Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today, we’d like you to meet Tanvi Pabbati.
Major: Computer Science
Hometown: Hyderabad, India
Why she chose Behrend: It felt like the perfect fit for me. I attended high school in Erie, so Behrend was close to home. I liked the small class sizes and opportunity for one-on-one interactions with faculty members. Also, the campus is beautiful and the trails in Wintergreen gorge are great.
Why she chose her major: I developed an interest in programming after taking a class in high school. I enjoyed learning new programming languages and making fun projects. Computer science is constantly evolving. These changes keep the field interesting. There’s always something to learn or discover.
Proudest accomplishment at Behrend: Contributing to student organizations in leadership roles while managing my academics and making the Dean’s List has been both challenging and rewarding. A highlight for me was helping to restart the South Asian Student Organization (SASO) during my first year.
Campus involvement: I was the president of SASO, a Global Ambassador, and served as an International Student Orientation Leader. I’m a member of the National Society of Leadership and Success. I’ve also done undergraduate research work.
Highest priority in the coming years: Obtaining a master’s degree and getting into a field that focuses on both robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Global-minded: I’m passionate about learning about diverse cultures, which is why I was part of Global Ambassadors and other cultural organizations. Through my active participation in the multicultural clubs on campus, I’ve been able to help international students connect with fellow students, experience their own culture despite being far from home, and provide a platform for them to share their culture.
Advice for first-year students: Join organizations, go to club meetings, and attend events. Building connections will improve your experience at college, so don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone.
After her graduation in May, Tanvi plans to pursue a master’s degree in AI or robotics.
Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today, we’d like you to meet Jay Abraham.
Major: Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Pittsburgh
Why he chose his major: It’s the closest thing to applied wizardry.
Campus involvement: President of the Behrend student chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, member of the Society of Automotive Engineers, Computer Engineering Club, and Behrend’s Fitness Club.
Involvement = connections: Being involved in student organizations, taking on leadership roles, helping professors with research projects, and attending networking events opened doors for me that I would never have found otherwise. Doing these things was not just about padding my resume, but about building real connections with professors, collaborating with peers on ambitious projects, and gaining leadership experience that boosted my confidence and shaped my career trajectory.
What you’d be surprised to know about him: English is my second language.
What he’s passionate about: Electrical engineering, public transportation infrastructure, sustainable energy, and urban design.
Advice for first-year students: Get involved as much as possible on campus. The value of your degree isn’t just in the classes you take, but also in the things you do outside of the classroom. I’ve found that the students who thrive the most aren’t necessarily the ones with the highest GPAs, but those who immerse themselves in the opportunities around them. Joining clubs, taking on leadership roles, attending career fairs, and saying “yes” to new experiences will make all the difference. You never know which professor, project, or chance encounter will lead to your next internship, job, or lifelong friendship.
After his graduation in May, Jay will be a power systems and controls automation engineer working with the digital integration solutions team at Eaton.
Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today, we’d like you to meet Adam Sacherich.
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Minor: Mathematics
Hometown: Moon Township, Pennsylvania
Scholarships: Penn State Provost Award
Why he chose Behrend: In high school, I benefited from knowing my teachers, so when looking for colleges, I wanted a place with small classes to allow me to know my professors. I wanted to get good value for my money from college, and Behrend had a good balance of price and academic reputation.
Why he chose his major: I have always been fascinated by how things work and have a passion for problem-solving. Mechanical engineering offers the perfect blend of theoretical knowledge and practical application, allowing me to turn ideas into tangible solutions.
Campus involvement: Tau Beta Pi (vice president of PA Mu Chapter since April 2024), American Society of Mechanical Engineers at Behrend (treasurer since April 2024), Behrend Robotics Club (vice president since April 2024, previous positions: president, treasurer, and University Rover Challenge (URC) team lead), Behrend Engineering Ambassadors
Awards and honors: Undergraduate Student Academic Year Research Grant (2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic years), Penn State Behrend Undergraduate Student Summer Research Fellowship (Summers 2023 and 2024), Penn State Behrend Sigma Xi Conference Best Engineering Presentation Award (2024), Schreyer Honors College (since June 2023), Behrend Honors Program (January 2022 – May 2023)
His proudest accomplishment at Behrend: In May of 2024, I got the opportunity to travel to Long Beach, California, to present my research on “Nature Inspired 3D Printed Geometries for Enhanced Resistance to High Velocity Impacts” at the Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering 2024 Conference. This research was then later published in the SAMPE journal in September.
On overcoming challenges: Balancing research, club responsibilities, work, and academics has been challenging at times. Learning to manage my time effectively and prioritize tasks has been crucial in navigating these commitments.
What makes him unique: I think that my interdisciplinary interests make me unique. Even though I am a mechanical engineering student, I am involved in other engineering disciplines. During my time at Behrend, I took 12 credits of computer engineering classes that weren’t required by my major so that I could learn more about the subject. In both of my internships with Wabtec, a majority of my work has been based around computer programming. Additionally, my role in my senior design project involves designing and programming a control board.
What people might be surprised to know about him: When I started college, I had little interest in completing an honors program or doing research. This is hard to believe now that so much of my time at Behrend has been spent working on research projects.
His top priority for the coming years: My highest priority is to continue learning. While my learning at Behrend is coming to an end, I know that I will have plenty to learn as I start at Wabtec.
His passions: I am passionate about continuous learning, constantly challenging myself, and using my skills in a way that will improve the world.
Advice for first-year students: Embrace every opportunity that comes your way. Engage in various activities, seek out leadership roles, and don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. These experiences will shape your personal and professional growth in ways you can’t yet imagine.
After graduation in May, Adam will work at Wabtec as part of their LEAD engineering program.
Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today, we’d like you to meet Mike Pazuchanics.
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Hometown: McMurray, Pennsylvania
Why did you choose Behrend? It has a strong engineering program with professors that prioritize students and teach in small classroom settings. Additionally, I wanted to swim at the D-III level and Behrend has a strong swim team with a great coach.
Why he chose his major: I’ve been surrounded by engineers and problem solvers since a young age. My dad was an engineer, his dad was an engineer, and my mom’s dad repaired commercial printing machines. Their knack for problem solving had a strong influence on me; we were always fixing or building things around the house. I decided to pursue Mechanical Engineering because I have always been interested in how things move and why things are designed the way they are. Additionally, it is a versatile degree that allows me to work in a variety of fields.
Proudest accomplishment at Behrend: I am proud to have completed my degree in four years while competing in varsity athletics. I swam during all four years of college while balancing a challenging academic workload. Managing studying, homework, and projects with the swimming practices, lifting program, and swim meets was challenging.
Campus involvement: I have been a member of the Behrend Swimming and Diviving team for all four of my years at Behrend. I am also the men’s team representative for the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, which provides insight and shares Behrend Athletic program information with the team. During my junior and senior years, I was a grader for Statics and Strengths II. I also played intramural flag football in the spring the past two years with my swim teammates.
Awards and accolades: I have been part of the AMCC All-Conference all four seasons of my athletic career. Additionally, I was inducted into the Behrend Chapter of Chi Alpha Sigma, which is the National Collegiate Athlete Honor Society. I was voted onto the 2024 AMCC All-Sportsmanship Team in 2024.
I was also an awardee of the 2023 Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Program. The SMART Program is a Department of Defense (DoD) scholarship program for STEM students. SMART provides tuition scholarships which are “repaid” by working at a DoD facility after graduation. This program supports STEM majors in college and assists them with starting their professional careers. I highly encourage any STEM major to apply.
Advice for first-year students: When things are not going according to plan, it can be easy to focus on what is going wrong. Taking a step back to reevaluate or change your perspective can help you reset and focus on what is going right. It is important to remember and appreciate what you have accomplished rather than getting bogged down in little failures.
Mike has accepted an offer from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, after his graduation in May. He will work as a civilian engineer in the maintenance and overhaul of the Navy’s fast-attack nuclear submarines.
Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today, we’d like you to meet Katy Richardson.
Major: Software engineering
Minor: Game Development
Hometown: Hamburg, New York
Why she chose Behrend: I fell in love with the campus the first time I toured it. In addition to loving the campus, I liked the small class sizes. The potential to do research at an undergraduate level really made Behrend stand out when looking at different colleges.
Why she chose her major: In high school, I found that I strongly disliked chemistry, and the only way I could drop the class was if I found another class to replace it. I ended up joining a computer science class eight weeks into a ten-week quarter. I picked up the concepts easily and was able to complete ten weeks’ worth of work in the final two weeks of the quarter. I fell in love with programming and the problem-solving it required and knew it was what I wanted to do.
One rough semester: One challenge that I had to overcome was taking 22 credits in one semester, while actively participating in athletics. On top of that, I got a concussion during the third week of the semester. For several weeks, it was challenging to look at my computer screen for too long. I was able to overcome this by consistently communicating with my professors, who were incredibly supportive and understanding. I had to figure out how to structure my time to get all my work done while also giving my body the rest that it needed.
Student involvement: I am involved in Society of Women of Engineers, where I served as the outreach chair in my junior year. I have been an engineering ambassador for two years. I competed on the women’s varsity bowling team for four years, serving as captain in my senior year.
What you’d be surprised to know about her: I spent my summers working at a residential summer camp while I was in college. I also attended this same camp for eight years before I worked there.
Have youth, will travel: One of my highest priorities for the coming years is to travel and have as many experiences as I can while I’m still young and have the energy to do so.
What she’s passionate about: Introducing STEM to the next generation. Throughout my work with Youth Education Outreach, I have had the opportunity to see kids find a passion for the STEM disciplines and see their reaction when they finally were able to solve a challenge. It’s very rewarding.
Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today, we’d like you to meet Daniel Gayoso.
Major: Computer Engineering
Hometown: Moon Township, Pennsylvania
Scholarships: Frank S. Palkovic Trustee Scholarship
Why he chose Behrend: I like the smaller size of the campus and classes. It also had a reputable engineering program.
Why he chose his major: I built my first computer when I was 12 years old and kept tinkering all the way through high school. I was always very curious to learn how each hardware component functions alongside the software.
Challenges overcome: My classes, mainly in my junior year, were each a challenge in and of themselves. The raw amount of material to learn was incredible, but what also made it difficult is that much of that material is built off foundational math and science from your first and second year. You have to really understand the foundations.
Involvement and activities: Computer Engineering Club (President, Vice President); Behrend Engineering Ambassadors; Resident Assistant; Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineering Club.
Side quest master: I constantly get sidetracked during homework assignments and projects related to my major because I’ll see some random term I’ve never heard of that sounds interesting and I end up spending a half hour researching it.
What you’d be surprised to know about him: I have dual citizenship in the United States and Spain and my parents are immigrants from Venezuela. That said, my Spanish is not very good!
What he’s passionate about: Lifting weights and anything related to computers, electronics, or communications.
Learning happens outside class, too: You will get as much out of college and your degree as you put into it. Spend as much time as you can going beyond what’s being taught in the classroom. Join clubs, do internships, take on extra projects, or seek out research opportunities with professors. Like Dr. Abdallah Abdallah, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, says: “Use the knowledge taught to you in your courses to build things outside of them.”
Curiosity and enthusiasm matter: Make sure you enjoy what your major has to offer. The best engineers I know are the ones who think about it 24/7. They are the type of people who wake up in the middle of the night with a solution to a problem they’ve been ruminating on for weeks. This doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice a social life or adequate sleep to be a good engineer, but the more curious and enthusiastic you are about your work, the further you will go.
Advice for first-year students: Make an effort to leave your comfort zone. Also, if you didn’t like the person you were becoming before college or wish that you were different in some way, you can reinvent yourself. It’s a whole new start.
After his graduation in May, Daniel plans to work in the computer engineering field for three to five years and then pursue a master’s degree in computer engineering.
Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today we’d like you to meet Ellen Shade.
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Hometown: Edinboro, Pennsylvania
Scholarships: Ernst R. Behrend Scholarship
Awards: President Walker Award, Dean’s List
Why she chose Behrend: It is close to home and has a great engineering program, a beautiful campus, small class sizes, and is really welcoming.
Why she chose her major: I chose Mechanical Engineering because I have always had a love for math and science. I also love it when problems have answers, even it takes some time to figure it out. Engineering also allows me to be creative.
Proudest accomplishment at Behrend: Being elected president of the Behrend Engineering Ambassadors and president of the Society of Women Engineers.
Campus involvement: I was the president of the Society of Women Engineers, president of the Behrend Engineering Ambassadors, a member of Tau Beta Pi (Engineering Honor Society), and a member of the Schreyer Honors College. I also did undergraduate research work.
What you’d be surprised to know about her: I was on the women’s basketball team for my first two years at Behrend. In total, I played basketball on school teams for thirteen years.
Welcoming the next gen of women engineers: I am very passionate about inspiring young women to pursue engineering! I loved to volunteer at youth outreach events and connect with them.
Advice for first-year students: Get involved. I have met some of my best friends and found what I am passionate about through joining clubs and organizations.
After her graduation in May, Ellen will work as a Project Engineer at Whiting-Turner in Lexington, Kentucky.
Penn State Behrend’s Class of 2025 is ready to make its mark on the world. We’re proud of our students and all that they have learned and accomplished here at Behrend. Over the next several weeks, we will introduce you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have conducted valuable research, pioneered innovation, overcome challenges, and engaged in college life in a big way.
Today, we’d like you to meet Anna Smith.
Majors: Interdisciplinary Business with Engineering (IBE) Studies and Project and Supply Chain Management (PSCM)
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
Scholarships: Lawrence and Elizabeth Held Scholarship and Penn State Discover Award
Why she chose Behrend: Because of the unique opportunity it provided for me to excel both academically and athletically. I really liked the idea of being able to thrive both in the classroom and on the field all while working toward a Penn State degree. I’ve always been a part of a team, so I knew going into college that I wanted to continue playing soccer, and Behrend seemed to be the best fit for me.
Why she chose her majors: This decision was driven by my interest in global logistics and operations. Some of my strengths include strategic and logical thinking, which is why supply chain management has always been of interest to me. Additionally, IBE is a unique way of combining both business and engineering practices that only further develops my supply chain knowledge.
Proudest accomplishment at Behrend: Being selected for the AMCC All-Sportsmanship team in our conference, despite losing my entire season to injury (fractured femur) and never once stepping on the field. This recognition meant so much to me because it highlighted the impact that I had off the field. Throughout my recovery, I remained dedicated to supporting my teammates, embodying the spirit of sportsmanship by encouraging and motivating them from the sidelines. This experience taught me that true leadership and sportsmanship extend beyond physical performance. It’s all about showing up for your team, maintaining a positive attitude, and contributing to the collective success in any way possible. Winning this award reaffirmed my belief in the importance of character and resilience, and it remains a testament to my commitment and value that I was able to bring to the team.
Challenges: Overcoming the challenge of losing my entire senior season of college soccer due to injury has been a transformative experience for me. It has taught me all about resilience and determination as I navigated the physical and emotional hurdles of recovery. This period of adversity pushed me to develop a positive mindset and focus on personal growth. I learned the importance of patience and perseverance, which not only helped me regain my physical strength but also made me mentally stronger.
A team player: Throughout my recovery, I always wanted to be there for my teammates, supporting them from the sidelines and showing up for them no matter what. This experience deepened my understanding of the value of loyalty and commitment, reinforcing the significance of being present for others in their times of need. Through this journey, I was able to gain a deeper understanding of my own capabilities and understand the value of supporting others facing similar challenges.
Awards and accolades: Dean’s list most semesters, Academic All-Conference all four years, Chi Alpha Sigma National Student-Athlete Honor Society, and AMCC All-Sportsmanship team.
After her graduation in May, Anna will join the Supply Chain Rotational Program at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company’s global headquarters in Akron, Ohio.
By Heather Cass, Publications Manager, Penn State Behrend
Each year, twenty-four Penn State Behrend students and four advisers participate in an Alternative Spring Break (ASB) service trip coordinated by the Office of Civic and Community Engagement. The experience, in which participants spend their break volunteering for a community in need, is designed to engage students on multiple levels, including personal development, group and team dynamics, and public service.
Many who participate in ASB find it life changing. Some discover a passion for service. Some make lifelong friends. Some choose a new career path. Some meet their soulmate.
Though it would be years before they officially dated, their friend Ashlyn Kelly ’18, who was also on the trip, spotted the chemistry right away. (She would have. Ashlyn was a Chemistry major.)
Gretchen (Shaffer) and Max Magera, fourth and fifth from the left, at Penn State Behrend’s 2018 Alternative Spring Break service trip to Beaumont, Texas, where participants helped with Hurricane Harvey cleanup.
“I remember early on in the trip, a group of us were standing around talking while waiting for everyone to go to the worksite, and I noticed how much Gretchen lit up when Max would join the conversation,” Ashlyn said. “I could tell something was going on.”
Ashlyn spent the next several years gently encouraging her friends to be more than friends.
“I always knew they’d end up together one day,” she said.
Sweet as (American) Pie
Gretchen, a Plastics Engineering Technology major, liked Max, a Mechanical Engineering major, right away. He was smart, funny, capable, and among the first in the group to jump in and do the hard labor needed in the flood-ravaged homes they were working on.
It’s a tradition on ASB trips for each person to anonymously submit a favorite song to a playlist members listen to when traveling during the trip. The challenge is to match the song to the person who selected it.
Gretchen chose “The Saga Begins,” a “Weird Al” Yankovic parody of Don McLean’s “American Pie,” with lyrics that humorously summarize the plot of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace through the point of view of Obi-Wan Kenobi, one of the film’s protagonists.
“Everyone hated that song,” Gretchen said. “It must’ve played five times before they figured out it was me.”
Halfway through the trip, when the group decided to make another playlist with fresh songs, Max chose the original “American Pie.” Gretchen knew right away who submitted that song.
It went on like this for the two: friendly conversations, shared jokes, and subtle flirting. They did another ASB trip together, traveling to Puerto Rico in 2019.
When Max graduated in May 2019, he moved away and began a series of six-month rotations in Wabtec’s LEAD Program. He and Gretchen stayed in touch with occasional texts.
Rotation Leads to Reunion
“In 2020, Max texted and said that he was going to be back in Erie for six months,” Gretchen said.
They reconnected, and their near-weekly happy hour hangouts at a local brewpub soon turned into something more.
“Every time she made a comment about seeing Max, I asked if they were hanging out or dating,” Ashlyn said. “When she finally said they were dating, I said, ‘Well, it’s about time!’”
Their first official date had a Behrend connection: They went to see The Groove, a band that features Jim Dowds, a case manager in Behrend’s Personal Counseling center, on drums.
By spring 2023, Max decided to pop the question at Behrend’s Lion Shrine.
He enlisted help from Ashlyn and Behrend’s Mary Kay Williams, whose official title is admissions support assistant but who also serves as a surrogate “campus mom” to the many students she befriends.
“Mary Kay and I scheduled a lunch with Gretchen,” Ashlyn said. “The plan was for Mary Kay to cancel at the last minute, which she did, so that I could suggest that Max and Gretchen still meet up with me and my boyfriend for a walk on campus with our dogs.”
First stop was the Lion Shrine to “take some photos.” Ashlyn was prepared, whipping out her camera and handing her phone to her boyfriend, Paul Lutz ’19, to capture the proposal in both photos and video.
“Happy to say that after all that hard work, she said ‘yes,’” Ashlyn said.
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Blending Blue and White Forever
On September 28, 2024, Max and Gretchen married at Behrend’s Smith Chapel—the building where it all started, with the first ASB planning meetings held in the downstairs lounge. Ashlyn was a bridesmaid.
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Photo credit: Alan Freed Photography
During the ceremony, the couple performed a unity sand ceremony—a wedding tradition in which a couple pours sand from separate vessels into one vase, symbolizing two people uniting in marriage. The sand in their ceremony was Penn State blue and white, a nod to the college that brought them together.
Max is a supplier quality engineer at Wabtec in Grove City. Gretchen is a project engineer at Molded Fiber Glass in Union City. The couple resides in Cambridge Springs with their dogs, Zeus and Athena.
Four Score, a barbershop quartet that includes three Behrend students and one alumnus, perform the National Anthem at a home track meet at Penn State Behrend in spring 2024.
One of the most amazing aspects of college is that a single class can have a profound effect on your life. It might inspire you to change your career plans. It might be the place you meet your best friend or future spouse. It might ignite a lifelong passion or lead you to a place you never expected.
Max Rohl, a senior Interdisciplinary Science and Business major, never dreamed he would be on stage accepting first place in a barbershop quartet competition in Rochester, New York. He had never even sung in a group until he signed up for Concert Choir class in his first year at Behrend.
“Some of us in the class started a kind of club where we would meet up in Ohio Hall to work on our songs,” Rohl said.
One night, at the end of a choir meet-up, he asked if anyone in the group had any other styles of songs they wanted to work on. Rohl, who had been a fan of the barbershop quartet classic, 76 Trombones, was about to suggest barbershop songs when Wade Williams, now a junior History major, said, “I’ve always wanted to start a Barbershop Quartet.”
“Me, too,” Rohl said.
Wade is a bass singer, Rohl is a baritone, so they needed a tenor and a lead.
They found both in Joey George, a senior Computer Engineering major, who had grown up singing in choirs and at church and could sing both tenor and lead.
The trio looked all over Behrend for a fourth member before Wade did an internet search and found Lake Erie Sound, an established Erie barbershop chorus. He reached out to its leader, John Donohue, who directs the chorus of about two dozen men.
“He probably thought, ‘Why are these college kids bugging me?’ but we talked him into coming to listen and sing with us,” Rohl said.
After that one practice, Donohue, a 2015 Mechanical Engineering alumnus, was in.
“It just sounded so good when we sang together that I knew we had to put our efforts toward getting better and refining our performance,” Donohue said.
The group began practicing a couple of times a week, meeting when Donohue, who is about ten years older and has a job and family, could join them.
“It was great to meet young people who had been bitten by the ‘barbershop bug,’” Donohue said. “They were eager from the start and soaked up any knowledge I shared with them.”
They chose a name—Four Score Quartet—and performed the National Anthem at a Behrend home track meet in the spring. They hadn’t considered doing much more until Donohue mentioned a nearby competition—the Seneca Land District of Barbershop Harmony Society District Competition in Rochester, New York.
“He said, ‘Hey, there’s this competition in twenty days. Do you guys want to do it?’” Rohl said.
They not only did it; they won it and were named district champions.
“John was not surprised, but we were!” Rohl said.
The group sang four songs, two in preliminaries and two in the finals: “Wait ‘Til the Sun Shines, Nellie,” “A Son of the Sea,” “Sweet and Lovely,” and “That Old Black Magic,” which earned them their highest score of the day. Each song is scored separately, and then song scores are added together to get a final score.
If it sounds easy, Rohl will assure you that it is not.
“It’s actually really difficult to sing barbershop harmony, but I love challenging myself and doing hard things,” Rohl said. “When you have to work hard at something, mastering it is much more rewarding.”
Barbershop singing is different from any other type of choral group singing but it still requires plenty of talent and practice.
“Although the technique is different than in a classical choir, it’s still very demanding from a musical perspective and can really push an individual both vocally and emotionally,” Donohue said.
Donohue is happy to see younger people interested in barbershop quartet and said that while it is sometimes viewed as an old-fashioned type of singing, that perception is changing.
“In the past ten to fifteen years, quartets have began to adopt more musical theater pieces and songs from pop-culture,” he said.
Winning the competition solidified the students’ commitment to the quartet.
“We’re all very dedicated to it now, even more so than before,” said Rohl.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, every barbershop had its own quartet. The term “barbershop” in reference to harmonizing was first documented in 1910, alongside the release of the song Play That Barbershop Chord.
During this time, barbers were more than just hairdressers; they also pulled teeth and performed minor surgeries. Barbershops gradually became social hubs where locals could gather, play instruments, and sing while waiting for their turn in the chair.
DID YOU KNOW?
Barbershop harmony is believed to be rooted in the Bllack community. According to a post on The Barbershop Harmony Society blog: “Lynn Abbott, a jazz archivist at Tulane University, was an expert on early African-American popular music and gospel quartets. He discovered overwhelming evidence that barbershop quartetting was pervasive in African-American culture in the late 1800s and early 1900s, including among many men who went on to become the pioneers of jazz. Abbott published his findings in a 1992 academic paper that forever changed the way Barbershoppers understand their roots.”
The Four Score Barbershop Quartet includes, from left, John Donohue ’15, and Behrend students, Joey George, Wade Williams, and Max Rohl.
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