christian a cappella
- acappella.com - Official site. Features group history, profiles, discography, picture gallery, chat room, radioweb and online store.
- Acadisc.com - Complete database of Acappella lyrics, album directory, scriptures for songs, group profile, links, and other information. Official lyrics site of The Acappella Company.
- The Acappella Company Online Store - Official shopping outlet for Acappella albums and other TAC artists, series and themed albums. Also includes CD-quality songs in MP3 format, sheet music, songbooks, singles, pictures, posters and other official merchandise.
- Acappella Ministries - Official website and home to Christian a cappella artists: Acappella, AVB, Keith Lancaster and Vocal Union. Features online newsletter, artist profiles and discographies, photo galleries, chat room, jukebox, mailing list and other information.
- itickets.com: A cappella - Concert schedule and group profile.
- Mainely A Cappella: Acappella - Group bio, photo, and album reviews.
- Pollstar.com: Acappella - Concert schedule.
- The Van Hyning's Favorite Music Group: Acappella - Tribute site with information, history, archive photos, song clips, picture album, and links.
- Tulsa International Soul-Winning Workshop - Annual event featuring Acappella in concert, often with special guest vocalists like TAC founder Keith Lancaster and other former group members. (March 25, 2005)
- KHCA Angel 95 FM -- Acappella - Photos of Robert Guy, Steve Reischl, Duane Adams and Kevin Schaffer. (1995)
- Acappella Experiences the China Syndrome - By Paula K. Parker. [crosshome.com] Interview with Barry Wilson on Acappella's invitation to perform at the International Festival of the Arts held in Kunming, China in May, 1999.
- A cappella no Brasil - Gallery - Photos, profiles and links related to former and current members of A cappella.
- a cappella.com.br - Interview with Keith Lancaster, founding member of Acappella.
- acappella.com.br - Interview with former A cappella member Wayburn Dean, from a Brazilian fansite.
- Jamsline - Biographical article with discography and other details.
- Primarily A Cappella: Acappella - Group profile, album reviews and ordering information.
- The Recorded A Cappella Review Board - Review of Acappella's 2001 album, "Hymns For All The Ages."
- Spirit Songs - By Amy Poindexter. [The Independent] "With 14 albums and more than 2,000 concerts, it's safe to say the musical group Acappella is 'spreading the Gospel'."
- Band Of Brothers - By Brett Buckner. [Anniston Star] "Acappella concert at Greenbrier Church of Christ to benefit annual toy drive." (December 4, 2004)
- A cappella to appear on campus March 28 - By Wes McKinzie. [OC News] Feature article on Acappella's history. (March 22, 2004)
- A cappella Unique Gospel Offering - JAMAICAOBSERVER.COM - By Balford Henry. [Jamaica Observer] Concert review. (November 17, 2003)
- Awesome Acappella! - By Tyrone Reid. [Jamaica Gleaner] Concert review featuring Acappella and Wayburn Dean. (November 17, 2003)
- Wayburn Dean and Acappella coming November - [Go-Local Jamaica] "Jamaica will be the venue for another international gospel group this year when Christian music’s premiere all-vocal group Acappella makes their fourth appearance on the island." (August 12, 2003)
- A cappella blends four-part harmony, worship - By Elly Marx. [The Whitworthian] "Christian quartet brings campus praise songs, raises money for relief fund." (April 24, 2001)
- GuyanaMissions.org: Tulsa International Soul Winning Workshop - Memories and photos from Colleen DeLoach. (March 29, 1999)
- Beth's Beat: A cappella - By Beth Miller. [Christian Activities] Concert review. (January 31, 1999)
- A cappella Ministries RadioWeb - Listen online to music selections performed by the TAC family of artists with A cappella's 24-hour internet radio station.
- Heartlight Magazine - A cappella Ministries - Streaming audio downloads for entire albums by A cappella, AVB and Vocal Union.
- Totally Acappella Radio - Online radio station playing Christian A Cappella music exclusively, including many tracks from Acappella albums, as well as AVB, Vocal Union, X-Changed, Voces, and other TAC related artists.
The roots of a cappella music
A cappella music was and is often used in church music. Gregorian chant is an example of a cappella singing, as is the majority of sacred vocal music from the Renaissance. The Madrigal, up until its development in the early Baroque into an instrumentally-accompanied form, is also usually an a cappella form.
Present-day religious bodies known for conducting their worship services without musical accompaniment include the Amish, Old Regular Baptists, Primitive Baptists, Plymouth Brethren, most congregations of the Church of Christ, and the Old German Baptist Brethren, as well as some Presbyterian churches devoted to exclusive Psalmody. Eastern Orthodox Christian Church music is sang unaccompanied by instruments. Sacred Harp, a type of religious "folk" music, is an a cappella style of religious singing. It is more often sung at singing conventions than at church services. Some Muslims have adopted the idiom of a cappella music since traditional Islam prohibits the use of instruments except for some basic percussion. Muslim a cappella songs are known as nasheeds. Similarly, some who practice Judaism have adopted a cappella as a style of music used during the traditional counting of the omer period between Passover and Shavuot. During this period it is traditional for orthodox Jews to refrain from any instrumental music. Many Jewish groups have therefore taken to a cappella to produce music that can be heard through this period.[citation needed]
Modern a cappella
Many standard choral works are a cappella in that no accompaniment is written in except perhaps for rehearsal purposes. But in the modern parlance, it applies to vocal performers who disdain instrumental accompaniment in all cases.
A cappella music attained renewed prominence from the late 1970s onward, spurred by the success of songs by popular recording artists such as The Manhattan Transfer, The Bobs, Bobby McFerrin, The Nylons, Flying Pickets, Die Prinzen, Rockapella, Take 6, and Boyz II Men. This prominence in turn led to a resurgence in collegiate a cappella—some larger universities now have a dozen groups or more.
Some of the major movements within modern a cappella are Barbershop, doo wop, and contemporary a cappella. Contemporary a cappella includes many vocal bands who add vocal percussion or beatboxing to create a pop/rock sound.
Arrangements of popular music for small a cappella ensembles usually include one voice singing the lead melody, one singing a rhythmic bass line, and the remaining voices contributing chordal or polyphonic accompaniment . (In Japan, these parts are known as vocal, bass, and chorus, respectively.)
A cappella can also describe the practice of using just the vocal track(s) from a multitrack recording to either remix or put onto vinyl records for DJs. Artists will sometimes release the vocal tracks of their popular songs so fans can remix them.
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