PICKUP 6 (logo - a stylized 'one way' road sign arrow)

Photo of Pickup 6THE MEMBERS OF PICKUP 6

The singers of Pickup 6, were:

Lisa Macalaster, SOPRANO, assumed, as the sheltered daughter of the local Presbyterian minister, that all music was sacred until high school when she joined the A Cappella choir and discovered the joy of secular music. Having tasted the fruit she wanted more. Lisa spent the next four years singing with the Wellesley College Tupelos, directing the group for two. After a twelve year hiatus, during which she married the man of her dreams and nurtured her two children, she rediscovered A Cappella with The New England Close Harmony Ensemble (NECHE). Several NECHE members gathered over a summer break in 1996 to experiment with a smaller jazz ensemble. The experience was so satisfying they remained together and formed Pickup 6! After Pickup 6 went to the national Harmony Sweepstakes, Lisa spun off to form her own group, Class Act! Look for them performing in the Boston area.

Valerie Northrop, MEZZO-SOPRANO, sang with the Chorale, Chamber Singers and Glee Club while "studying" at Rensselaer. Since moving to the Boston area, she sings with the New England Close Harmony Ensemble, the Reagle Players, and Pickup 6.

Kirsten Findell, kirsten@mit.edu, ALTO, Despite four years of fame as a Princeton Katzenjammer, Kirsten is better-known for her proclivity to burst into song at the slightest provocation or lyric suggestion. Her voice currently fills the dubiously revered halls, stairwells, and restrooms of MIT, where she is completing her Ph.D. in hydroclimatology. Kirsten is also a devoted teacher and practitioner of Kundalini yoga, and puts aside a portion of each day to run circles around the Charles River (while singing, of course). Now, Kirsten has engaged in a Campaign Against Responsibility, in order to focus her time and energy on getting that PhD finished, already. Sadly, this has meant that Pickup 6 was one of those responsibilities which had to be taken off the burner.

Christian Nolen, cnolen@rcn.com, TENOR has been singing ever since, at age 4, he left the 1964 Worlds Fair with all the words to "It's A Small World After All" memorized. He got the a cappella bug at Yale University singing with Redhot & Blue for 3 years and 1 year with the Yale Whiffenpoofs of 1982. After a dozen years off he reentered the a cappella scene with the New England Close Harmony Ensemble. Shortly thereafter he joined with some other NECHE members to form Pickup 6. Today, he's singing, arranging and otherwise obsessed with Pickup 6.

John Paquette, BARITONE, sang with Rensselaer Glee Club before it went co-ed. At RPI he also sang for three years as one of the Four Horsemen, entertaining alumni around the northeast with traditional (i.e., drinking) songs of Rensselaer. After college, John joined the Wellesley Sound Assembly Barbershop Harmony Chorus. Seeking a challenge, he later began to sing with the New England Close Harmony Ensemble. Bitten by the jazz bug, he left barbershop in the dust. Now a "reference baritone" with N.E.C.H.E. for over 10 years, he gets his small-group harmony infusion by singing with and arranging for Pickup 6.

Adam White Scoville, BASS, spent his scarce free time while in law school at Boston College walkin' and generally gettin' low for Pickup 6. From August 1998 through June 1999, Adam was also the group's Musical Director, and produced two arrangements for the group, "Cool" (from West Side Story), and "Fever." A native Vermonter, Adam graduated from Yale in 1994 after majoring in English and singing with Redhot & Blue. He also freelances in graphic design and world wide web site design. Unfortunately, Adam has known for some time that he would be leaving the Boston area after law school, and in 1999-2000, he left to clerk for Justice Michael L. Bender of the Colorado Supreme Court. Certainly, singing with Pickup 6 and helping in their journey to the national stage were some of the highest points of his time in Boston.

In addition, we would like to thank our former alto, Rachel McColl, for a wonderful year of music from 1997-1998. Go "Crazy."

And finally, thanks to Cheryl Pongratz for singing soprano with us at our final gig.