The Early Years
In the fall of 1992, three members of the University of Maryland Treblemakers, Kera Rennert, Kelly Gillis, and Galeet Dardashti, decided to create the University's first all-gender a cappella group. In January 1993, Faux Paz was born under the name “The Looney Tunes,” and acquired eight other members: Raj Gupta, Case Ahr, Michael Ahr, Tom Koo, Kazu Takeda, Christoph Drieschner, Megan Truesdell, and Terry McClain.
During the group’s first semester, “The Looney Tunes'' became an unpopular name among members. Other names were considered until someone suggested “The Faux Posse,” which eventually became “The Faux Paz.” The bilingual French-Spanish translation of “false peace” proved to be appropriate, due to the group’s initially tense relationship with other UMD a cappella groups. Faux’s logo also reflected that sentiment: the inverted treble clef turns the Treblemakers’ logo upside down.
During the group’s first semester, “The Looney Tunes'' became an unpopular name among members. Other names were considered until someone suggested “The Faux Posse,” which eventually became “The Faux Paz.” The bilingual French-Spanish translation of “false peace” proved to be appropriate, due to the group’s initially tense relationship with other UMD a cappella groups. Faux’s logo also reflected that sentiment: the inverted treble clef turns the Treblemakers’ logo upside down.
Faux Paz Now
Since then, Faux Paz has continued to grow in popularity throughout Maryland and beyond. The group has traveled the country to perform at universities, high schools, private events, and numerous competitions. Faux Paz frequently competes in the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) and won the competition in 2021.
Albums
Faux Paz has released eight studio albums and is currently developing their ninth record with The Vocal Company.
The group's most recent release is Lithium, released in November 2017. The album includes Faux’s entire 2016 ICCA set, which brought them to International Finals for the second year in a row and earned them the third place award, their first place-winning 2017 BOSS set, amongst many others. This album received a total of 11 CARA (Contemporary A Cappella Awards) nominations in 2017 and 2018, and won CARA's for the tracks, Where Are Ü Now and Emperor's New Clothes. The track, Bad Blood, was featured on the BOCA 2018: Best of College A Cappella compilation album. Lithium is available for digital listening on iTunes, Spotify, SoundCloud, Tidal, and more.
The group's most recent release is Lithium, released in November 2017. The album includes Faux’s entire 2016 ICCA set, which brought them to International Finals for the second year in a row and earned them the third place award, their first place-winning 2017 BOSS set, amongst many others. This album received a total of 11 CARA (Contemporary A Cappella Awards) nominations in 2017 and 2018, and won CARA's for the tracks, Where Are Ü Now and Emperor's New Clothes. The track, Bad Blood, was featured on the BOCA 2018: Best of College A Cappella compilation album. Lithium is available for digital listening on iTunes, Spotify, SoundCloud, Tidal, and more.