9:00am | This Sunday from 11 AM until 6 PM, the Arts Council for Long Beach is collaborating with McKenna’s on the Bay and a number of other local businesses and charities to present Klaustoberfest at Alamitos Bay Landing. There will be a free concert featuring the internationally adored a capella vocal group vocaldente, whose tight harmonies, original arrangements, humor, and good looks have charmed audiences around the world.
Tobias Kiel, better known by friends and fans as Tobek, is the tenor voice and co-founder of vocaldente. In addition to being a university trained musician, and able to play many instruments, he’s also the main arranger for the group. I asked him about the music he loved as a kid.
“As a kid of the eighties and a teen of the nineties,” said Tobias, “I grew up with all the big names from the radio and MTV. Whitney Houston, Bryan Adams, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, several German and American Hip Hop acts, Queen, and Bon Jovi. Common acts for kids of my time, but high quality. No Jason Donovan or Britney Spears.”
I asked when he became seduced by the mystique and allure of a capella vocal harmonizing.
“I loved some songs by Boyz II Men,” explained Tobias, “but I didn´t know that it was part of a specific genre. To me, it was pop.
“I’ve been singing my whole life. I remember that I sang a song to my dog when I was 5 or 6. But I started playing the drums, and went to the Music University in Hanover as a drummer. I also entered the Jazz choir. There, I took note of Take 6, The King´s Singers and the Real Group.
“But when Johnny [Johannes Gruber, who sings the baritone part in the group] and me sang songs in the staircase of the the place where we worked during the summer break, it felt as if we invented a new kind of music: ‘Doing songs with nothing but the voice.’
“When we founded vocaldente,” Tobias admitted, “we found out there was a whole scene with lots of acts, singers and freaks, we knew we didn´t invent something new. But we followed the route of pure voices.
“The songs we choose to perform are kind of popular here, and in other countries,” said Tobias. “Our musical abilities improved, and lead to an individual group sound. With it, we were able to win several prizes. I think we transport the energy we have on stage, ’cause we love what what we are doing so much and have a lot of fun. People say this after concerts, no matter where we are.”
While they take their musical responsibilities very seriously, they infuse their performances with lots of humor.
“Humour has a serious quality,” Tobias mused. “Timing a joke is just as hard as working on rhythmical things, or singing chords. Thats how we are personally, or let´s say: It comes out when these 5 different characters work together creatively.”
The group’s touring schedule is relentless. I asked how they cope.
“We love to travel,” explained Tobias, “and give concerts in different countries. For us, it is normal to be jet-lagged. It doesn´t mean that we aren’t tired anymore, but we just live it and laugh a lot when we recognize that we are talking about stupid things and being foolish.”
I asked if, because of their international audiences, they include songs in a variety of languages.
“We have a song in Spanish,” Tobias said. “It´s from a commercial for Bacardi rum: Yummie and funny! We also have German pop songs! We choose pop songs from the past 100 years: Charleston, rock, pop, jazz, skiffle, fast and slow. That’s a lot!
“We love to choose songs you wouldn´t imagine could work with an a capella arrangement. Like ‘crawling’ from Linkin Park, or ‘Does your chewing gum lose its flavor on the bed post overnight?’ by Lonnie Donegan. Also, animal noises are always welcome in vocaldente. We already have a donkey. The bass does it in ‘Thank God, I´m a Country Boy’ by John Denver.”
Profits from food and beverages sold at Klaustoberfest, donated by local restaurants, will support the efforts of Tackling Cancer and the Live Like Klaus Foundation, who support leading cancer researchers while promoting safe and active lifestyles for today’s youth through sports. Additional entertainment will be provided by the Oom-Pah-Pah Madmen, and the event host will be celebrity chef Mario Martinoli.
More information about the event, sponsors, and charities can be found at McKennasOnTheBay.com.
To learn more about vocaldente, visit vocaldente.org.