Wilmington Group To Be Featured On WGBH Singing Competition

WILMINGTON, MA -- Wilmington barbershop a cappella group Merrimack Valley Chorus will compete on Season 4 of WGBH’s televised singing competition "Sing That Thing!" on Friday, April 20 at 8pm on WGBH 2.

WGBH’s televised competition for New England singing groups is in its fourth season. Seven new episodes will showcase performances from 18 ensembles, representing genres from barbershop and pop to jazz and classical in three age-based divisions. Expert coaches will guide the groups, offering constructive suggestions throughout the season and will ultimately decide which groups will be named the winners in each division.

“Singing brings people of all walks of life together – it’s a tradition that’s thriving right here in Boston, across New England and around the world. Sing That Thing! celebrates the power and emotion of vocal music, as well as the unique sounds from diverse communities in New England’s evolving a cappella scene,” said Liz Cheng, WGBH’s general manager for television and co-executive producer of Sing That Thing! “I hope viewers will tune in to WGBH 2 each week and be inspired by the talent, creativity and uplifting performances of these 18 unique groups.”

Each of the competing groups belongs to either the high school, collegiate or adult singing group division. The coaches will select two groups from each division to perform on the finale, when one group from each category will be selected as the winner in their division.

The episode with Merrimack Valley Chorus will also feature the Brandeis University Starving Artists and the Nashua High School South Concert Choir. After the performance, coaches Annette Philip, Anthony Trecek-King and Jared Bowen will consider whether Merrimack Valley Chorus will move on to perform in the finale later in the season, and will offer constructive feedback to the group.

The Sing That Thing! coaches are Anthony Trecek-King, president and artistic director of the Boston Children’s Chorus; Annette Philip, a vocalist, composer/arranger and faculty member at Berklee College of Music and winner of the 2017 International Championship of A Cappella with her quartet, Women of the World; and Jared Bowen, WGBH News executive arts editor and host of WGBH’s Open Studio with Jared Bowen, Boston television’s only local arts series. Together, the coaches provide constructive feedback to each group and determine which will advance to the next round.

Photo by Patricia Alvarado Núñez.

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