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The Acappella Company Records New Youth Worship Project, ReGenHarmony, With 500 Students
Nashville, TN, September 12, 2018 – ReGenHarmony, the Acappella Company’s new young-adult worship project, just completed its inaugural recording in partnership with the Teenage Christian Conference hosted by the Church of Christ in Denver City, TX. Eighty students from around the country, hailing from as far as Vancouver, WA arrived early Thursday, August 9th for two days of principal audio tracking, and were joined on Saturday by 500 youth in attendance at TCC (now in it’s fifty-sixth year) to film live instructional videos for every song.
The participants, age 13-25, were seated according to voice part for every session, as the project seeks to introduce a new generation to the fundamentals of four-part a capella singing.
“ReGenHarmony isn’t just the name,” said Anthony Lancaster, who is heading up the project with his sister, Melissa, vice president of Acappella Ministries, along with musical director, Aaron Shotts of ACU’s Singing School, “ – it’s the mission statement. We want to regenerate the passion for harmony in students, and that encompasses the social, musical, and spiritual sense of the word.”
Inhalation, the first volume from ReGenHarmony, is expected to release this winter, and features 12 all-new contemporary arrangements, including multi-song mash-ups and original material. The majority of the songs are described as having a “polyphonic texture,” with each harmony part consisting of its own independent melodic line, in the same vein as “The Greatest Commands,” “All Praises Be,” and Randy Gill’s “Magnificat.”
“There’s something about that polyphonic form that is so accessible and compelling to students,” Lancaster continues, “it might be a hurdle to pick out the alto line of traditional SATB block chords, voices moving in parallel motion, but give the harmony part its own unique rhythmic identity, and all of a sudden, students will sing it with ease.”
And sing they have – participants have been buzzing about the recording experience since it’s completion Sunday August 10th. One mother reported: “Our daughter returned from our week of recording determined to expand her music skills. She has created flash cards, and is learning shape notes, solfege, and the hand signs. She’s picking it up quickly, and can already sing one of the recorded songs mostly in solfege! I love her excitement and dedication.”
The production team expect even more students to participate in next year’s recording, though time and location have yet to be finalized, and they ask all interested parties to look for live ReGenHarmony worship events in the near future.
To find more about ReGenHarmony, including pictures, snippets, and how to participate in the next recording, email ReGenHarmony@Acappella.com and check out the following links:
www.instagram.com/regenharmony
Contact:
Anthony Lancaster
ReGenHarmony Producer
The Acappella Company
AnthonyLancaster@Acappella.com