A new generation of barbershop quartet is here.

Together, senior David Parrett, junior Drew Ochoa, and sophomores Gordon Howe and Nicholas Gordon make up Prestige, the University’s newly-founded barbershop quartet.

Prestige’s members met at Harmony Camp, an annual summer event for barbershop singers. Although each student had their own reasons that led them to join Prestige; all had choir directors who sang barbershop and encouraged their pursuit of the barbershop style.

‘We were all friends before we started the quartet. We all hung around and sang together and decided to form a quartet about a year and a half ago,’ Gordon, a baritone, said. ‘We love to sing and we want to try and be the best we can be.’

Like the quartet’s name suggests, Prestige is setting fairly high standards for itself.

Gordon said Prestige won fourth place at the 2009 Bank of America Collegiate Quartet Contest, out of 28 international competitors this past July in Anaheim, Calif. He also said Prestige came in second place in the Johnny Appleseed District competition this past weekend, missing first place by one point out of 3000.

While competing, quartets are ranked in the three categories of singing, music, and presentation, and these categories translate into points, Gordon said.

Aside from succeeding in competition, Prestige is also focused on reviving interest in barbershop music in younger generations, lead singer Ochoa said. Following the success of its first international competition, Ochoa said Prestige now makes many appearances at camps in the Ohio area similar to the one where its members met.

Next May, for example, he said Prestige will be heading to Orlando, Fla. to sing and to teach barbershop.

‘We’re trying to promote a younger look on barbershop. We’re always stressing how fun it is to the younger kids,’ Ochoa said. ‘Being with the kids and teaching them to sing barbershop is such a thrill too, not just the performing aspect.’

Vocal coach Douglas Wayland said Prestige’s success has allowed them to become more exposed and obtain more performance and barbershop camp opportunities, which in turn gives the quartet more experience. When the group goes out and wins, they are always asked to do more, he said.

‘They’re a younger quartet that has been together for nearly two years,’ Wayland said. ‘Because it’s an older art form, they are trying to encourage younger singers to be involved. They are a good representation of the next generation of performers and the University.’

Wayland said he meets individually with Prestige’s members on a weekly basis for private voice lessons and has seen them improve immensely over the past year.

‘They have beautiful voices that do all kinds of things,’ he said. ‘They’re all so talented, so that’s what makes them really wonderful to work with. Hopefully they will do well at the next competition.’

Ochoa said even during competition time, he and his friends will remain focused on identifying themselves as a quartet and enjoying what they do.

‘We never want it to seem like a job, especially at competition time,’ Ochoa said. ‘Our main goal is to make sure we’re maintaining the friendship and having fun singing together.’