Straight No Chaser at the Craterian Theater | MailTribune.com

Straight No Chaser's clever combination of humor and a cappella harmony has earned the affection of fans nationwide and a contract with Atlantic Records.

The group includes 10 singers ranging in age from 25 to 32 — Dan Ponce, Jerome Collins, Charlie Mechling, Randy Stine, Dave Roberts, Ryan Ahlwardt, Walter Chase, Michael Luginbill, Tyler Trepp and Seggie Isho.

"As Randy Stine has said before... 'we take the music seriously, we just don't take ourselves too seriously,'" Ahlwardt said.

Several members of the group formed Indiana University's first a cappella group in 1996.

Ponce selected the original lineup from the campus chorus, the Singing Hoosiers. He also dubbed the group "Straight No Chaser" after a Thelonius Monk composition. The group released three albums, which sold more than 50,000 copies, before they dispersed after graduation.

Nearing their 10-year reunion, Stine posted a video on YouTube of the original group's rendition of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" at a 1998 concert. The video received more than 7 million views, including one from Craig Kallman, chairman of Atlantic Records.

Kallman contacted Stine about signing with Atlantic Records. Soon the group was reassembled and recorded "Holiday Spirits," which quickly sold more than 120,000 copies.

Four members of the first Straight No Chaser lineup were tied to jobs or families, so new, younger members were recruited from IU's Straight No Chaser alumni, including Ahlwardt.

After graduating from IU, Ahlwardt had been teaching guitar and voice lessons in Indianapolis.

"One day I was teaching 9-year-olds to play guitar and the next day I was being signed to one of the major record companies in the business with 10 of my best college friends," Ahlwardt said.

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