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The Band Without
Instruments...
Fourth Avenue is a four
man vocal band that performs a diverse repertoire including pop, soul, R&B,
gospel, doo-wop, and jazz. Since their start in 1993, they have shared the
stage with such national acts as the Beach Boys, Styx, Three Dog Night, and
The Temptations.
In 1996, they competed in The Harmony Sweepstakes, a competition that took
place in Chicago. Not only did Fourth Avenue win first place, they also
walked away with the award for audience favorite. Fourth Avenue went on to
the National Harmony Sweepstakes in California, and two of their songs were
chosen to appear on an internationally distributed album produced by the
Harmony Sweepstakes Competition.
Their debut CD entitled "Fourth Avenue" was released in September of 1997.
The song "In the Midnight Hour" which appears on the CD won a 1998
Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award for Best Doo-Wop/R&B Song of the
Year.
Fall of 1998, Fourth Avenue began touring with the Muse Machine, an
organization which brings professional artists into the secondary school
system of Ohio's Miami Valley. After giving a preview to Miami Valley's Muse
Machine Teachers, they set a new record by being booked in over seventy
schools their first year with the organization. Later that same year, Fourth
Avenue was selected to be on the Ohio Arts Council Fee Support Roster, a
program providing federal funding to preferred Ohio touring artists.
Fourth Avenue performed full time at Paramount's Kings Island Amusement Park
for five years. After completing their fifth year at Paramount's Kings
Island Amusement Park, they were nominated for the 1999 International
Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Variety Entertainer of the
Year Award.
Because of high standing with the Ohio Arts Council, Fourth Avenue was
selected in 2000 to be part of the Heartland Arts Fund Community Connections
Fee Support Program. This program allows artists to receive fee support from
the National Endowment for the Arts and 15 partner state arts agencies in
the Heartland region of the United States (Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana,
Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio,
Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin).
In 2003, Fourth Avenue was nominated for a Contemporary A Cappella Recording
award for Best Pop/Rock Cover song for their rendition of Fade to Grey which
appears on their album Scrapbook. They were also asked to perform in the
Netherlands for Holland America Cruise Line's 130th Anniversary. In
addition, Fourth Avenue was featured in a regional ad campaign for Safe Auto
Insurance in 2003 and 2004.
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Quotes:
"Fourth Avenue is one of
the world's hottest up-and-coming a cappella groups."
- Deke Sharon, Founder/President of The Contemporary A Cappella
Society of America (CASA)
"You guys were absolutely amazing!"
- George Voinovich, Senator of Ohio
"You guys have IT...I'm passing the torch."
- Sean Altman, Founder and former member of the
internationally-renowned a cappella group "Rockapella"
"...one of the premier a cappella groups of the country!"
- Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science
"Fourth Avenue is a vocal group in every sense, even using the human
voice to provide instrumental accompaniment. The group’s secret weapon
is ‘percussionist’ Maurice ‘Mo’ Harris, who performs some of the best
‘human beatbox’ I’ve ever heard.”
- Tony Peters, Impact Weekly
"...absolutely fantastic! They had the audience clapping and singing
in their seats."
- Edinboro University (Pennsylvania)
"...a must hear musical extravaganza!"
- Cayuga Community College (New York)
"They were humorous, and they interacted with the audience. I think
this makes them better performers than many other bands today..."
- New England College (New Hampshire)
"It was good to look around and see everyone having a good time..."
- Penn State Harrisburg
"I wondered where this incredible music was coming from...they were
the big hit."
- Wright State University (Ohio) |
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