On Saturday, December 2nd, The Recital hosted their last show of the semester, featuring Sofia Violet, McKenna Fenimore, Rocco!, and Georgia Marshall.

Words by Ciara Carolan / Graphic by Griffin Turner

On Saturday, December 2nd, Syracuse’s most intimate house venue, the Recital, hosted its second annual holiday show. With Christmas lights, mistletoe, and hot chocolate, the venue’s organizers, Bandier students Maria Nido and Corey Chun, curated a cozy environment for four acoustic sets played in their living room.

Sofia Violet opened the night with a collection of R&B-pop originals and covers. Violet delivered stunning vocals while strumming her acoustic guitar, with Sam Ronan accompanying her on the keys. Her original music paired a bossa nova feel with relatable storytelling, in songs like “Rekindled Flame,” which she described as being about an on-again-off-again relationship. She played a cover of “Smooth Operator” by Sade, singing the final chorus directly to various audience members.

McKenna Fenimore was the second act of the night, opening her set on the keyboard, which was later taken over by Dylan Kim. The Jazz-R&B singer blessed the crowd with soulful vocals and original lyrics that shared her experiences and growth in life in songs like “It Was All A Mistake.” Fenimore got the audience in the holiday spirit with a beautiful rendition of “The Christmas Song.” Her vocal range was exceptional, with high notes that would make you feel like you were floating on a cloud. One audience member proclaimed, “She’s curing my ear infection!”

Next, Rocco! And Grady Collingbourne took the stage each with a guitar for an emotional singer-songwriter set. In her debut performance as an artist, Rocco! shared vulnerable lyrics paired with folky melodies on original songs like “Big Man” and “Arm.” She also performed covers of “Radiator” by Sadurn and “Old Friends” by Pinegrove. Rocco! is gearing up to release her debut EP “Big Man” in April, and told the audience to expect her first single, “As You Please,” in January.

To close out the night, Georgia Marshall and her guitar took the stage. The singer-songwriter performed several original songs that were emotional and brutally honest. She sang candid stories with a gorgeous and floaty tone. To close out her set, Marshall played two covers, “Coming Clean” by Searows and a track that was originally sung by her father. This stripped-down performance was the perfect way to end an intimate night of acoustic music.

As the evening came to an end, Nido and Chun said goodnight and expressed their gratitude to the performers and audience before the music began playing on the speakers and people mingled.