By Tom Ganser
Correspondent
On Jan. 13, Brenna Connors, a 2014 graduate of Badger High School, joined 12 other women to kick off the first winter tour of Pitches and Notes with a performance at the First United Methodist Church in Whitewater.
Pitches and Notes is an all-female a cappella group formed by students on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. Other stops on the tour included Edgerton, Fox Point, Green Bay, Greendale, Lake Geneva, Madison, Racine and Waukesha.
The women performed “Natural Woman” and “You’re No Good,” originally performed by Aretha Franklin and Linda Ronstadt, respectively, and international hits including “Winter Song” (Canada), “Settle Down” (New Zealand) and “Latch” (England).
“We don’t have any music majors in the group. We have everything from engineering, education, science, and business majors,” said Lauren Dalzin, business manager for the group. “The purpose of Pitches is to provide an opportunity for female singers to be part of a team of people who share the same hobby.”
Connors, who has not yet declared a major but is leaning toward elementary education, continues her interest and development in singing and said she was influenced by “my four years of choir with the amazing Mr. (Matt) Roemer as a teacher.”
Connors describes being part of Pitches and Notes as one of the greatest things to ever happen to her.
“It has made my transition into college so much easier,” Connors said. “Going into my first semester, I wasn’t sure if I was going to continue with music, but I am unbelievably glad that I tried out for Pitches and Notes because it has allowed me to keep up with my love for music, and it’s a great break from the stresses of college.”
On Feb. 14, Pitches and Notes will be competing in the Midwest Quarterfinals of the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella in Mills Hall in the Mosse Humanities Building on the UW-Madison campus at 7 p.m., along with nine other collegiate groups from Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Missouri. To obtain tickets for the performance, find the event at https://www.freshtix.com.
In addition, plans are in the works for producing a CD for release next fall.
For more information about Pitches and Notes, visit facebook.com/pitchesandnotes or www.pitchesandnotes.wordpress.com.
