GEORGETOWN PHANTOMS A CAPPELLA
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Founded in 1988, we are a group of 14 Georgetown University students performing rock, pop, and R&B a cappella music. In recent years, the Georgetown Phantoms have performed at the White House, State Department, National Museum of Natural History, Blair House, Italian Embassy, and Kennedy Center. We are also the co-hosts of the annual invitational D.C. A Cappella Festival (“DCAF”) held in Gaston Hall in November. Check out our most recent CD, Legacy, on Spotify and Apple Music now! Check out other videos of our performances on our YouTube channel!
Phantoms History
In December of 1988, eight friends from the Georgetown Bicentennial Choir decided to go Christmas caroling. The group sang informally around campus and could be heard in the ICC Galleria, Lauinger Library, and the pediatric ward at Georgetown Hospital. Father Davis asked who the singers were, and Travis Sutton said, “No one knows where we have come from or where we are going, we are just a group of phantom singers”, and the name stuck.
In the spring of 1989, the group decided to move beyond Christmas music and continue singing together. In September 1989, many members did not return and four of the original members (Tom Steinthal CAS’ 90, Margo Heher SLL ’91, Huey Jin Soon CAS ’91, and Marielaina Sundo CAS ’91) held the first ever audition for the Phantoms. The success of the Phantoms was due to the vision, hard work and dedication of the original members, with much of the credit due to Huey Jin Soon, who was musical director during the first three critical years.
The Phantoms quickly widened their repertoire beyond holiday songs, incorporating various rock and pop hits. In 1991 they established, with the Georgetown GraceNotes, the annual D.C. A Cappella Festival (DCAF for short) – an invitational fall concert that continues to sell out Gaston Hall today.
The group’s first album, “Hmm… Looks Like Moose Country,” was also a watershed for Georgetown University a cappella as it was the first Compact Disc release of any group on campus (it was also released on cassette tape).
