Looking Back on the 2025 Alexandria A Cappella Collective Events and Milestones
(Here is our annual summary of the past year for the Alexandria Chapter. It becomes an important part of our history record. – YeEd.)
A good crowd of members and guests were at AlexRenew on Tuesday, Jan. 14, in Old Town Alexandria for the kickoff of the 2025 chapter year for AACC. A chapter Put Together Quartet Contest was also part of the evening so there were quartets gathered all around the meeting spaces in preparation for their entry.
Terry Reynolds welcomed all attendees for the start of another great chapter year. He posted the outline for the business session on the screen for all to see. Artistic director, Joe Cerutti, started things off with announcing the 2025 music team: Joe continued as artistic director for AACC; with music team admin, Terry Reynolds. The Harmonizer team included Joe as primary director, Tony Colosimo as associate director, and Jason Lee as assistant director. The section leaders were Randy Lazear and Lance Fisher for tenors, Matt Ambler for leads, Jared Liscinsky for baritones, and Calvin Schnure for basses, with Tyler Carpenter as section leader admin and Turner Arndt andBruce Roehm as visual team leaders.
Samantha Tramack continued as primary director for Metro Voices with the following music team members: Maggie McAlexander, assistant director; Elisabeth Cosh, tenor section leader; Sophie Clarke, lead section leader; Callie Cirillo and Sheryl Berlin, baritone section leaders; and Leah Musico, bass section leader.
Tessa Walker was primary director for Capital Force youth chorus, with Julian LeFlore as assistant. Plans to launch the Vintage Blend senior (55), all gender, daytime, chorus with Terry Reynolds as director were postponed until 2026.
Chapter leaders then spoke about the schedule or calendar of events for the year ahead.
New president Craig Kujawa introduced his fellow board members for 2025: Vice President: Ashley Merryman; Secretary: Cy Shuster; Treasurer: Terry Reynolds; Members at Large: Carolyn Griffin, Mary Cooper, Michael Berkson, Betsy Mullins, and Cody Leihgeber-Carpenter. Craig also spoke about the priorities and goals for the year ahead, and he said, “My goal is for members to know what we do, and why - and how to do it and to share and help with doing more. It involves more of us to step up and help.”
General Manager, Stan Quick, reminded all attendees of the chapter’s Mission: “Enriching lives through vocal harmony in the greater DC area.” He provided leadership for the chapter operations team:
General Manager – Susan Fitzpatrick
Artistic Director – Joe Cerutti, Jr.
Music Team Admin – Terry Reynolds
Membership Director – Jacob Broude
Contest Director – Craig Kujawa
Chapter Secretary – Heidi Suckow
BHS Chapter Finance Director – Dave Welter
AH Inc. Finance Director – Carl Kauffmann
Communications Director – vacant
Director of Shows – Doug White
Operations Director – Gary Cregan
Education Director – Sheryl Berlin
Volunteer Activities Director – vacant
Archivist/Historian – Don Harrington
Development Director – Ken Rub
Ken Rub, director of development, spoke about the major plans for this aspect of the chapter operation and announced the goal of raising $148,000 for 2025.
Both Joe and Samantha spoke about the repertoire for the two ensembles in the year ahead with plans to bring back some songs, add some new arrangements, and add some patriotic music in preparation for a major chapter event in 2026.
At this point in the evening, there was a 15 minute break to reset the room for the Wilbur Sparks Memorial Put Together Quartet Contest. The first Put Together was held in 1973 when Wilbur offered to help anyone who wanted to try quartet singing find three other members to sing with. He called himself, Dr. Put! It has continued nearly every year since then.
The 2025 contest was organized by Tyler Carpenter. Judges for the event where the MENTAL NOTE quartet with members from the Richmond and Alexandria chapters: Jeff Mauro, tenor; Scott Beach, lead; Jerry Candrilli, baritone; and Mike Geipel, bass. They sang for the audience while the scores were tabulated.
There were 14 quartets in the contest with all sorts of combinations of members from one or both of the ensembles in AACC. The judges presented medals to the top three quartets in the comedy category and in the standard category. Membership director, Jacob Broude, was emcee for the contest.
Third place in comedy was BEGINNER’S LUCK with Carey Fagerstrom, Catherine LaValley, Dana Richardson and Jared Liscinsky. Second place was BARBERSHOP BUBBLERS with Joel Golden, Carl Kauffmann, Calvin Schnure, and Samantha Tramack. First place was LATE ENTRY with Brian Ammerman, Lance Fisher, Joe Golden and Calvin Schnure.
Third place standard quartet winner was STARK CONTRAST with Samantha Tramack, David Breen, Robert Stark, and Christine Pan. Robert and Christine were guests at the meeting. Second place was earned by GUYS FIERI with Josh Myers, Ryan Mextorf, Suranjan Sen and Robert Stark. First place quartet was YOUR CHILD MAY CRY with Ryan Mextorf, Ian Trent, Kevin Mendez and Robert Santine.
For the January 21 chapter meeting, AACC met at the other venue most often used for meetings in 2025 the Beth El Synagogue on King Street. As happened most weeks of the year, the two ensembles worked separately and then came together for business meeting and to sing as the AACC chorus. At this week’s business meeting, president Kujawa spoke about the chapter’s fundraising activity – the Scrip program. At this meeting, he offered incentives of a Starbucks gift card for members to launch participation in the program. He mentioned the program often during the year.
The Jan. 28 rehearsal filled the space at AlexRenew. Associate director of the Harmonizers, Tony Colosimo, led vocal warm ups for the combined ensembles of AACC. In recognition of the chapter’s upcoming International trip in the summer of 2025, he taught a new tag – “Ireland, My Ireland, I’m Longing for You.”
Music team admin, Terry Reynolds, explained details for the annual interview process for 2025. All AACC singers will meet with a member of the music team in the coming weeks. All interviews will be at the Harmo House if not on Zoom.
President Kujawa shared that the chapter is an active member of the Alexandria Arts Alliance and AACC leaders met with the Alliance early in January of 2025.
The February 4 meeting was an official guest night event for AACC at AlexRenew. Much of the evening was coordinated by membership director, Jacob Broude, and the chapter welcomed 10 first time guests and 8 returning guests from January.
Tony Colosimo, associate director of the Harmonizers, conducted vocal and physical warm ups for the singers; then Maggie McAlexander, assistant director of Metro Voices, did more singing warm ups with a fun round (“to stop the train in case of emergency, pull down the chain, pull down the chain, penalty for improper use, five pounds”) and ended her session with the tag “New York Ain’t New York Anymore.” She also invited octets of singers to step out to sing it for the others.
Artistic director, Joe Cerutti, welcomed everyone and thanked the chapter’s musical leaders as he introduced them. Several of them offered comments such as “what is a tag.”
There was a ten minute break about 8:30 for singers to visit and members to reset the hall for a mini-show. Each ensemble sang a song for the guests who were seated in seats up front. Then the ensembles combined to sing “I’m Still Standing.”
Jacob presented visitor pins to all the guests and Terry Reynolds directed the chapter “Welcome Song.”
Becca Williams and Devin Gerzof coordinated a fun mixer game for all singers. Attendees formed into groups of 10 or so and each group had to sing a few bars of any song with the word “sky” in the lyrics when it was their turn. In the end, one group out-lasted all the other groups with a song that had the right word!
“Keep the Whole World Singing” was the closing number for the evening. Joe issued the usual invite to the afterglow at the Harmo House explaining the location and pizza-slice-count to the many guests.
Also in January, a number of AACC members participated in the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) Midwinter Convention in San Antonio, TX. The Seneca Valley High School Singers, Germantown, MD, directed by Tessa Walker, earned an Outstanding rating in the junior chorus festival. They sang “Happy Days Are Here Again” and “If You’re Happy and You Know It” with “Get Happy.”
Joe Cerutti was a music judge for the junior quartet contest. Former member, Paul Wietlisbach, competed with SILVER RING quartet in the senior quartet contest.
FIRST TAKE, with Tony Colosimo and Andrew Havens, was featured on the Saturday night show. Earlier in the week, Tony filled in as baritone to help a M-AD quartet, GIMME FOUR, on a show. John Santora served as Immediate Past President of the BHS board of directors. Current president of the board is, Kevin Keller, who has often coached the Harmonizers.
For the history records, the Feb. 11 meeting was cancelled due to the major winter storm in the entire DC Metro area at that time.
As part of the chapter’s tradition, a quartet of Harmonizers sang at several senior care facilities for Valentine’s Day, Friday, Feb. 14. Dean Rust, bass, organized the appearances and recruited Brian Ammerman, tenor; EJ Herold, lead, and Joel Golden, baritone, to sing with him. The quartet announced themselves as FRIENDS OF PUNXATAWNEY PHIL and started early that day to warm up and then sing at the Lee Center in Alexandria for the Alexandria Seniors Valentine event, which included meeting the new mayor of Alexandria, Aliyah Gaskins.
Then the quartet traveled to the Silverado Memory Care Community on King Street, and to Woodbine Rehab Center also on King Street. Next they went to Sunrise of Alexandria on Duke Street. At most locations, they were welcomed by activities directors who asked them to sing at several locations at the facility – often for the staff of the facility. The quartet wore red ties, white shirts, dark trousers. They were prepared to sing “Heart of My Heart,” “Let Me Call You Sweetheart,” “God Bless America,” and “Keep the Whole World Singing.” The quartet enjoyed spreading Valentine smiles and cheer in the community. Often the seniors recognized the song and sang along.
On Saturday, Feb. 15, the AACC talented youth ensemble, Capital Force, sang their end-of-season concert. It was at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Old Town Alexandria. Tessa Walker is director of the youth ensemble with assistance from Sheryl Berlin and Julian LeFlore. Youth chorus singers are students in grades 8-12.
The free concert at 3:30 pm was in the theater at the Memorial. All three AACC ensembles sang together for “I’m Still Standing” with artistic director, Joe Cerutti, conducting. Tessa Walker, Capital Force director and project leader, welcomed all former members, family and friends of singers, and supporters of the new youth chorus. She invited Metro Voices to sing next with Samantha Tramack directing “After You Who” and “So Happy.”
Capital Force lead, Kit Rufus, welcomed a guest quartet to sing next - SUPERNOVA with Maggie McAlexander, tenor; Tessa Walker, lead; Amanda Pitts, baritone; and Serena Davis, bass.
Caleb Jacobson from Capital Force introduced Joe and the Harmonizers for their two-song set – “Sit Down You’re Rockin’ the Boat,” and “Chasing Dreams.” Later in the concert, Caleb was recognized as a senior who will age out of the Capital Force.
Julian brought on the Capital Force ensemble, with Tessa as their director, for their first ever concert. They sang “You Can’t Stop the Sun,” “It’s You I Like, ” and “Smile.”
The finale for the show included all three ensembles again. There was a celebration after the concert with cupcakes for the Capital Force singers and their families.
AACC members (ten Harmonizers and nine Metro Voices) sang for the Defense Attaché Community at the Danish Ambassador’s residence on Feb. 20. E. J. Herold reports that they were extremely well received by the banquet guests and the Prince and Princess. Members were invited to enjoy the foods and reception as well as meet and talk to the attendees. Ambassador Jesper Moller Sorensend greeted the singers and welcomed them to his home.
The audience of 190 included defense attaches and their wives from countries around the world, plus senior civilian and military officials from the US government. Danish royalty - Prince Joachim of Denmark, brother to the King, and his wife, Princess Marie - were introduced to the chorus and many members spoke to the Prince and Princess.
There was great audience support when the singers did our National Anthem and “Armed Forces Medley” as openers for the evening. Then, after dessert, the combined groups did a second set with songs by Metro Voices with Maggie McAlexander directing, and the Harmonizers with Tony Colosimo directing. The combined ensembles sang “Why We Sing” and “I’m Still Standing.” Terry Reynolds did the emcee duties.
The Tuesday, Feb. 25, chapter meeting was at AlexRenew in Old Town Alexandria. Metro Voices worked with Peter Cunningham, who is a Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) singing judge and was part of a Collegiate Champ quartet with Kevin Mendez. He is from Texas. The chorus is preparing for its first official contest at Southern Division and worked on “After You, Who?” and “World Here I Am.”
The Harmonizers worked on “Come Follow The Band,” “Toyland,” and began working on a new song, “What a Wonderful World.” Zak Sandler initiated a discussion of emotions and how to show them as relates to “Toyland.”
On Saturday evening, March 1, 80 members and friends of the Alexandria A Cappella Collective enjoyed the chapter’s second annual Gala event, held this year at the Torpedo Factory in Old Town Alexandria. Kudos to chapter development director, Ken Rub, who was the lead in making the event a huge success. Theme for the evening was ‘Emerald Affair – a wickedly Irish Gala.’ Attendees carried out the spirit and wore a great array of green and Irish attire! Table decorations created by Cathy Kauffmann added to the theme.
Special keynote speaker for the evening, was Dr. Jim Henry, a Harmonizer coach and chapter friend from St. Louis, MO, where he is director of the Ambassadors of Harmony chorus. After his encouraging remarks about the character of the AACC chapter, Jim thanked the chapter for inviting he and his wife to attend. They enjoyed some days as tourists in the DC Metro area. Jim also shared fond memories of past exchanges with the Ambassadors and the Harmonizers; and he spoke about the important history of the chapter as part of the Barbershop Harmony Society for over 75 years.
Special thanks go to caterer, Joan Wolford of Savoir Fare Limited, for the fantastic dinner with great service, yummy family-style main dishes and desserts, and a creative hors d’oeuvres table. The generous bar was also available all evening beginning with the opening period when attendees could make additional bids on the many terrific silent auction items. Bidding had begun online days in advance of the Gala.
Randall Eliason was chair of the silent auction that raised major funds for the chapter. The rest of his team included Mary Cooper, Callie Warren and Hannah Nesich with assistance from chapter general manager, Susan Fitzpatrick. The auction items were displayed on decorated tables in the reception area.
During the reception period, there was great Irish music and dancing provided by the Corkers, Bobby Seay and his sister Michaela Seay. They are offspring of the famous Seay barbershop family in the Baltimore area.
There was a live auction item for the evening – a basket of liquors donated by the musical directors of the three ensembles in AACC. Jim Henry offered the auction item after dinner and Frank Shipp emerged as high bidder for the basket from the many competing bidders. Angela Marty held the winning ticket for the evening’s 50/50 drawing!
Guest quartet for the banquet was SECRET BEST FRIENDS – Mid Atlantic District (M-AD) champs. Former Harmonizer, Will Simmons, who sings bass in that quartet, was sick with the flu and so David Breen sang two songs with the quartet and Jim Henry sang two.
Samantha Tramack thanked those who attended and expressed appreciation from leaders of all three of the singing ensembles in AACC for the support generated at this year’s Gala. Mike Kelly was on hand to provide sound for the evening. Other volunteers were Will Whittaker, David Means, Zak Sandler, and Catherine LaValley.
Friday, March 7, AACC chapter members worked together with the Music Education staff from DC Public Schools (DCPS) for a terrific all-day youth choral festival. The event was at UDC in The Center for Theater Arts and attended by over 80 students with their music educators from seven DC schools.
Members of AACC helped support the event with riser crews (helpers with Gary Cregan); and snacks, pizza lunch and water (donations from members of cash and products coordinated by Mark Oswald and Randy Lazear).
At 4 pm, the youth chorus sang their songs learned during the day for an audience of AACC members, parents and music educators. The show started with two schools (Dunbar High School and Jackson Lee High School) demonstrating a tag they had learned since last year’s festival.
Tessa Walker was clinician for the day and directed the youth chorus and shared her pride and excitement about how well the students had learned their music in advance of the day and had worked hard all day to be ready for the show. THE QUINN TONES quartet (Jake, Julian, Tommy and Chris) was on hand to help Tessa as section leaders and coaches. The quartet sang on the show as well.
Joe Cerutti, emcee for the show, was enthusiastic in his thank you to parents and friends who came to support the student singers. Many members of AACC were on hand for the show too. Some of them had spent parts of the day at the festival as helpers ‘as needed’ with music education, hospitality and set up, take down and clean up. AACC members who helped or attended the concert included Dean Rust, Randy Lazear, Mark Oswald, David Breen, Noah Van Gilder, Maggie Alexander, Carl Kauffmann, Gary Cregan, Sheryl Berlin, Patricia Chow, Ken Rub, Jack Pitzer, Bruce Roehm, Elizabeth Cosh, Michael Berkson, Kevin Mendez, Tony Colosimo, Cy Shuster, and Becca Williams. Students were given a souvenir water bottle to celebrate their efforts for the day.
The Mid Atlantic District (M-AD) of the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) held a Southern Division competition, March 21-22, in Towson, MD. AACC members are part of the Southern Division. (It was also a concurrent contest for the Central Division.) Quartets and choruses needed to score at a predetermined level to get to progress to the M-AD fall district contest. It was also the International Preliminary Contest to select quartets to compete in Denver in July 2025; and a contest for senior quartets to earn a score that makes them eligible to sing at the BHS midwinter contest in January 2026.
Here is a list of the 12 quartets that sang in the quartet contest with AACC members or former members or family members:
* SURPRISINGLY COMPETENT with Jim Lake
* MENTAL NOTE with Scott Beach and Mike Geipel
* BETTER TOGETHER with Elizabeth Colosimo, Heather Havens, Tony Colosimo, and Andrew Havens
* BELTWAY with Rob Santine, Suranjan Sen, Josh Myers, and Ryan Mextorf
* THE ELDERLY BROTHERS with Mike Wallen
* INSTAGRAMPS with Rick Taylor, Jay Butterfield and Steve White
* HARMOHAUS with John Sifuentes, Lance Fisher. Kevin Mendez, and David Breen
* FANTASTIC 4 with Chris Susalka and Heidi Brown, daughter of Anne Ermlick
* FIRST TAKE with Tony Colosimo and Andrew Havens
* HEART AND SOUL with Bob Mattes
* SUPERNOVA with Tessa Walker and Maggie McAlexander
* SECRET BEST FRIENDS with Will Daniel Simmons
Here are awards earned by singers from AACC.
The Southern Division Quartet Champ was BETTER TOGETHER. Southern division Novice Quartet was BELTWAY. After all the division contests were held, INSTAGRAMPS qualified for the Seniors Quartet Contest at Midwinter in 2026. Five quartets from the Southern/Central Division with current or former AACC members qualified for the International Quartet Contest in Denver in 2025: FIRST TAKE, SECRET BEST FRIENDS, BELTWAY, HARMOHAUS, and SUPERNOVA.
Later in April at the Northern Division, three more quartets qualified for the Denver International contest – GQ with Samantha Tramack, PRATT STREET POWER with Ed Schubel, and LEGACY with Rick Taylor.
Metro Voices was named Southern Division Chorus Champ. They sang “After You, Who? arranged by Carole Pietto; and “World Here I Am” arranged by Patrick McAlexander. Their score was 992 (82.7%). Samantha Tramack directed the 30 singers. This was the first competition for Metro Voices.
The Harmonizers (directed this time by Tony Colosimo) and Metro Voices were named qualifiers from the Southern Division for the M-AD fall chorus contest where they will compete to qualify for the International chorus contest in 2026. The Harmonizer chorus (50 singers) sang “Toyland” arranged by Ed Waesche and “Come Follow the Band” arranged by Steve Tramack. Their score was 1047 (87.3%).
Here is other AACC news from the contest weekend in Towson: Mike Fasano was emcee for the semi-finals quartet session on Friday night. Ken Rub, Mike Kelly and Brian Ammerman worked behind the scenes all weekend as part of the Operations Team for the district. Mike Fasano is executive vice president of the M-AD board, Dave Welter is treasurer, Sheryl Berlin is a member at large. There were about a dozen AACC folks on the risers in the mic-tester chorus; and as is often the case, there were a number of current or former Harmonizers who sang with other choruses on Saturday including Loudoun County, Richmond, Patapsco Valley, Greater Delaware, and DC.
For the Saturday night show, the chapter was invited to sing a set so Metro Voices sang two songs and then the Harmonizers joined them on the risers to sing “I’m Still Standing.” Terry Reynolds did the introductions. Samanthadirected.
The March 25 AACC education night event at AlexRenew was well attended and fun. The music team leaders taught classes – Tony Colosimo, Joe Cerutti, Samantha Tramack, Maggie McAlexander, Jared Liscinsky, and Terry Reynolds. Topics included some singing, lots of videos and slide shows – all full of information about the art form, and the organizations that deliver it to members. Membership director, Jacob Broude, led a session for new members and guests (those who had not attended one of his orientation sessions before).
There was some group singing for tags during the night – Samantha taught “Love’s Alive in Your Eyes,” and Terrytaught the tag for “Sound of Music.”
In April, Metro Voices sang at a Virginia anniversary of the Association of American University Women. Samanthadirected for the appearance at the Sheraton in Old Town. The group sang four songs for the AAUW social event.
CONGRATULATIONS to the members of the AACC for their success at raising over $30,000 (and exceeding the chapter goal) during the Spring2ACTion fundraising event April 9. Spring2ACTion is the city of Alexandria’s annual day of giving that raises several million dollars for local nonprofits. This was the 15th year of S2A, and over the past decade it has become the AACC’s most significant fundraising event of the year.
All day on April 9 (and in the days leading up to it) the members were promoting the campaign to their friends and families and co-workers through email, text messaging, and social media. The AACC’s success during the day also earned the chapter additional prize money for having the most donors and dollars raised during a designated “Power Hour” from 3-4 pm and for having the third highest number of donors for organizations of our size.
Kudos to chapter development director, Ken Rub, for steering the event and to general manager Susan Fitzpatrick for handling the promotion and social media posts and other logistics. It was fun to watch the tally all day and to see donations from members who live far from Alexandria now, and chapter friends who still support our programs to bring music to the Metro Area. It was also great to see so many members join in the event and especially the many Harmonizer and Metro Voices members who participated for the first time.
The AACC singers had fun Tuesday, April 15, singing in Olde Town Alexandria. About 45 made it out on tax day, but had to dress warm for the windy cold night. They gathered at 7 pm at Market Square by City Hall for vocal warm up with associate director, Tony Colosimo.
Chapter executive director, Stan Quick, provided AACC business cards for members to hand to interested folks during the stops along King Street. Basically, the combined ensembles sang “Hey Jude” with Matt Ambler as soloist, and “I’m Still Standing.” At the stop for the entrance to the Torpedo Factory area, the Metro Voices ensemble sang one song directed by Maggie McAlexander, and HARMOHAUS quartet (Sifuentes, Fisher, Mendez and Breen) sang.
After the singing for crowds who were out to enjoy the Alexandria waterfront and King Street area, AACC members adjourned for an afterglow at Chadwick’s.
The combined chorus from the Alexandria A Cappella Collective sang and gave a great appearance as part of the Alexandria choral festival “One Voice” on May 9 at Schlesinger Concert Hall. This was the first appearance with the informal black attire with teal accents.
Artistic director, Joe Cerutti, directed the combined Harmonizers and Metro Voices when they did their songs, “I’m Still Standing” and “Defying Gravity” with Samantha Tramack and Tony Colosimo as soloists. The massed chorus of about 400 singers performed “Sing, Sing, Sing,” “Unified Prayer,” and “Thank You for the Music.”
The other groups from the greater Alexandria area included George Washington Middle School Combined Choir, NOVA Community Chorus Chamber Ensemble, The Alexandria Children’s Chorus, Choristers of Westminster Presbyterian Church, The Alexandria Singers, Alexandria City High School Titans Choir, and The Alexandria Choral Society who organized and hosted this first-time festival which was sold out. Alexandria city mayor, Alyia Gaskins was emcee for the show.
During the May 13 chapter meeting, Terry led another education session based on the history of the chapter – it was one of the several he conducts during each year for the newer members.
May 20, Dean Rust and Ken Rub represented the Collective at a meeting to receive the $10,000 grant from the City of Alexandria for FY2025.
The AACC singers were pleased to provide cheers and singing to welcome four Honor Flights when they arrived at Reagan National Airport on Sat. May 31 at 8, 9, 10 and 11 am. E. J. Herold from the chapter coordinated AACC support with the local volunteers from the Honor Flight Network.
The flights brought veterans to DC for a visit to the memorials of their conflicts and others as well as sightseeing in the nation’s Capital. They originated from White Plains, NY; W. Palm Beach, FL; Madison, WI; and Indianapolis, IN. During their stay in DC, the groups visited the memorials, were fed a meal and then returned back to the airport to return home. Despite their dwindling number, there were actually a couple World War II Veterans among the flights with mostly Korean and Vietnam Veterans to make up the groups.
About 20 singers were on hand for Terry Reynolds to direct in singing patriotic tunes as the plane loads of veterans arrived. The chorus wore the black AACC t-shirts and sang with music in black folders, as needed, provided for the occasion.
In June, 2025. Stan Quick, chapter executive director, announced the farewell of chapter general manager, Susan Fitzpartick, who moved to Marshall, VA. She was a great asset to the operation of the chapter, especially at the time of the addition of the new ensembles.
Also in June, Joe announced the good news of a recent agreement between AACC and the Alexandria Children’s Chorus – basically the two groups will both promote and recruit youth singers (they for sixth grade and under; we for older students as prospects for the AACC Capital Force ensemble}.
A significant number of AACC members attended Harmony College East (HCE), June 12-15, 2025, at McDaniel College, Westminster, MD. HCE is a major event of the Mid Atlantic District (M-AD) of the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS). A long list of AACC members were on the staff or faculty for the weekend including deans for the weekend, Bill Colosimo andSheryl Berlin. Also the team included Joe Cerutti, Tony Colosimo, Mike Fasano, Mike Kelly, Julian LeFlore, Rick Taylor, Mike Wallen, Dave Welter and Alan Wile. Several quartets with active AACC members were there for coaching including FIRST TAKE, HARMOHAUS, and BELTWAY; and quartets with former members including SECRET BEST FRIENDS and SMITTEN. The Fairfax, Arlington, Red Bank and West Chester choruses were there for coaching too. Bill Colosimo was emcee for the evening shows during the weekend. Patrick McAlexander (Maggie’s brother) was guest director for the HCE chorus during the weekend, and gave the keynote address at the opening session. Alan Wile reports a significant total for the Mid Atlantic Endowment Fund collected during the weekend.
President Craig announced a major change in the chapter’s weekly 50/50 drawing program at the June 24 meeting. For many years, half of the money went to a member with a lucky ticket, the other half went to the M-AD Endowment Fund. (The chapter has donated nearly $19,000 to that fund.) Alan Wile, who manages the drawing, proposed a change where a member still gets some of the proceeds and the Endowment Fund gets some but then after a set total to M-AD, the remaining funds go to the chapter.
Membership director, Jacob Broude, announced this year’s Class of 2025 – to carry on a long-standing tradition of forming a class of the new members since the last class was recognized. Each member of the class was presented a red bandana that they are expected to wear at all times – rehearsals and gatherings of the chapter. The bandanas were created by Tyler Carpenter and have both the Harmonizer and the Metro Voices logos on them. Jacob and Tessa gave each class member his or her bandana.
The AACC Class of 2025 was announced with the following members from Metro Voices -Hannah Drobac, Adele Jones, Annie Ermlick, Katie Raimondo, Nerissa Yiu, Christine Pan, Holly Perdue, Heid Brown, Shira Perlmutter, Leah Bernstein, and Diane Morrical; and the following members from the Harmonizers – Brendon White, Suranjan Sen, Ian Trent, Rob Santine, Josh Berenhaus, Alex Edwards, Tanner Perdue, Rob Stark, Brigham Blackhurst, AJ Gupta, Patrick Horne, Michael Snow, Jackson Byrd, Maumen Alshea, and Devin Turner. That large class will likely have a great skit prepared for the Retreat weekend finale show!! They will also be eager to always have their bandana or “face some consequences” according to old timers!!
The Alexandria A Cappella Collective (AACC) had a great week at the 2025 Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) International Contest and Convention in Denver, CO. Many members of the chapter “family” traveled on Monday, June 30, in order to be there for the major contests and events that kicked off on Tuesday.
There were sixty-five quartets in the quarterfinals round of the quartet contest with six quartets that had active AACC members: HARMOHAUS with John Sifuentis, Lance Fisher, Kevin Mendez and David Breen; SUPERNOVA with Maggie McAlexander, Tessa Walker, Amanda Pitts, and Serena Davis; FIRST TAKE with Alex Corson, Anthony Colosimo, Drew Wheaton and Andrew Havens; LEGACY with Rick Taylor, Bill Stauffer, Brian Mastrull and Niko Porter; BELTWAY with Robert Santine, Suranjan Sen, Joshua Myers and Dan Krackhardt (filling in for Ryan Mextorf); and GQ with Amanda Sandroni, Katie Gillis, Ali Hauger and Samantha Tramack.
Two of the chapter’s quartets made it into the semifinals round: FIRST TAKE and GQ. PRATT STREET POWER with former member Ed Schubel was mic tester quartet for the finals round.
When the results were called out on Saturday night after the finals quartet round, FIRST TAKE had earned the third place bronze medal from among the top ten finalists. Their total score for the three rounds was 6,659 points with a 92.5 average. GQ was awarded the fifth place bronze medal. Their score was 6,483 points with a 90.0 average.
The first place gold medal quartet was LEMON SQUEEZY from Sweden. Second place quartet was GIMME FOUR from Mid Atlantic District (M-AD) that has helped with Harmonizer youth camp over the years. There were two other M-AD quartets in the top ten – seventh was SECRET BEST FRIENDS (bass Will Daniel Simmons sang in the front row of our chorus before college), and tenth was SMOKE RING who sang at the chapter’s fundraising gala in 2023.
The two ensembles that currently comprise AACC did not compete this year since the chapter is going to Ireland later this summer. However, chapter members were on hand to cheer for the True North Chorus from DE (and M-AD) and directed by Julian LeFlore who is assistant director of the Capital Force ensemble in AACC.
The gold medal chorus winner was The Vocal Majority from Dallas with 146 singers that earned a score of 2,301 for a 95.9 average. M-AD Choruses included Voices of Gotham, Parkside Melody, Sirens of Gotham, and East Coast Sound. Family member Erin Odel directed the Visons of Harmony treble chorus from St. Charles, MO.
Several AACC members sang in the Dream Chorus directed by Jim Henry, a chapter coach for competition and who was speaker for our most recent Gala. Steve White, Cy Shuster, Adele Jones, Brad Jones and Keith Jones signed up to sing in this extra chorus opportunity (they pay a fee, learn the music and come to convention early enough to practice a few times with a guest director). Former member of the Harmonizers, Lewis Smith, sang in the Dream Chorus too. He joined the Harmonizers in 1977 when he was 15, with his dad, Al.
GQ and FIRST TAKE earned chorus medals for their fun “walk on” spots as part of comedic contest packages with Nashville and Denver choruses.
Several members and friends of the AACC family were judges during the convention: Steve Tramack is chair of the overall judging committee. Panel members for the chorus and quartet contest included Chris Buechler, admin judge; and David Wright and Joe Cerutti (for the choruses only), musicality judges. Panel members for the Next Generation Quartet Contest included Mike Louque. Cy Wood and Tim Waurick. Panel members for the comedy festival included Patrick McAlexander, Mo Field and Renee Tramack. Our M-AD friends, THE QUIN-TONES, placed eleventh in the Next Gen quartet contest.
On the administrative side of things, there were several from the chapter family who had extra duties. John Santora, immediate past BHS president; Kevin Keller is current president and was presenter for the quartet semifinals session; Bill Colosimo served as chairman of the Leadership Development Committee chairman for BHS which meant he managed the elections for the board with Terry Reynolds; and Chris Buechler and Steve Tramack attended Society meetings during the week. Steve directed the National Anthem for the Saturday contest session.
Joe Cerutti was co-host for the Saturday evening Live Stream event in addition to his judging duties and staff duties all week in Denver. He also found time to announce the results of the Next Generation Quartet contest.
Here are some other chapter family stories from Denver: Former Harmonizer coach, Tony DeRosa, sang in the 2024 quartet champs swan song gig, THREE AND A HALF MEN. He directed the Association of International Champs (AIC) chorus at the spectacular AIC show on Friday night. He also received the prestigious Joe Liles Lifetime Achievement Award.
Sean Devine is executive director of the AIC.
Rasmus Kingstrum, who arranged our “Calling Dreams” song, sang with the AIC chorus, sang in the HILLBILLYS quartet representing the Society of Nordic Barbershop Singers (SNOBS) and directed the SNOBS chorus, Northern Stars, with Johan Westberg on the risers. Johan also sang with the Denver chorus, as did TJ Donahue, who appeared in a news spot on a Denver tv station that covered the convention, and as did Chad Hoseth.
Jim Shoenhard and Tim Cash sang with the Nashville chorus. Jay Butterfield sang with Dallas and earned his second gold medal with them – his first was in 1975 singing next to his dad, Gene, 50 years ago.
Former chapter member, Ryan Killeen, sang in TRIBUTE quartet in the quarterfinals round; plus Matt Fellows sang with WESTERN ADDITION; Christina Tramack, Samantha’s sister, sang with DESTINATION; Ben Raja, Becca William’s boyfriend, sang with GAMBIT; and Donnell Torres sang with NON-STOP in the contest and in the mic tester quartet for the Next Generation contest with TOFU CONCERN.
Terry Reynolds was one of seventeen “voice actors” that recorded a branding video for BHS that was aired just before the start of the Saturday night finals session.
Rick Taylor was busy all week in Denver as a staff member of the Harmony Foundation International (HFI). He sang in LEGACY quartet in the quarterfinals round representing M-AD, and then appeared with former chorus director, Richard Lewellen, with RIPTIDE for a special appearance on the Saturday finals show as current champions of the Worldwide Barbershop Quartet Association.
All during the week YeEd and reporters (Dixie Kennett, Ken Rub and Steve White in particular) spotted current and former members of the AACC family at the convention (it is likely we missed someone – but it is still amazing how many of the chapter family attended): Connor Goss, Sam McFarland, Chuck Hunter, Jim Lake, David Wilt, Lew Klinge, John Knight, Greg Tepe, John Rettenmeyer, Glenn Williamson, Matt Ambler, Tom Gannon, Craig Kujawa, Dan Cook, and Norbert Hammes from BING.
The AACC crowd back home in the DC Metro Area kept track of things and each other all week via Slack and organized several watch parties during the quartet and chorus contests.
This year’s chapter retreat weekend in mid-July was a great success, lots of fun, a terrific chance to get to know more members, and enough time to improve the performance package for the trip to Ireland later in the summer and for the fall show in September. It was labeled a ‘weekend of improvement.”
The chapter returned to McDaniel College in Westminster, MD, for the retreat which had a 7 pm start on Friday, July 18. Many members, both old and new, met first for dinner at the popular Irish pub near campus. The wait staff managed to feed the large crowd that all arrived about the same time to fill up the restaurant, so we sang “Parting Glass” there as a thank you.
The chapter’s music team invited two out-of-town coaches for the weekend – Darin Drown from Denver, CO – a retired music educator and gold medal quartet singer in STORM FRONT, and Cy Wood, our frequent performance coach from Ohio. Members wore their AACC black t-shirts for the Saturday sessions and chapter marketing team members filmed lots of parts of the work sessions.
Several singers who will go with the chapter to Ireland attended the retreat including Stephan and Monica Hummes from Barbershop in Germany (BING); Terry Reynolds’ sister, Karen; David Wilt, a former BHS staff member and supporter of the chapter, who lives in NC; Jerry Candrilli from the Richmond Chapter; and Renee and Steve Tramack – Samantha’sparents – who are coaches and judges in BHS and he often arranges songs for AACC. It was good to see Sean O’Brien andDavid Hillinck back on the risers with the chorus.
The chapter asked for a number of volunteers to help with the retreat operation such as: Patricia Chow and Davide Welterwho issued room keys; Jared Liscinsky who hauled in bottles water for the singers; and Norm Barth and Heidi Suckowwho provided a supply of fruit, chips and cookies for folks to grab as needed. President Craig also drove the truck to Westminster with the two sets of risers and sound equipment, music stands, and such that were needed. Dean Rust and Daren Gerzof went out to get coffee for those who had raised their hands earlier in the morning. Hannah Nesich was reporter for Looking Back for the Metro Voices sessions. Christine Pan provided transportation to get coach Drown to the venue. Heidi Brown developed a display celebrating the past year of AACC.
Friday night’s plan was to have each ensemble sing through a couple songs for the coaches to see and hear; to relax with a cabaret to show-case member musical talents in non-barbershop styles; and to have some fun and get to know each other better.
The first fun activity was for Samantha and Joe to name members of their ensembles without seeing them. The singers lined up behind the directors and stepped up to their chair and spoke, “We build the cords, brick by brick.” It was amazing how many names they got correct, how often guys sounded like Jeff Berkey, and even with two or three times saying the sentence, it didn’t help!
Then it was time for a bandana check for the AACC Class of 2025 which included members from Metro Voices - Hannah Drobac, Adele Jones, Annie Ermlick, Katie Raimondo, Nerissa Yiu, Christine Pan, Holly Perdue, Heid Brown, Shira Perlmutter, Leah Bernstein, and Diane Morrical; and the following members from the Harmonizers – Brendon White, Suranjan Sen, Ian Trent, Rob Santine, Josh Berenhaus, Alex Edwards, Tanner Perdue, Rob Stark, Brigham Blackhurst, AJ Gupta, Patrick Horne, Michael Snow, Jackson Byrd, Maumen Alshea, and Devin Turner.
Everyone in the class had the bright red bandana with logos for the two ensembles on the corners – fun to see the many creative ways to wear the bandana! Next, the class was asked to each share ‘two truths and one lie’ – then the other members on the risers had to vote which of the three was a lie. Fun and lots of laughs.
Next, Joe and Samantha flipped a coin to see which ensemble would sing first. The Harmonizers sang “Calling Dreams” and “But the World Goes Round.” Metro Voices sang “How Far I Go” and “ Hey World Here I Am.” Each coach made some general opening remarks regarding what they heard and saw, and what they would be working on during the rehearsal sessions over the weekend.
The combined Collective sang “I’m Still Standing” and “Defying Gravity” with Samantha and Tony singing solos.
This year’s cabaret was at the retreat and was great! The participants had auditioned earlier in 2024 but the venue for the event fell through, so it was held as part of the retreat weekend. Maggie McAlexander was the organizer and Tony Colosimo helped manage the audio visuals for the event. Devin Gerzof was emcee and set the stage with a funny skit in ‘old man” attire to go with the new ‘the old Devin’ in the chorus since Devin Turner has joined. Performers were Charlie Rothermel, Elizabeth Cosh, David Welter, Sheryl Berlin, Terry Reynolds, and Heidi Suckow.
Saturday morning, the dining hall filled with a great mix of members at the tables before the music work sessions began. Joe spoke about this retreat preparing for the next 75 years of the chapter – facing the long game of growth and improvement and development. He charged the singers to add excitement and joy to their performances – not just obedience. The Harmonizers worked on “Africa” and “Come Follow the Band” with Cy. Metro Voices worked with Darin on “Happy Together” and “How Far I’ll Go” and “World Here I Am.”
A couple members checked in on the retreat via Facebook – Steve Szyszka, and Johan Westberg from Sweden.
The two ensembles met together after a coffee break Saturday morning to work on “I’m Still Standing” with Darin. Cyworked with the Harmonizer front row on “Come Follow the Band.”
Saturday afternoon, the two ensembles switched meeting space and coaches to work on their music. Metro Voices worked on “Maggie’s Medley” and “Somewhere.” The Harmonizers worked on “What a Wonderful World” and “World Goes Round,” “Impossible Dreams,” and “Calling Dreams,” and “Follow the Band.”
To wrap up the Saturday afternoon, all the singers going to Ireland met in The Forum space to discuss the trip, to do a quick run through of songs each ensemble will sing, and to offer help with any questions. There was a big thank you and cheers to Brad Jones for all his work
After dinner, the evening started with Tony teaching the “Friends” tag which will be the traditional finale for the weekend. It was arranged by David Wright. Music rehearsal was for the Collective to work on “Parting Glass” with arranger Steve Tramack sharing his thoughts about the song. The coaches helped the chorus add an Irish flare to the song.
Rehearsal ended about 8 pm. President Craig Kujawa was emcee for a ceremony to present Distinguished Service Awards to AACC members. Alan Wile was on hand, as he is every year for this task, having ordered the plaques and then handing them to the president.
Chapter historians will note that the 2024 awards were a revised list of awards from the past and included some awards for the separate ensembles. A task force met in the fall of 2023 to recommend changes to the awards list, and the chapter board approved the action. That task force included Frank Fedarko, Jack Pitzer, Mary Cooper, Sheryl Berlin, Terry Reynolds, Noah Van Gilder, and Joe Cerutti.
A different team was named as the selection committee for 2024 including Steve White, Jack Pitzer, Chuck Miller, Mark Klostermeyer, Carey Fagerstrom, Annie Ermlick, and Bob Blair.
Here are the awards given and the recipients:
2024 AACC MERIITORIOUS SERVICE AWARDS: Jacob Broude; Tessa Walker-Sifuentes; and Gary Cregan. These recipients are chosen by the chapter president.
2024 AACC DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARDS including
2024 New Note of the Year Award - Metro Voices: Catherine LaValley
2024 New Note of the Year Award - The Harmonizers: Jared Liscinsky
2024 AACC Open Arms Award: Alan Wile
2024 AACC Family Spirit Award: Tyler Carpenter and Cody Leihgeber-Carpenter
2024 AACC Outreach Award (two were awarded): Dana Richardson and E.J. Herold
2024 Scott Werner Music Award - Harmonizers: Matt Ambler
2024 Elaine Cooper Music Award - Metro Voices: Maggie McAlexander
024 AACC Honor Award: Becca Williams
2024 AACC Legacy Award: Ricky Savage
Past President Recognition: Noah Van Gilder who served three terms during the Covid era and the formation of AACC
The long anticipated Class of 2025 skit was fun and brought on lots of laughter. They had a news broadcast with the latest about the chapter and its members and quartets. They had a weather person, a sports reporter, and social reporter and a guest quartet. Heidi Brown gets credit for organizing and creating the script for their class skit.
After the skit, the whole chapter was divided into groups of five or so and they had to answer trivia questions from Tony – actually identify the quartet he played singing a bit of a song, and also the name of the person who made the song famous. One team captured first prize which was a book bag and a package of barbershop-themed napkins.
The evening wrapped with refreshments and lots of camaraderie in the hall and continued back in the dorm space.
Sunday morning, folks managed to pack luggage back in their cars, turn in their keys, get breakfast and be at rehearsal by 9 am. Each ensemble worked on more music with a coach before returning to the main hall. There was a great cheer of thanks to president Craig who served as event manager too this weekend.
As the session was winding down, Joe and Samantha relinquished their comment time so members could offer their comments. There were many – some from new members, guests, old timers, and finally from the coaches.
“A lifetime’s not too long, not too long, to live as friends!” was the final tag for the weekend.
Members all pitched in to load the truck for its return to Northern Virginia.
AACC members plus former members, several family members, and other guests departed for Ireland on Monday, Aug. 4. Some members actually left earlier but everyone regrouped for the first trip events mid-morning on Aug. 5 in Dublin. Then the busses headed to Galway.
Brad Jones was coordinator for this International experience for just over 100 travelers from the AACC family. Congrats to Ashley Merryman for her reporting about the trip in the chapter’s local media circuit.
Besides the sight-seeing activities, the chorus appeared with a half-dozen barbershop singing groups in Ireland. Both the Harmonizers and Metro Voices ensembles sang as well as the combined AACC chorus. The basic Ireland trip ended on Aug. 12 with an extension until Aug. 15 for a smaller group.
Galway: Arrival and First Concert
After much anticipation, the AACC tour of Ireland began on Tuesday, August 5th under cool, clear skies. Two buses whisked the group from Dublin Airport across the emerald fields to Galway, where a brief walking tour revealed colorful shops, medieval streets, and the lively Latin Quarter.
On Wednesday evening at St. Nicholas Church, its founding dating to the 14th century, there was standing-room-only for the program featuring Metro Voices, the Harmonizers, the Collective and Tone Cold Sober (Irish Barbershop Chorus). After receiving a standing ovation at the end of the concert, there was an afterglow with members of Tone Cold Sober.
Cork: Cliffs, Castles, and a Second Ovation
Thursday morning, the base shifted to Cork in southern Ireland. The tour stopped at the legendary Cliffs of Moher - clear skies and brisk winds allowed a clear view of the sheer cliffs plunging into the Atlantic.
The evening at St. Peter’s Church in Bandon (mid-19th century), AACC shared the stage with:
Munster Mix, Champaign Cork, East Cork Barbershoppers, and Kinsale Voices (non-barbershop choir),
Dublin Bound: Blarney Castle to IIMS Show
Saturday dawned early for a trip to Blarney Castle to kiss the Blarney Stone, and browse the vast Irish store housed in an old woolen mill. While at Blarney Castle, Samantha, Renee and Steve Tramack, along with Tony Colosimo and Joe Cerutti, sped ahead by van to the Irish Institute of Music and Song (IIMS) where they coached several quartets and choruses.
When buses arrived at IIMS, family members, Irish barbershoppers and the AACC gathered in the Lark Theater where CEO Michael Dawson taught an Irish song. Dinner plans unraveled when a short-staffed restaurant had another group unexpectedly arrive, delaying the meal until the concert next door had begun. Thanks to groups like Lady Barbalade, Blingmasters, and Harmony Federation filling the first half, AACC still enjoyed the meal and were ready to perform the second half of the concert. An afterglow at IIMS lasted past midnight, with a bus procured specifically for the afterglow shuttling early birds and night owls back to the hotel by 1:30 a.m.
Dublin Highlights and Farewell Dinner
With concerts complete, Sunday and Monday offered sightseeing in Dublin. Monday night, all gathered at the Merry Ploughboy pub for a final dinner. Musicians own the place, and after their spirited set of Irish tunes and dance, they invited AACC to sing.
Reflections
This tour allowed the group to view stunning landscapes, historic venues, and experience the warm hospitality of Irish hosts. From packed-house concerts to late-night afterglows, members witnessed barbershop’s power to unite strangers in harmony. As flights were boarded for home, hearts were full of friendships forged, memories, and melodies shared.
On Sat. Sept. 13, AACC chorus members sang for three Honor Flights from 7-11 am at Reagan National Airport. The flights arrived from Indianapolis, IN; Syracuse, NY; and Lacrosse, WI. The chorus serenaded arriving veterans from WWI, the Korean War and Vietnam, a few Desert Storm warriors. Each flight had between 40 and 60 veterans along with individual escorts (family members or friends) and members of their local Honor Flight teams.
Associate director, Tony Colosimo, was director for the day. Singers wore their AACC t-shirts and sang the following songs for the flights: “Armed Forces Medley,” “God Bless America,” “This is My Country,” “America the Beautiful,” and “You’re a Grand Old Flag.”
The fall show on Sept. 20 was at Bishop Ireton High School auditorium in Alexandria. Theme for the show was “Follow The Song” – a journey through song that defies gravity, crosses oceans and dares the impossible.
The Harmonizers prepared the following songs for the show: “Africa,” “Calling Dreams,” “Impossible Dream,” and “What a Wonderful World.”
Metro Voices with their assistant director, Maggie McAlexander, and their music director, Samantha Tramack, prepared the following songs for the show: “Happy Together,” “Where You Lead - Together We Can” medley, “Somewhere,” “How Far I'll Go,” and “World
Metro Voices joined the Harmonizers on the risers for the combined songs: “I'm Still Standing,” “Defying Gravity,” and “The Parting Glass.” David Breen, Lance Fisher, and Sophie Clark, sang a trio part in “Parting Glass.”
Throughout the rehearsal, fall show producer, Catherine LaValley, ran sound and light checks to ensure quartets and trios could be heard and seen over the ensemble. Thanks for back stage help from Greg Tepe, sound and light help from Mike Kelly, and the tech crew of Bishop Ireton students. Other volunteers helped with ticket sales and welcoming patrons.
All of the quartets featured in the show included members of AACC: HARMOHAUS with John Sifuentes, Lance Fisher, David Breen, and Kevin Mendez; BELTWAY featured members Robert Santine, Suranjan Sen, Josh Myers, and Ryan Mextorf; and finally, SUPERNOVA featured AACC's Maggie McAlexander and Tessa Walker.
The show started a few minutes after 7pm, kicked off by emcee Julie Donaldson from Fox 5 DC. When the curtains opened, 430 audience members were greeted with the combined AACC singing “I'm Still Standing,” directed by Joe Cerutti. The contest set of “Come Follow the Band” and “But the World Goes Round” was directed by Tony Colosimo, and all other Harmonizer numbers were directed by Joe. Metro Voices kicked off their set with “Happy Together,” directed by Samantha Tramack, which they followed with “Somewhere,” directed by Maggie McAlexander. All remaining Metro Voices pieces were directed by Samantha. Joe directed all of the remaining combined numbers.
The show was a rousing success with many rave reviews from audience members. Halfway through the show, it was decided to add “Hey Jude” as an encore. This featured soloist, Matt Ambler.
Special shout out to HARMOHAUS that was the featured quartet during the Harmonizer run of “Impossible Dream.” And also for the solos by Samantha and Tony in “Defying Gravity.”
During the show, artistic director, Joe Cerutti, recognized music educators from DC Public Schools as a thank you for supporting the Capital Force youth ensemble and helping with a concert space for the group earlier in the year. Mary Lambert, Robert Battle, and Yan Colón were presented the AACC Harmony Award.
For the show finale, Steve White presented a touching and sentimental tribute to Marjorie Latzko and highlighted for the audience, the Harmonizers’ longtime relationship with her husband, Walter, as a famed arranger and coach, and with Margie, who recently passed away at the age of 96.
She was the last remaining singer in one of the most well know women’s quartets in American pop music history, THE CHORDETTES, who had numerous Billboard top-10 hits including “Mr. Sandman” and “Lollipop;” were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Famer among other accolades; and were featured on major TV shows of the day including Arthur Godfrey, Andy Williams, Dick Clark’s Bandstand, and Ed Sullivan.
In tribute to Margie, the chorus sang “Parting Glass” and the recoding of the performance was sent to her family for inclusion at an upcoming memorial service.
The fall show afterglow was held at Astro Beer Hall in Shirlington.
On the weekend of Oct. 3-4, AACC quartets and choruses were highly successful at the fall contests and convention for the Mid-Atlantic District (M-AD) in NJ.
The Harmonizers and Metro Voices competed in the district chorus contest that was also the International preliminary chorus contest to select contestants for the International convention in St. Louis in 2026. Both AACC ensembles scored very well and earned a spot among the six choruses from M-AD that will compete in the July ’26 contest.
Quartets representing AACC also did really well and ended up first, second and third in the contest – GQ with Samantha Tramack scored 3298, 91.6 %; BETTER TOGETHER with Tony and Elizabeth Colosimo, Heather andAndrew Havens scored 3063, 85.1%; BELTWAY with Rob Santine, Suranjan Sen, Josh Myers and Ryan Mextorfscored 2824, 78.4%.
FANTATIC 4 qualified for the finals round with Heidi Brown, but their lead was unable to attend the finals, and so Jason Lee filled in for him – they were not ranked after that change. INSTAGRAMPS with Steve White, Jay Butterfield and Rick Taylor sang in the first round for score only and were declared M-AD Senior quartet champs. MENTAL NOTE with Scott Beach, Mike Geiple, and Jerry Candrilli did not compete since Scott’s father died recently.
The Harmonizers scored 1579, 87.7% and ranked third in the chorus contest with Tony Colosimo directing the 49 singers. Their songs were “But the World Goes ‘Round” and “Come Follow the Band.”
Metro Voices scored 1475, 81.9% and ranked fifth with Samantha Tramack directing the 25 singers. Their songs were “How Far I’ll Go’ and “World Here I Am Medley.”
Both ensembles wore their formal attire of blacks and teals.
Other choruses going to International include Parkside Harmony, East Coast Sound, Gotham and True North.
Guest emcee for the finals quartet contest was Robert Rund, newly named CEO of the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS). As a 50-year member, he was baritone in DOUBLETAKE quartet - M-AD champs in 1982; and is an arranger for quartets and choruses. He also sang one of his arrangements with SECRET BEST FRIENDS, last year’s district champs, on the show. He also did an interview with M-AD leaders so attendees could learn more about the new CEO.
Two Harmonizers, Tyler Carpenter and Cy Wood worked as judges for the contest weekend. Several AACC members worked all weekend as part of the district events team backstage making things go well – Ken Rub, Brian Ammerman, Patricia Chow and Mike Kelly. Mike Fasano serves as executive vice president of M-AD.
The contest venue was the Middle Township Performing Arts Center in Cape May, NJ. Many members attended the first round of the quartet contest on Friday afternoon to cheer for our quartets.
The Harmonizers sang 10th and Metro Voices sang 12th on Saturday. During the warm up period in the morning, Metro Voices were there to send the Harmonizers on to the stage with applause and cheers. Then during the contest, the Harmonizers were vocal in the auditorium with cheers for Metro Voices. A great family spirit!
AACC music team leaders decided to cancel rehearsals for both the Harmonizers and Metro Voices for Tues. Oct. 7 so that folks could rest up after the district contest weekend, so that singers could get well (many folks had reported they could not attend), and so that the Harmonizers could muster a large ensemble for the sing at Alfred Street Baptist Church on Wed., Oct. 8.
The Harmonizer event is the annual men’s fellowship sing with Alfred Street men’s choir in Alexandria. This year it was also the opportunity to honor Dr. Joyce Garrett, minister of music, who has retired. She initiated the idea of the men’s singing fellowship.
The Harmonizers wore their AACC t-shirts with jeans. They were the first chorus to sing and did “Africa” and “Wonderful World.” Associate director, Tony Colosimo, taught all singers a tag – “Raindrops” – that sounded great with all those singers.
The second chorus to sing was the West Point Alumni Glee Club. They were guests of the Harmonizers and sang a cappella. Their president is fellow-member E.J. Herold. Their director is Master Sgt (Ret) Neil Ewachiw, who formerly sang with the US Army Chorus. They sang “The Corps” and “Army Blue” – two songs recognized by all West Point graduates. They meet regularly and sing at retirement homes, Honor Flight events at National Airport, and at West Point. Their director taught a soldier’s prayer for world peace in Latin. In the end, it was sung in rounds.
The final chorus was the Alfred Street Men, directed by Melvin Bryant, Jr. He welcomed all fellow singers and thanked them for helping celebrate Dr. Joyce Garrett. Their songs were accompanied and included a great arrangement of “Amazing Grace.” It was great to see former Harmonizer, John Oswald Greene, on stage with them!
After they sang, Melvin announced there was another new song and the singers began singing “Special Lady” – which lead to a tribute to Dr. Garrett presented by Joe Cerutti, on behalf of the singers. He also presented her a bouquet.
“So, as you begin this next chapter of well-deserved retirement, we just want to say thank you. Thank you for your leadership. Thank you for your belief in the power of music to unite community. And thank you for reminding us that harmony is more than just the notes we sing—it’s the community we build together.
“To close this tribute, we’ve prepared a very special gift. We’ve learned that this next song is one of Dr. Garrett’sfavorites—and so, tonight, the Harmonizers and the Alfred Street Baptist Church Male Chorus will sing it side by side, in your honor.”
At this point Alfred Street men and the Harmonizers sang “Impossible Dream” with a quartet of Kellen Hertz, Tony Colosimo, Rob Santine and Terry Reynolds singing the intro. It was a great ending for the night.
The fellowship event ended with the traditional spread of great eats in the church social hall.
On Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, a group of 27 AACC members (15 Harmonizers and 12 Metro Voices) represented the chapter to sing at the invitation of the Danish Ambassador, Jesper Møller Sørensen, for the farewell to Danish Defense Attaché and outgoing Dean of the Defense Attachés, Rear Admiral Jakob Rousøe. This VLQ [Very Large Quartet] was chosen from available singers who knew the fall show music. Tony Colosimo directed the Harmonizers (“Africa” and “What a Wonderful World”), Samantha Tramack directed Metro Voices (“How Far I'll Go” and “Maggie's Medley”) and Maggie McAlexander conducted the AACC for “Defying Gravity.”
The group performed for about 250 including the Danish Ambassador Prince Joachim of Denmark, assorted senior US military officers and a large contingent of Defense Attachés from the Washington diplomatic community. AACC performed on the balcony of the Ambassador’s residence on a pleasant evening. The entire set, which lasted about 20 minutes, finished to applause from an appreciative audience following the performance of “Defying Gravity” with a solo by Samantha Tramack.
E.J. Herold organized the appearance as part of the chapter’s outreach to the military community.
Congratulations and celebrations for the launch on Sunday, Oct. 26, of the 2025-2026 Capital Force youth ensemble as part of AACC! Male and female singers in 7th to 12th grades were invited to join. The 17 singers made great progress and worked on their first song for this season – “I Will Go Sailing No More.” Director Tessa Walker welcomed the new class and shared that there are other singers who will join but couldn’t make it this week. There were several singers from last season’s ensemble back again.
Assistant director Julian LeFlore helped teach tags during the 2-4 pm gathering at Fairlington Presbyterian Church in Alexandria. There were a number of parents on hand to observe after providing transportation. A number of AACC members were there to help – section leader duties were staffed by Maggie McAlexander, tenors; Samantha Tramack, leads; Tony Colosimo, baritones; and David Breen, basses. Maggie, Samantha, Julian and David also sang a quartet song for the students. All of the AACC members helped the new singers determine which part they should sing after some voice placement exercises.
The ensemble will meet on subsequent Sundays with a goal to sing with AACC ensembles during the December holidays, and perform a final end-of-season show on March 22, 2026.
Thanks to Frank Fedarko for reporting on the Honor Flight sing, Saturday, Nov. 1. The group of 20 AACC members gathered at Reagan-National Airport to welcome the Southeast Honor Flight of American veterans arriving from Florida to have their service and sacrifices recognized during a day of activities in DC. Jason Lee was the director for this event. Terry Reynolds and Frank Fedarko coordinated attendance in the absence of E. J. Herold, who was on business in Europe. Terry also brought the folders of sheet music for the five songs sung for these survivors of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Of note that morning - the eldest of the arriving vets had survived WWII and reached the age of 101. He was very emotional when his aid parked his wheelchair before the chorus as a one-man audience. All in all, another great day to be in AACC!
Several AACC members were very involved as leaders and singers at the Harmony Inc, contest and convention in Hershey PA, Nov. 5-8, including Samantha Tramack, Tessa Walker, Maggie McAlexander and Carey Fagerstrom.
Nov. 11, Joe spoke to all about Giving Tuesday on Dec. 2 (a national day for donations to not-for-profits). He suggests that members might consider making small donations (like under $25) themselves and encourage friends and families to make small donations too. The goal is to have a large number of donors.
To continue the topic of members giving donations to the chapter, chapter community board member, Carolyn Griffin,spoke to the chapter. She was a recipient of the Chapter’s Award of Harmony several years ago and has served on the chapter board since. She is artistic director of Metro Stage. She shared her thoughts with members about making significant donations for the end-of-year campaign for AACC. She explained the philosophy that since the chapter does not charge membership dues, it was felt members might find it possible to make donations to the campaign that would equal dues and more. She also suggested members consider the value of the vocal training they receive and the relaxation and enjoyment from singing in the chorus when considering how they might step up to the challenge of the campaign.
In other news about chapter members, several AACC members attended a weekend get-away Nov. 21-22, in the Poconos for the annual meeting of DelaSusqueHudMac – the honor chapter of the Mid Atlantic District (M-AD) of BHS. Current president is Mike Wallen and current treasurer is Bob Eckman. The two newest members from our chapter are Jerry Candrilli and Ken Rub. David and Sandy Wright were VIP guests. BELTWAY was one of the guest quartets for the weekend along with SMOKE RING and GIMME FOUR. DELA recognizes members who have provided outstanding leadership and service to M-AD.
Early December 2025, there were a number of activities to report. Word went out that the local WETA station used the Harmonizer recording of “O Come O Come Emanuel” during holiday programing on Dec. 8.
On Dec. 11, a study task force met at the Harmo House at 7 pm to discuss the official launch of the Vintage Blend mixed gender daytime ensemble as part of the AACC. Terry Reynolds will be director. The task force included. Terry, Joe, Jack Pitzer, Alan Wile, Bob Bates, Mary Cooper, David Welter, Don Harrington, and Chuck Miller.
Sunday, December 7, saw the Harmonizers singing Christmas carols for the Blue Star Family Christmas gathering and Santa Meet and Greet held at the BAE Headquarters in Falls Church, VA. The chorus had over 20 voices singing for a large gathering of families – about 250 people.
Blue Star Families is a charity established in 2009 to empower military families to thrive as they serve. The organizers work to connect military families to their neighbors creating vibrant communities of mutual support. A blue star family is the family of a currently serving military member, including active duty, National Guard, Reserve forces, and those transitioning out of service.
The Harmonizers, outfitted in black with red and green accents, performed in the lobby entrance of the building and sang a rotating play list of the Christmas repertoire. The run time was about an hour and a quarter and, once the families had processed in through the lobby, the singers joined them on the 10th floor for three final songs before departure. Audience appreciation was keenly felt and the interactions with several children brought smiles all around. The performance was directed by Tony Colosimo. Terry Reynolds and Frank Fedarko handled all logistics for the event, which was first signaled to the chapter by Dana Richardson, Military Outreach co-coordinator.
The holiday show performances Dec. 12 and 13 were terrific! The Metro Voices and the Harmonizers ensembles each sang a set of songs alone and then there were songs that all AACC singers did to open and close the shows. They all wore classic black outfits with red and green accents.
There was awesome singing, full houses, fun audience participation, and a cooperative audience to find parking around the Fairlington Presbyterian Church. The Friday night show, Dec. 12, started at 8 pm which allowed for singers and audience to get there after work – traffic was a bear on Friday night, but it did not delay the start time. The Saturday night show. Dec. 13, started at 7:30 pm and included a one-song appearance by the 2025-26 Capital Force ensemble that is part of AACC. Tessa Walker is director with Julian LaFlore as assistant. There were 15 youth from grades 7th-12th to sing “I Will Go Sailing No More.”
The show started with the entry of the singers walking in the side aisles of the church, as artistic director, Joe Cerutti, welcomed the audience to “Follow the Season.” (He decked out in his plaid vest and red bow tie.) The show opener by the AACC chorus was “Welcome Christmas” directed by Joe.
Then Joe introduced the 30 Metro Voices to start their set with French carol, “Sing We Noel” directed by Samantha Tramack. Assistant director, Maggie McAlexander, stepped out to direct their second song, “Winter Wonderland.” Jean Hillinck set the stage for the third song; “Christmas Time” directed by Samantha. Sophie Clarke did the solo for this song.
To set the stage for their song in Hebrew, Leah Bernstein and Sheryl Berlin explained the theme of the song, “Oseh Shalon,” and Maggie was soloist. Metro Voices finished their set with “Auld Lang Syne.”
Metro Voices exited via the center aisle of the sanctuary and guest quartet, BETTER TOGETHER, took the stage to continue the family music theme of the show as introduced by Becca Williams. The quartet includes Elizabeth andTony Colosimo and Heather and Andrew Havens. Their great singing included several traditional holiday songs to include a warm and lovely “Away in the Manger.”
At this point, the AACC singers arrived back into the sanctuary for this year’s audience sing-along time. Joe invited guests to enjoy and follow the cues from chorus members who brought signs for the words for “Twelve Days of Christmas.” Assistant director of the Harmonizers, Jason Lee, directed the AACC chorus who kicked off the song, then each of the mini sections of the audience sang their day (with word changes to fun things as the song progressed such as ‘seven deadly sins’). The ‘five golden rings’ line was sung from the balcony by Joe, Samantha, Tony andMaggie who, each time, took more time with key changes and swipes and gestures to try to steal the show! The audience loved it all.
Then AACC chorus sang “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” with all singers singing from all sides of the sanctuary, directed by Joe standing in the balcony. Zak Sandler and Heidi Brown had solo spots in this song.
Then Metro Voices left the room and the 50 Harmonizers took the stage (there were no risers, so singers formed in the front space of the sanctuary). Samantha introduced the Harmonizer set and explained the NORAD call-system for kids to call and check on Santa’s progress on Christmas Eve as the chorus started their set with “Here Comes Santa.” Joedirected the fun song as well as the Harmonizer’s traditional presentation of “Toyland.”
Tony directed a fun arrangement of “White Christmas” as made famous by the Drifters. To add to the fun, members each pulled out a pretend microphone to sing this one – the variety of the mics was fun too: spoons, holly branches, water bottles, umbrellas, pieces of wood, wrenches – to name a few examples.
Michael Berkson helped change the mood for the serious Hebrew song “El Yivneh Hagalil.” Jason Lee directed “Little St. Nick” next. David Hillinck set the stage for “O Come Emmanuel” which was partially in Latin. Joe directed this major song for the show. Tony led the chorus for its final song, a fun “New Year Medley.”
The AACC chorus regrouped on the stage for the finale, “Gloria,” with BETTER TOGETHER singing the solo spot leading into the conclusion of the magnificent arrangement. The audience responded with their eager standing ovation.
Terry Reynold, thanked the audience for their support and promised the chapter’s New Year’s resolution will be to find a venue for next year with plenty of parking! The chorus and the audience sang “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”
Congratulations to Catherine LaValley for her leadership as producer and coordinator for the holiday show. Thanks to the many family members and friends who volunteered with ticket sales, ushering, parking attendant, and stage set up. Mike Kelly and Cy Shuster were in charge of the sound set up. The music team had the ensembles well prepared for this year’s holiday concert!
Great to see so many former members in the audience and some current members who were unable to sing this time, as well as several of our community board members. The ushers passed out business cards with the chapter’s QR code for a show program or to make donations to the chapter.
The afterglow on Saturday night was great fun with a full Harmo House. Joe ordered 17 pizzas and everyone knows the chapter can eat lots of pizza!! Other members brought sweets and snacks including Ashley Merryman’s eggnog cake!
Tuesday, Dec. 16, the chapter continued its tradition of singing holiday music in Old Town Alexandria. Singers assembled at 7 pm at Market Square for warm up with Maggie McAlexander. Everyone dressed for the weather and chapter leaders brought the Santa hats for members to wear. Jason Lee directed the Harmonizers, Maggie directed Metro Voices, and Samantha Tramack directed the AACC chorus. Julian LaFlore and several members of Capital Force joined in the sing out.
Looking ahead, there was no meeting on Dec. 23 or 30 with the kick-off for the next year set for Jan. 6 at AlexRenew.
Oct. 14, president, Craig Kujawa, conducted the official chapter meeting and election of the officers and directors-at-large for 2026. Secretary Cy Shuster declared there was a quorum and that no nominations had been made by members beyond the slate announced by Bruce Roehm for the nominating committee. President Craig declared the slate elected by acclamation: President – Craig Kujawa; Secretary – Cy Shuster; Treasurer – Terry Reynolds; At Large Board Members – Michael Berkson, Mary Cooper, Ashley Merryman, Betsy Mullins, Carolyn Griffin, and Cody Leihgeber Carpenter.
Thanks to this year’s nominating committee for their work to get the slate for the election: Bruce Roehm, chairman, with members Terry Reynolds, Charley Rothermel and Sheryl Berlin.
There were two deaths among the AACC family for 2025: Ross Johnson who was a long-time bass signer and host for quartets that came to sing for the chapter shows. His wife Susan, was who was an accounting advisor for the chapter, preceded Ross in her passing; and Marjorie Latzko, wife of coach Walter, as mentioned earlier in this report.
Until next time – editorjack!
(This message is prepared for your review if you were there, for your information if you had to miss, and as a historical record for the great things going on each week during the 77th year of the Alexandria Harmonizer Chapter now operating as the Alexandria A Capella Collective to include the Harmonizers. Metro Voices, Capital Force, and soon, Vintage Blend ensembles. - YeEd)
