Treblemakers are celebrating 25 years of treble

The Treblemakers, one of the campus’ oldest a cappella groups, will commemorate its 25th anniversary this semester with a concert featuring performances by Trebs old and new.

Started in 1989, the all-female Trebs have over 130 alumnae, some of whom will return to the campus to perform in the group’s anniversary concert Oct. 18 in the Memorial Chapel.

Depending on individual availability and distance to travel, around 50 former Trebs will join the group’s current members on stage for the show, Treblemakers President Sara Cavanaugh said.

The alumnae will begin the 7 p.m. show with a set of their own, after which the current Trebs will join in for a few songs together. The group’s musical directors are handling the musical arrangement and direction for the entire show, including the alumnae song set, Cavanaugh, a junior marketing and supply chain management major, said. 

The Treblemakers formed when the university’s first a cappella group, the all-male Generics – or the G’s, as the Trebs affectionately call them – decided to help some of their female friends create a group. After a few semesters of assistance from the Generics,  the Trebs began creating their own arrangements. 

Building on the group’s 25-year-long legacy of sisterhood, the Treblemakers are close beyond their performances or practices, Cavanaugh said.

“We’re not just a bunch of people who like to sing together,” Cavanaugh said. “We also become such good friends.”

Last semester, after rehearsal, the group held Trebs Thursdays, when the members would watch movies or go out together, Cavanaugh said. Some of the Trebs live together, and all of the members spend time together outside of rehearsals, said sophomore psychology major Clare Gillooly, one of the group’s two musical directors.

All the Treblemakers are dedicated to the music, said junior bioengineering major and musical director Juliette Rose, and they balance professionalism and having fun. 

One of the Trebs’ recent high points came when the women decided to take a risk with Elastic Heart by Sia, said Leena Owen, a biology and French major and the group’s only senior. Despite the song’s heavy use of electronic synths, which can be hard to convert to an a cappella arrangement, the group’s cover was a major success and is its most viewed YouTube video to date.

The group will held tryouts yesterday and today in the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. There are currently nine Treblemakers, a number Cavanaugh said she hopes will increase to between 13 and 15 members.