MARCH 2024 - The San Diego Chorus is thrilled to welcome coach Cy Wood. Cy is a judge in the Performance Category for the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS). Currently, he sings baritone in MixTape, a BHS quartet based in Ohio that is the current champion for the Johnny Appleseed district. He also serves as Executive Director for the Young Professionals Choral Collective (YPCC) as well as a creative artist and coach. He moved to Ohio to teach music and theatre at Butler Tech School of the Arts, which he lovingly did so for 7 wonderful years. Before that, Cy worked in New York City for nearly a decade as a professional actor, producer, special events coordinator, and creative director. Some shows that he has been involved with include current and past Broadway, Off-Broadway, Special Events and National Tours. Cy is a third-generation barbershopper. He joined the Idaho Gateway Chorus when he was just 15 years old. While studying in college, Cy joined High Flight singing baritone, a competitive collegiate quartet. Though they were together only a few months, they won the Rocky Mountain District collegiate contest, and later went on to place 12th at the 2006 International Competition. Wood joined NYC's acclaimed chorus Voices of Gotham in 2012 and quickly became the baritone section leader as well as a board member at large. In 2013, Cy was asked to be VoG's Choreographer and Presentation Leader. He has had his work performed on the international stage as well as many stages in North America including Carnegie Hall. Since moving to Ohio, Cy has performed with a BHS Top Ten Chorus, Southern Gateway Chorus where he also served on the music team and was the Performance Director. In addition to his active coaching and chorus lifestyle, Cy was the baritone of On Tap. This quartet won the Mid-Atlantic District Northern Division Contest in 2014 and 7th place at the MAD District competition. On Tap entertained their audiences until their disbandment in 2015 due to two of the members moving away from NYC. The San Diego Chorus hosts member-only Coaching Events for Chorus Members multiple times a year, particularly during competition preparation cycles. The chorus is currently ranked 5th Internationally and has accepted a Wild Card invitation from parent organization Sweet Adelines International. The Chorus will take the stage as contestant #1 in the Quartet and Chorus Semi Finals in Kansas City in October of 2024. The San Diego Chorus will be one of 32 competitors performing in the International Semi Finals, presenting a barbershop ballad and up tune. Contests are adjudicated by four judges, each of whom intensively evaluate one of the four categories that comprise the overall score: Sound, Music, Expression and Visual Communication. Every competing organization has the potential to earn 100 points per category per song. The total possible points available for a performance is 800. Choruses that rank within the top 10 earn a chance to present a second entertainment package in the finals for the championship title. The 15 minute finals package blends a barbershop number with contemporary a cappella numbers. Wood is one of several world-class coaches the San Diego Chorus will work over the next year as they prepare for competition. Master Director Kathleen Hansen notes that the organization is preparing to perform on the Region 21 Golden West Stage for evaluation in April. "There are so many facets of musicality and performance that we fine-tune concurrently in preparation for competition," Hansen says. "Multi-dimensional coaches like Cy bring valuable insight and guidance to our singers as we refine our contest and entertainment packages for the International stage."
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AboutThe San Diego Chorus of Sweet Adelines International is an award-winning chorus performing 4-part a cappella harmony in the barbershop style. Categories
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