You've done this in the car, in the shower and maybe even while cleaning house or grocery shopping.
Whether it's that catchy tune on the radio or some epic song that steals your heart every time, singing along is something that comes naturally. And now, you can do it at the Walton Arts Center.
FAQ
Pitch Perfect Sing-Along
WHEN — 8 p.m. Saturday
WHERE — Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville
COST — $12
INFO — 443-5600 or waltonartscenter.org
A "Pitch Perfect Sing-Along" Saturday invites audience members to join in and sing together to a subtitled version of "Pitch Perfect," the feature film about the competitive world of collegiate a cappella, which was directed by Jason Moore, a Fayetteville native.
A bouncing ball will hop across the tops of the subtitles so audience members can keep their place, concessions will be sold, and the whole family is encouraged to attend -- though parents are reminded the movie is rated PG-13.
The event takes place Saturday at 8 p.m. and wraps up one series while introducing a new festival.
"This is the end of our film series, and it just went hand in hand with promoting our a capella festival," says Erin Rogers, public relations director for the Walton Arts Center. "We had showings of 'Rocky Horror,' 'Cinderella' and [most recently] 'Doctor Zhivago' in January, so this is the prelude to kicking off VoiceJam."
The two-day a cappella festival is set for April 10 and 11 at the Walton Arts Center, and its contestants will be announced at the Pitch Perfect Sing-Along.
Submissions by collegiate and community a capella groups were due last Feb. 20, meaning judges have taken time to review the video submissions of performances and weighed in.
The selected six teams will compete at the opening VoiceJam concert, be guided through a day of workshops and master classes, a sort of public musical lesson by an expert to teach more people at once, and a final Red Carpet Showcase.
"We've had a great turnout for this being the first season of it," Rogers says. "We have had applicants from all over the U.S. It's exciting to see who is going to be competing."
Most musical competitions are grouped by age or experience levels, but VoiceJam appealed to a broader demographic for a reason.
"There's something for everyone," says Sara Broome, marketing and engagement manager at Walton Arts Center. "VoiceJam has workshops offered at every level. If you have no experience whatsoever, you can come and enjoy and learn.
"The counterpart is that we have [some] for the more experienced singers, but we wanted to make sure the community can come in."
Whatever your comfort level -- that of competing, learning something new or simply watching -- come one, come all.
"We're opening it up to others and not limiting in any way," Rogers says. "We have many groups from all over coming to the center of the U.S. for ... master classes. They can buy an all-access pass and go from workshop to workshop and have a professional showcase by people who sing a capella for a living."
Judges for the competition include Troy Dilendo, a vocal percussionist of The Edge Effect, members of House Jacks, Deke Sharon and University of Arkansas director of choral studies Stephen Caldwell.
VoiceJam was inspired by SoJam, an a cappella competition in North Carolina. Walton Arts Center staff attended the East Coast festival and worked hard to create something comparable with its own Arkansan twist.
"They kind of scoped SoJam out and brought back lots of ideas and ways to create this festival," Rogers says. "They came up with a competition, a showcase, master classes and a workshop."
"I was able to find a lot of judges that ... do this professionally and bring them to Northwest Arkansas for this competition," Broome says.
Deke Sharon, music director and arranger for "Pitch Perfect" and its sequel, will host the competition.
For those who aren't up on the contemporary a capella world, the sing-along is a fun introductory course to the culture and style of singing without instrumental music.
"'Pitch Perfect' brought a capella into mainstream," Rogers says. "It's a nice opener and very similar to what we're going to do."
Ending the night is a big Hollywood-style announcement to unveil a surprise element of the VoiceJam festival that will make audience members want to come back for more.
"They should come to all of the events," Rogers says. "But once we make the announcement on Saturday, the public can make their minds up quickly."
NAN What's Up on 02/27/2015