founders — Bob McKelvey and David Cooperstein — envisioned a group of singers who would operate under a single credo: do it because you love it.
Over the next six years, the Amateurs did just that. The group began using instruments less and less frequently, making their first forays into the pure a cappella form. Auditions brought incredible new singers every year, and members began to arrange modern rock, pop, and R&B music for strictly vocal performance. The Amateurs became less like a student organization and more like a tightly-knit group of musicians. Successful concerts and our debut album in 1997 established the Amateurs as a force on campus.
Recently, the Amateurs have taken their campus notoriety to the international competition scene with great success, while recording three critically-acclaimed albums over the past two years and performing on tour in New York, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., and everywhere humanly possible along the way. The group’s new musical leadership has introduced fresh arrangements, exciting technique, and original composition into the mix. As a result of this, unique performance opportunities are constantly coming the group's way. In 2008, the Amateurs performed their arrangement of "Love Song" for Sara Bareilles herself. The next year, they opened a Ben Folds concert, singing one of Folds' original songs, and eventually made it onto one of his CD's. In 2010, The Amateurs sang at a charity event put together by Glenn Close. They have also consistently hosted ICCA quarter- and semi-finals. Many Amateurs cite experiences such as these as highlights of their college careers.
And today, just as in the fall of 1991, we hold fast to the original goals of our founders; we truly do it because we love it.
OUR FUTURE
As each year passes, the Amateurs become steadily stronger. Leaders graduate and new members make their mark on the group, while each of us passes on ideas, music, traditions, and experience. Each time we perform, we learn more about our own voices and our collective sound, and we use that knowledge in rehearsal to make each show better than the one before it.
As the group tours the country, we build relationships with other groups, studios, producers, and colleges, making new fans and new friends wherever we go. These days, “The Amateurs” is a familiar name in the international collegiate a cappella scene.
As you might have guessed, our audition process keeps this whole thing going. Each fall, we have the opportunity to hear scores of amazing singers, most of whom are freshmen, newly-arrived on campus. From our audition pool each fall, we select our newest members. Those new members will select the next year’s new members, passing on their collective experiences and making their mark.