The Summit Singers, joined by female a cappella group Cadenza, filled the O’Shaughnessy Educational Center auditorium with a crowd of about 350 Thursday night in the first of two performances this week.

Senior Chad Berg, Summit Singers president, said the best moments of the concert were when the singers were just having fun.

“Messing around, being ourselves with our funny humor and how that entertained the audience,” Berg said. “It’s all fun up there.”

But before the Summit Singers came on, Cadenza, which officially became a club on Sunday, performed for its largest crowd so far with a female-centered mashup including songs such as Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” and “Run the World.” Sophomore Hannah Tilstra, a leader of Cadenza, said the group has received lots of support and assistance from the Summit Singers.

“To be able to perform at things like this is a great experience,” Tilstra said. “We’re really growing and learning everything the Summit Singers are teaching us.”

The Summit Singers took the stage donning ugly Christmas sweaters to sing a variety of Christmas songs from “O Holy Night” to a medley of their least favorite holiday hits that included “Santa Baby,” “Last Christmas” and Alvin and the Chipmunks’ “Christmas Don’t Be Late.”

Freshman Kelly Brooks, who attended the concert after seeing a preview of the Summit Singers in Dowling Hall, said she liked the interaction on stage and really enjoyed the Christmas songs.

“I really like ‘Hallelujah.’ That’s one of my favorite songs, so I was really happy they did it,” Brooks said.

Junior Bobby Thibault was in the audience for the first time.

“My favorite part was probably the mashups,” Thibault said. “I’ve never been to a Summit Singers concert. More than likely I will (come back).”

Junior Allie Baraniak said her favorite part of the concert was the liveliness of the singers.

“The energy of the boys all trying to get the crowd involved,” Baraniak said. “I enjoyed it a lot.”

The group did take a more serious note about halfway through, doing a version of “Be Still” by The Fray in a tribute to Erik Nielsen, the St. Thomas sophomore who died Tuesday after a brain aneurysm. The crowd held its applause for a moment of silence in his memory.

“Singing ‘Be Still’ was a really special moment,” Berg said. “That was a privilege for me.”

To prepare for the winter concert, Berg said the group starts arranging songs at the beginning of the semester. Then during the last three or four weeks before the concert, the singers practice for two hours a day, three days a week.

Though the club experienced funding problems earlier this year, the concert still ran with all the necessities. This year, however, the group was unable to hand out giveaways at the door.

“It’s hard to tell how that would have affected our attendance. We can’t know that,” Berg said. “We’re happy that we’re still able to have concerts and perform in front of a crowd.”

The Summit Singers will take the stage again 7 p.m. Friday in the OEC auditorium.

Rebecca Mariscal can be reached at mari2162@stthomas.edu.