Vocal Point
Vocal Point is a nine-member, all-male a cappella singing group at Brigham Young University. Members move through the group as they graduate and move on. In 2010, only two members of the group were music majors.
- Keith Evans, an alumni and tenor in Vocal Point, said, "Some of us didn't even do choir in high school. It's interesting to see nine guys just come out of the woodwork, from social science, engineering, medical and law majors, and meld together into this singing group that does amazing, wholesome, incredible things." [1]
Allowing the gospel to mesh them together, Vocal Point members are the best of friends. Their tight harmonies and beat-boxing, and their general fun-loving demeanor, add to the charm of their performances.
- Vocal Point is now part of the BYU School of Music and one of 18 performing groups sponsored by the university. It is the most-requested performing group at BYU and regularly performs to sold-out crowds on and off campus. Members of Vocal Point devote over 20 hours of time to the group each week. They do not receive scholarships or other compensation for their time. The group performs for over 50,000 people each year, regularly selling out shows weeks in advance. Vocal Point is currently under the direction of McKay Crockett.
Updates
Vocal Point finished first runner-up at the finals of the 2011 International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella. Members of the group took top honors in several individual award categories. Sophomore Jake Hunsaker was recognized as Outstanding Soloist for his rendition of “Meglio Stasera (It Had Better Be Tonight),” a tune recently made popular by Michael Bublé. In addition, junior Tanner Nilsson received the award for Outstanding Vocal Percussion.
Vocal Point entered the finals as the top group in the West Region, having placed first in its quarterfinal and semifinal qualifying rounds held in Eugene, Ore., and Los Angeles, Calif., respectively. The finals featured the top seven qualifiers from the United States, Canada, and United Kingdom. Vocal Point was edged out by a group from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mass., known as Pitch Slapped. This year’s competition started with a field of over 150 groups from around the world. [2]
In 2011 Vocal Point was chosen to compete on the TV show for A Cappella groups, NBC's "The Sing-Off." Judges for that year's competition were Ben Folds, Sara Bareilles and Shawn Stockman, and the prize was $200,000 and a Sony recording contract. Vocal Point had to compete missing baritone Ben Murphy, whose father was gravely ill. Still, the group won kudos from the judges and moved on to the second round of the competition. Sixteen vocal groups were chosen for the show from all over America in the third season of the show. Two groups will be eliminated each week until finally the television audience will choose the winner. The group advanced handily to the top eight, as Ben Murphy returned and added a noticeable baritone guitar sound to the mix. The group made it to the top six, then five, but were eliminated when four groups moved on to the finale. Videos below.
Vocal Point has a YouTube channel that has over 570,000 subscribers.
In August 2020, Vocal Point released a virtual video that delivered the hymn "Nearer My God, to Thee" with approximately 800 performers from 55 countries. Vocal Point's artistic director McKay Crockett collaborated with James Stevens, a former artistic director, on the latter's arrangement of "Nearer My God to Thee" that gleaned over 27 million views since it was released six years previously.
