5 Brilliant A Cappella Covers to Brighten Your Day

5 Brilliant A Cappella Covers to Brighten Your Day Suzy S. In the past decade, with the popularity of shows like The Sing-Off and hit movies like Pitch Perfect, a cappella groups have found their heyday.  Once relegated to college campuses, many a cappella groups have also gained momentum with the help of the YouTube era. Musicians are going viral for creative covers, and fans are devouring these videos! If a cappella interests you or if you simply want to check out some creative tunes here are five covers to brighten your day (and maybe inspire you to sing your own). Nick  Pitera   This is Halloween A cappella groups don’t need to be groups at all anymore, with this Nightmare Before Christmas cover by Nick  Pitera  being a perfect example of the “solo group” concept. Heather  Traska   One Woman A Cappella Disney Medley Aside from obvious talent and thoughtful arrangements of beloved songs, one way a cappella groups (or solo artists) stand out online is through visual creativity. Heather  Traska  takes this to the next level in her Mariah Carey-inspired Disney medley, which she filmed over the course of 86 days.  Arranging 13 main songs and another 13 “quoted” songs entirely by ear, she recorded herself performing in several different hair and makeup looks, and spent an entire month on editing alone. The result is a visual and aural trip down memory lane for any Disney fan and a worldwide showcase for her talent and creativity. Best of all, if you like this medley,  Part Two  is only a click away! Peter  Hollens  feat. Jackie  Evancho   Hallelujah   Of course, if you want to sing a cappella, you don’t have to do it all yourself. You can actually form your a cappella groups with people  you’ve never even met! That’s exactly what Peter  Hollens  did for his cover of Hallelujah, adding the face and voice of Jackie  Evancho. While it would be easy to be intimidated by a song written by  Leonard Cohen  and famously covered by  Jeff Buckley, Peter and Jackie find new meaning in the legendary tune. Pentatonix   Evolution of Music This medley charts a course from  11th  century Gregorian chants to “Call Me Maybe” with notable stops in each decade of pop music along the way proving that a cappella groups can be just as comfortable covering Beethoven as they are Freddie Mercury, all within the same four-minute song. The members of  Pentatonix  won the third season of The Sing-Off, but were dropped by their label shortly afterwards. Undeterred, they started a YouTube channel that is currently the  42nd  most-subscribed in all of YouTube. UMass Amherst Doo  Wop  Shop Disney Medley Not all a cappella groups need to have carefully edited and recorded video presentations! This group gets by on nothing but coordinated outfits, charm, and endearing vocal talent as each member takes a solo in front of a hand-drawn logo on a blackboard. Uniquely personal with no instruments other than the singers own voices, a cappella groups are so much fun to be part of. If you can sing (or want to learn), there are no expensive instruments to buy or rehearsal space to rent. So why not give it a shot? Pick a song and get to singing! Want more ideas? Check out our roundup of  400+ songs to sing here! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher