One of Ours on NBC’s The Sing Off

Eivand Limon was practically born carrying a tune. That could be what propelled the Saint Mary’s Glee Club and Chamber Singer to a third place finish, December 23, on the NBC TV show The Sing Off.

Limon and his high school a cappella group from Oakland School for the Arts powered their way through the competition this fall after winning one of ten spots in a nationwide search that saw thousands of participants. Their rendition of the Delta Rae song Bottom of the River has become a best seller on itunes and has over 130,000 views on Youtube.

That the SMC freshman would be in the spotlight at an early age is not surprising. His father and SMC Events Technology Manager Rob Limon says Eivand started singing as an infant. “I remember listening to a song on the radio – this melody – and he was eight months old in the back seat and I’d lower the volume and he’d be singing perfectly in pitch – singing along with the chorus.”

Limon joined the San Francisco Boys Choir when he was eight, later joining the Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir. He became part of Vocal Rush in 2011 and has traveled with the group to vocal competitions as far away as New York City. The troupe has won the international championship for high school a cappella two years in a row.

Last fall’s network competition had the group working 14 hour days to adapt their music and choreography to a major Hollywood sound stage. “I am very proud of my group Vocal Rush for sticking together as a team,” says Limon, who adds that despite the stress, they were always positive and loving.

He says The Sing Off was a great opportunity for him to experience life as a performer and his SMC choral director, Dr. Julie Ford, agrees. “I have not had a chance to talk with Eivind directly about his experience. But his face would beam when it was mentioned, and he seemed to have gained an air of confidence and gratitude from being so honored. We will all celebrate his achievement when the SMC Glee Club reconvenes in February.”