Middlebury's Dissipated Eight, also known as the D8, is the oldest
a cappella
Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella 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 Rena ...
group at
Middlebury College
Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...
. Its first performance was on March 15, 1952. The group has recorded multiple albums over its nearly 75-year history, and performs both nationally and internationally, at private venues, colleges, and high schools alike. Over the years, the group has arranged numerous contemporary and modern pieces, and now has more than 200 recorded covers of
popular music
Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...
.
They generally do not use any instruments in their recordings, and instead carefully select different pitches to simulate the tones needed for each song. This often means recreating sounds such as the high-pitched tone of the
fiddle
A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...
in "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" or the bass and snare of the
drum set
A drum kit or drum set (also known as a trap set, or simply drums in popular music and jazz contexts) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and sometimes other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The drummer ty ...
in "All Along The Watchtower."
Several former members of the Dissipated Eight have gone on to gain national prominence, including international opera performer William Burden, television and film actor
Jake Weber
Jake T. Weber (born 12 March 1963) is an English actor. He is known in film for his role as Michael in '' Dawn of the Dead'' and for his role as Drew in '' Meet Joe Black''. On television, he is best known for playing Joe DuBois, the sleep-dep ...
, and author/editor
Peter Knobler
Peter Knobler (born 1946) is an American writer living in New York City. He has collaborated on fifteen books, ten of them best sellers and was the editor-in-chief of '' Crawdaddy'' magazine from 1972 to 1979.
Notable performances
In 1983, the Dissipated Eight performed on
Garrison Keillor
Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (; born August 7, 1942) is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show ''A Prairie Home Companion'' (called ''Garrison Keillor's Radio ...
's ''
Prairie Home Companion
Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
'' , when it was broadcast live from Mead Chapel at Middlebury College.
Discography
The Dissipated Eight has released eleven albums on LP Records.
*''The Dissipated Eight of Middlebury'' (1955)
*''Serenades'' (1958)
*''Cruising Along With The Dissipated Eight'' (1961)
*''Mem'ries of Most Happy Days'' (1964)
*''Selections By The Eight'' (1967)
*''Miss Otis'' (1971)
*''D8'' (1973)
*''The White Album'' (1980)
*''South Of The Border'' (1982)
*''Very Special'' (1984)
*''Pieces Of Eight'' (1987)
The Dissipated Eight has released fourteen albums on Compact Disc.
*''Super 8'' (1990)
*''A Moveable Fest'' (1993)
*''Clapping Joes'' (1996)
*''Eighps'' (1997)
*''Altitude'' (1999)
*''No Sleep For Dreaming'' (2000)
*''Eight Balls'' (2002)
*''Golden Jubilee: 50 Years Of Dissipation'' (2002)
*''Out Of The Ashes'' (2005)
*''After Hours'' (2007)
*''Vocally Grown'' (2009)
*''Stand Up Eight'' (2011)
*''Born and Bred'' (2014)
*''Freight Train'' (2017)
*''OCHO'' (2022)
The Dissipated Eight has released two albums on all streaming platforms.
*''OCHO'' (2022)
*''Careful, Now'' (2024)
In March 2022 production began on a 26th album commemorating the 70th anniversary of the group. The record was produced in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica and was released in September 2022.
In March 2024 the Dissipated Eight recorded their most recent body of work, an EP titled ''Careful, Now''. This project was produced by former
Pentatonix
Pentatonix (abbreviated PTX) 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 wit ...
member and producer
Avi Kaplan
Avriel Benjamin Kaplan (born April 17, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for being the former vocal bass of the a cappella group Pentatonix from 2011 to 2017. As a part of the group, he released five studio albums, won three ...
, engineered by Reid Leslie, and mixed by Ed Boyer. It is available on all streaming platforms as of September 14, 2024.
Achievements
The Dissipated Eight has been featured three times on Best of College A Cappella (BOCA) compilations:
*1997 - "
For What It's Worth
"For What It's Worth (Stop, Hey What's That Sound)", often referred to as simply "For What It's Worth", is a song written by Stephen Stills. Performed by Buffalo Springfield, it was recorded on December 5, 1966, released as a single on Atco Reco ...
" (
Buffalo Springfield
Buffalo Springfield was a Canadian-American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1966 by Canadians Neil Young, Bruce Palmer and Dewey Martin (musician), Dewey Martin and Americans Stephen Stills and Richie Furay. The group, widely know ...
)
*1998 - "
Satellite
A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scient ...
" (
Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band (also known as DMB) is an American rock band from Charlottesville, Virginia. The band's lineup consists of Dave Matthews (lead vocals, guitar), Stefan Lessard (bass), Carter Beauford (drums), Tim Reynolds (lead guitar), R ...
)
*2000 - "Windmills" (
Toad the Wet Sprocket
Toad the Wet Sprocket is an American alternative rock band formed in Santa Barbara, California, in 1986. The band at the time consisted of vocalist/guitarist Glen Phillips, guitarist Todd Nichols, bassist Dean Dinning, and drummer Randy Guss, ...
)
Two albums were designated "Male Collegiate Album of the Year" by
The Contemporary A Cappella Society
The Contemporary A Cappella Society (of America), or CASA, is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that fosters and promotes a cappella music of all styles around the world. CASA was founded in October of 1990 by Deke Sharon while attending Tufts ...
(CASA):
*1997 - ''Clapping Joes''
*1998 - ''Eights''
Three songs have won individual awards:
*"In the Meantime" (Performed by George Herpel on the album ''Eight Balls'') was featured on the first Collegiate A Cappella Music Organization (CAMO) compilation "Top Shelf A Cappella."
*"A Wink and a Smile" (Performed by Chris Molina on the album ''Altitude'') was selected for "Solo of the Year" by CASA in 2000.
*"Superstition" (Performed by Mike Olcott on the album ''Out Of The Ashes'') was nominated for "Solo of the Year" by CASA in 2006.