Given their frequent presence at major school events, we often take for granted the group of boys who regularly sing a capella arrangements of various songs. Even at commencement, the Notables can be seen and heard. As a final parting gift, it has been tradition in recent years for Sixth Form Notables to pick and arrange a song.
This year, Sixth Former Andrew Witmer was in charge of picking the song. While choosing such a monumental event may seem strenuous and challenging, this was not entirely the case. However, the process was not short nor straightforward.
“ When Mr. Holdren and I were looking for songs, I sent out feelers [to the rest of the Sixth Formers] trying to figure out what those guys would like, and we all kind of consolidated around slow, sad songs,” Witmer said.
Selecting the song itself was closer to a happy accident.
“[We] happened to be listening to barbershop [music] at the time, and we weren’t really thinking about the message,” Witmer said. “When [Mr. Holdren] actually pulled up the lyrics, we realized that it was really a great send-off and was already arranged perfectly for The Notables. We took it down a half step, though.”
The song the Notables are performing is adapted from the musical Jekyll and Hyde, arranged by the legendary Freddie King for the 1990 International Quartet Champions, Acoustix. Luckily, the boys are more than equipped to deliver. After all, being a part of the group requires significant skill and dedication.
“This year, we only had four or five spots to fill, so the competition was pretty intense,” Notables Director Mr. Donald Holdren said. “There were a lot of great singers that came out, which then makes the decision process really difficult because of all these great singers to choose from.”
Singers who auditioned were evaluated on their intonation, general musicality, diction, and phrasing in two auditions, a general and a callback audition.
“At the first round of auditions, the students come in individually and are rated on a rubric that considers intonation, diction, breathing, praising musicality,” Mr. Holdren said. “In the callback round, the students sing with current members of the group and then are evaluated based on musicality and how their voice blends in with the rest of the group.”
“I know that if they’ve been here at Haverford, they’ve already been through one of the best music training programs for boys in the area.”
– Mr. Don Holdren
Furthermore, being a part of the Notables is also affected by the roles available.
“Sometimes a really good singer doesn’t make the group, and it’s not necessarily because he wasn’t good; it’s because I needed a tenor and he was a bass,” Mr. Holdren said.
The result of such rigorous auditions and thorough practice is top-quality singing.
“I consider myself really lucky because when the guys get to upper school and they’re auditioning, I know that if they’ve been here at Haverford, they’ve already been through one of the best music training programs for boys in the area, and I’m grateful for that,” Mr. Holdren said.
This gratitude is reflected by the singers.
“ I would really like to thank Mr. Holdren for everything he’s done over the past three years,” Witmer said. “[I] have the unique position of being in the group longer than Mr. Holdren. Seeing what it was like before he was here and the monumental change he’s had on the group…it’s really incredible.”
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