UCLA Spring Sing

UCLA Spring Sing is an annual music competition held during spring quarter at the Los Angeles Tennis Center. The competition brings together UCLA students to perform as solo artists, duets, bands, and A cappella groups.

History

The Early Years

The competition began in 1945 under the direction of William Ackerman and began with only 11 groups and was performed on campus at UCLA's Royce Hall. In the beginning years, the competition was composed mainly of fraternity singing groups, serenading their sorority counterparts.

Glory Days

During the 1950s and 1960s, the competition grew quickly and outgrew Royce Hall. It was then, that Spring Sing gained its popularity and notoriety within the Los Angeles Area, as it moved to The Hollywood Bowl. During these years, up to 15,000 Bruins, family, friends, and locals witnessed the competition each year. Also added to the mix were celebrity judges and masters of ceremony - including Ronald Reagan in 1952.

Return to Prominence

The competition peaked in the late 60's and took an 8 year hiatus during the 70's when student and alumni interest revived the event (on campus this time) in 1978. In 1986, the UCLA Student Alumni Association took over the event and moved the event to its current home in 1989, eventually returning the competition back to its previous glory.

Today

Today, the competition has expanded from its original version of fraternity singing groups, to over 15 artists grouped in 6 different categories (Solo, Duet, A Cappella, Band, Production, Exhibition). Each category (save Exhibition) is judged and a winner is selected for each (from which an overall winner is chosen to receive the "Northern California Alumni Grand Sweepstakes Award").

In addition to the talent aspect of Spring Sing today, the overall production has been turned into entertainment with the inception of the Company - a group of UCLA students who perform skits and parodies in between each act as a way of killing time and introducing the next act. According to their website, they are "a group of the most hilarious and creative people on this campus who live for the spotlight and the opportunity to make an audience crack up." [ [http://www.uclalumni.net/calendarevents/springsing/2007/company.cfm Spring Sing 2007] ]

In 2006, Mikey G and Dan from Danville won the award for best duet and Best Overall Entry. In 2007, Jarell Perry and the Ambassadors won the Las Doñas Award for Best Band Entry. Katie Boeck walked home with both the Mortar Board Award for Best Solo Entry and the coveted Northern California Alumni Grand Sweepstakes Award for the Best Overall Entry. In 2008, she returned to the Spring Sing stage where she won Best Solo Entry and Best Overall Entry for the second year in a row.

The George and Ira Gershwin Award

In recognition of their contributions to American music and in honor of their gift to UCLA, the UCLA Student Alumni Association established the annual George and Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Musical Achievement in 1988. In 1936, George and Ira Gershwin adapted the title tune from their musical "Strike Up the Band" as a new Bruin fight song for the growing University, [“Strike Up the Band for UCLA” [http://www.uclalumni.net/calendarevents/springsing/Gershwin/home.cfm] ] .Winners have included Angela Lansbury (1988), Ray Charles (1991), Mel Torme (1994), Bernadette Peters (1995), Frank Sinatra (2000), Stevie Wonder (2002), k.d. lang (2003), James Taylor (2004), Burt Bacharach (2006), Quincy Jones (2007), and Lionel Richie (2008).

Lionel Richie said at Spring Sing: "Forget about surviving 30 some odd years in the music business, Lionel Richie survived 27 years of Nicole Richie". [ [http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/electronicplay.aspx?fid=24831&id=E0C5478 Lionel Richie accepts The George and Ira Gershwin Award] ]

References

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