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Thursday, October 11, 2012

Great-granddaddy of "Glee," Yale's Whiffenpoofs, to give concert in eastern Idaho


The 2012 Whiffenpoofs at Lincoln Center in New York City

If you know and love "Glee," maybe it's time you got to know its great-granddaddy, The Whiffenpoofs. Lucky for you, Yale University's 103-year-old male a cappella singing ensemble will be coming to eastern Idaho later this month.

The "gentleman songsters" will be giving a concert Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. at the Rexburg Tabernacle and Oct. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in the recital room of the Piano Gallery, 2995 E. 17th St. Tickets are available online at www.whiffenpoofs.com/tickets or at the door. For the Rexburg show concert, tickets are $12 for general admission or $7 for students. Group and family rates are available.

Tickets for the Piano Gallery show are $15. For more information about the Piano Gallery show, call 524-4420.

Founded in 1909, the Whiffenpoofs is are 14 senior undergraduates who compete for a spot on the roster. The group has appeared on such television shows as as Jeopardy! The Today Show, Saturday Night Live, 60 Minutes, Gilmore Girls and The West Wing. Each year they tour extensively, to more than 30 countries. They have performed at the White House, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall and the Salt Lake City Mormon Tabernacle, and at such events as the Rose Bowl and Edinburgh Festival.

The group's best-known alumnus may be Cole Porter, who sang in the 1913 lineup when he was a senior at Yale. Today the group often performs Porter songs in tribute.
To learn more, visit their Web site,
http://www.whiffenpoofs.com/, or "like" them on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/whiffenpoofs.

Here is a 2010 YouTube clip about them from NBC's "The Sing Off": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhMrdNVc4r4&list=PL7805B0B390A5E170&feature=plcp