A cappella groups from across Long Island and beyond will perform at Greenport’s first-ever a cappella music festival in Mitchell Park this May.
The festival, organized by Greenport Village Trustee Douglas Roberts, will feature local a cappella groups from Greenport, Southold and Riverhead high schools, along with other high school groups from across Long Island and several universities.
“I wanted to have more cultural events in the park in the spring and fall seasons – more excuses for people to come out and enjoy a day in the village,” Roberts said.
The festival, scheduled for May 14, will feature about a dozen groups singing several pieces each at Mitchell Park’s outdoor amphitheater. “A cappella is great because you’ve got a group of kids who can make music anywhere, with just their own voices,” Roberts said. “We just need to set up a bunch of microphones and that’s it.”
A former a cappella singer himself, Roberts performed in both high school and college. The festival’s headliner, the Princeton Nassoons, is an award-winning all-male ensemble that Roberts performed with while attending Princeton University.
“It was an idea I had during my campaign to get more off-season events in Mitchell Park, and I thought I’d start out with my own area of expertise,” Roberts said.
And so far, the festival has been well-received. Greenport Village has been “very supportive” of the idea, Roberts said, and a cappella groups from as far away as Plainview have asked to participate. In addition to the Princeton Massoons, Hofstra University’s co-ed Sigma’Cappella will perform along with a number of high school groups.
“We have such a nice little culture of singing here in Greenport,” Roberts said. “I thought it would be nice to showcase that.”
The festival will take place Saturday, May 14 at 2 p.m. in Mitchell Park, with a rain date the next day. Anyone interested in performing can contact Roberts by email or at 631-477-6662.
