Spotlight: Andrew M. Crespo ’05

What is your assessment of Harvard’s artistic community and culture? Do you feel this is true of other artistic endeavors at Harvard?

I get the impression that a cappella is a little different from other performing groups or extracurriculars on campus. With a pretty small number of members and a hefty rehearsal schedule, the group really becomes a huge part of your social life. I have friends from a bunch of other activities, and of course my blockmates are very important to me, but, as corny as it sounds, the Veritones really are like my family. The strongest friendships I’ve built at Harvard are through the Veritones—these are people that I’ll stay close with for the rest of my life.

What do you find rewarding about performing a capella? What inspires you, as a busy college student, to continue to participate in an art that requires such intense training?

The Veritones perform songs representing the widest variety of genres I’ve encountered, singing everything from rock to jazz to pop to country. Back in freshman year—before I was even in the group—the Veritones impressed me with the way they pulled off intricate and truly beautiful arrangements of great songs. To be a part of such a collaborative effort, with such a small group of people presenting familiar songs in a totally refreshing style, is a real rush. It’s a lot of fun to sing for people who aren’t familiar with a cappella — there are always one or two audience members who walk up to the stage looking for a boombox or a set of speakers, something [that might explain the rich band-quality sound created only with human voices].

Do you have any quirky or superstitious practices that you perform in anticipation of a performance?

I guess I’m pretty boring when it comes to pre-show quirks. I get the back-of-the-neck-goosebumps and the tingly-palms, but that’s about it. As a group, we don’t really have any rituals. It’s not like we get together and start chanting before every performance or anything—I mean, that’d just be weird, right?

What has been your most fulfilling artistic/academic experience?

There really isn’t any feeling like the rush I get walking onto the stage at Sanders Theatre in the dark—and being able to feel how full of people it is.

When the lights first come up, you’re blinded for a few seconds, so it’s almost like you’re singing to a black wall: you know the audience is there because you can hear them breathing, but you physically can’t see a thing. But when your eyes adjust to the light, you suddenly sense that the place is packed—it’s pretty awesome.How have your years at Harvard affected you or your performance art?I’m much different from the person I was just a few years ago in more ways than I can probably name—and the Veritones have certainly played a huge part in that. So many of the people who have deeply influenced my life were people I met through this group. That’s just the kind of impact the Veritones have on you. When we have our reunions and see alums come back from 10 or 15 years ago, and I can tell that they’re still friends and still care about each other. That’s exactly what makes it so exciting to “sing-in” and initiate new members each semester—invariably, in some way or another, you know they are going to become a big part of your life.

Just answer this: What does performing require?

A cappella music is a lot harder than it looks. I played the trombone, played in orchestras and sang in choirs throughout high school, but singing really good a cappella music requires a totally different type of musicianship. There’s just nowhere to hide yourself in a group of 13 people. Every single person is playing a huge role in each song, which requires an enormous amount of focus. A cappella singers must not only be outstanding soloists but exceptionally solid musicians as well. As a singer, I feel really lucky to be in a group with so many performers who fit that bill.

Do you have any entertaining performance stories?

We did a gig where the performer following us was a man dressed as Winnie the Pooh. He walked in during our last number, and everyone just lost it. Within a minute everyone was crying from the strain of not laughing too loud. You just can’t sing when a man in a yellow bear suit is in the audience.

As a bass singer, you probably have a fewer selection of songs specifically tailored to showcase your low range. What is your favorite piece to perform to showcase your range?

I’ve performed a couple of bass solos since getting into the group. A really fun one is a song called “Attitude” by the House Jacks, but my favorite is actually a song that I’ll be singing for the first time at our concert this Saturday. It’s a really beautiful love song written by one of our alumni called “One Minute.”