Make no mistake, the singers of the new improv a cappella group, She Calls Me Daddy, harbor lofty ambitions for the future. As Wesleyan’s first “all male, gender-blind, amoral, apolitical, experimental, improvisational, reactionary, post-post-pre-post modern” a cappella group, the group wants the world to know that it is prophetically leading the way to a new way of performing music and living life.
“We believe that a cappella music is being taken into new and uncomfortable dimensions in our capable hands,” said John Cusick ’07.
Other members of the group agreed.
“She Calls Me Daddy is all you are unable to comprehend about yourself and are too afraid to face,” said Ana Portilla ’07. “It is the awkward beauty of the soul.”
According to Owen O’Connor ’07, the group, comprised primarily of freshmen, formed at the beginning of the semester.
“We discovered that we had a distinctive blend that could help enrich the a cappella community,” he said.
Other members of the group offered a different explanation.
“We met in a series of lucid dreams that we began having when we were all about three years old,” said Rory Bradley ’07. “Only recently have we carried our songs beyond the dream world.”
“The cosmos illuminated a certain patch of land and we decided that our travels should cease,” said Ashraf Rijal ’07. “Odyssesus, that’s what we call our triangle simulator, kind of wanted us to do something a cappella too.”
There is no formula associated with She Calls Me Daddy’s brand of improvisational music.
“We just start singing,” said O’Connor.
According to Gabe Isaacman ’07, inspiration for songs comes either from audience members or the singers, who will stand in the center of the circle and begin the piece.
“The person might specify certain restrictions, such as, ‘only sing in falsetto,’ or whatnot,” said O’Connor.
Subject matter has included monkeys, biology, seaweed, hunting in Wisconsin, menopause on airplanes and a song interspersed with rounds of the “penis game.”
According to Isaacman, while it helps to be able to hold a tune, it is not necessary that someone have musical talent or experience. O’Connor said that there are participants with no or limited experience, as well as musicians with jazz, rock and classical backgrounds.
Although there is a core group of regulars who attend every show, there is no fixed set of members. O’Connor said that about 30 people are associated with She Calls Me Daddy, and there are usually about 10 people performing at one time. The group has no formal leaders—everyone shares responsibilities in organizing the performance times and the musical material.
Isaacman, who has performed at two of the group’s four shows, said that he had not intended to sing at the last show; but he showed up 10 minutes early and agreed to sing when the performers, who had already begun to congregate, invited him to join them.
O’Connor added that interested students should come 15 minutes early to warm up. Currently a word-of-mouth phenomenon, he said he hopes that She Calls Me Daddy will eventually advertise to the entire campus.
A unique aspect of the group’s performances is its embrace of audience participation, a feature that attracted many of the group’s current members. According to O’Connor, people are encouraged to play both dramatic and musical roles. Spectators are often invited to sing, dance, run around, impersonate objects mentioned in the song, and offer suggestions for song topics.
Duchac and Duling are among the group’s members who began as spectators.
“We were thoroughly enjoying ourselves listening to the show,” they said. “It was a terrific medley of sounds and silence. All of a sudden, we were part of the group, singing lead vocals for a blues number detailing the adventures of a girl and a dendrophiliac. This is a true story.”
The group’s talent and energy also impresses audience members.
“They are the best a cappella group on campus and possibly the best improv group,” said Jenny Low ’06.
The singers of She Calls Me Daddy balk at the suggestion that they do not take themselves seriously. According to Bradley, the group’s commitment to its art can be described as “deathly.”
“I know I train a minimum of 10 hours a week, and that’s a very low minimum,” he said. “Usually it’s more like 35 or so. Our preferences are carefully planned to appear spontaneous and hilariously un-serious.”
Others define their commitment in philosophical terms.
“We understand the subjective nature of self-knowledge and perception of reality, and so we acknowledge the inconsistent and ephemeral nature of our lives and work,” O’Connor said. “However, we are all that we have, and in that sense, we take ourselves very seriously.”
Rijal said that the She Calls Me Daddy is greater than the sum of its parts.
“I wince when I say it’s a cathartic experience because that connotes a very personal and selfish need for the group,” he said. “We ultimately strive to bring transcendence from anywhere in our periphery and share it.”
She Calls Me Daddy will have its next show on Thursday night at 9 p.m. at the bottom of Foss Hill.
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