Pentatonix are an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, consisting of vocalists Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kirstin Maldonado, Matt Sallee, and Kevin Olusola. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements with vocal harmonies, basslines, riffing, percussion, and beatboxing, they produce cover versions of modern pop works or Christmas songs, sometimes in the form of medleys, along with original material. Pentatonix was formed in 2011 and subsequently won the third season of NBC's The Sing-Off, receiving $200,000 and a recording contract with Sony Music. When Sony's Epic Records dropped the group after The Sing-Off, the group formed its YouTube channel, distributing its music through Madison Gate Records, a label owned by Sony Pictures.
Pentatonix at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2023. From left to right: Matt Sallee, Mitch Grassi, Kirstin Maldonado, Scott Hoying and Kevin Olusola
Avi Kaplan's basso profondo vocal range was a prominent element of Pentatonix's sound from the group's founding through his departure in 2017.
Pentatonix performing in Paris in 2013
Pentatonix performing in St. Louis, Missouri in 2013.
Music performed a cappella, less commonly spelled a capella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term a cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato musical styles. In the 19th century, a renewed interest in Renaissance polyphony, coupled with an ignorance of the fact that vocal parts were often doubled by instrumentalists, led to the term coming to mean unaccompanied vocal music. The term is also used, rarely, as a synonym for alla breve.
A cappella
The Hullabahoos, an a cappella group at the University of Virginia, were featured in the movie Pitch Perfect
The Oxford Alternotives, the oldest a cappella group at the University of Oxford in the UK
The Sweet Nothings are one of the University of Exeter's eight a cappella groups. They are one of the oldest and most successful girl groups in the UK