It was Thursday night and I had nothing better to do. An Accapella group with a strange name, Tonic Sol-Fa was performing at Hendricks Hall on the UCM campus. Tonic Sol-Fa was billed as one of the hottest acts in the Midwest. As it turns out, I really didn’t have anything better to do as this was one of the best shows to come through “The Burg” in quite some time.

Opening with an up tempo Everly Brothers tune, “Gone, Gone, Gone” they got the audience into it right from the start. With a strong bass line sung by Jared Dove and with Greg Bannwarth and Mark McGowan rounding out the sound with their vocal calisthenics, lead singer Shaun Johnson was free to let loose with a mix of Gospel, Country and Doo Wop tunes that included both originals and covers. It was amazing to watch and listen and realize that the full, rich sound was produced by nothing more than a shaker the size of an egg, a tambourine and four incredibly talented vocalists who have been together for over 10 years.

Mark, the group's founder, was given the opportunity to sing a number and even the bass singer Jared, got to perform an old novelty tune by Junior Brown, “Highway Patrol”. It was Shaun however that fronted almost all night long, and justifiably so. He has a soulful, country sound that is inviting and moving. If Tonic Sol-Fa is a taste of the future of the Performing Arts Series at UCM, then get ready for a feast.

The encore number happened to be one of my very favorite Elvis tunes written by Walter Earl Brown, “If I can Dream”. This is a powerful ballad and with nothing more than four perfectly tuned voices, the power and emotion emanated from that stage and throughout the entire auditorium. The standing ovation at the conclusion was the only way the entertained crowd knew to show their appreciation for a wonderful evening.

Thanks to Jeff Imboden and PAS for bringing this tremendous act to town and I look forward to more of the same in the future. Oh yeah, in case you were wondering, as I was, Tonic Sol Fa is a method of teaching music by naming notes on the scale. You can find that and other information about them on their web site, www.tonicsolfa.com