Of the 17 student singers in Furmata, one of the UW’s a cappella student organizations, only one studies music. Separately, Furmata’s members come from a variety of disciplines: computer science, psychology and education, to name a few. But together, they create harmonies so sweet the group just landed a first runner-up title at the April 26 International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) finals in New York.
Were they hoping to get first after also placing second in last year’s competition? Of course. You don’t put in multi-hour practices three to five days a week if you don’t have a hunger for the win. (Co-music director Alex Zuniga, ’25, says the schedule leading up to competition was more grueling than most of their classes.) But keeping an eye on how to improve for 2026, they still feel proud of this year’s accomplishments.
“The fact that we made it this far, placed in the way that we did and outperformed the way that our group ever has, is seriously impressive to me,” says Zuniga, who is graduating this year with a degree in communications. “That matters way more than a No. 1 next to our name as opposed to a No. 2. We came together to create this set that was extremely energetic and passionate and emotional — that matters more.”
Furmata performed a 10-minute set — which the students wrote and choreographed entirely themselves — that included a mashup of “Due West” by Kelsey Lu and “WILDFLOWER” by Billie Eilish, “Alesis” by Mk.gee and “Butterfly Net” by Caroline Polachek. Zuniga and co-music director Steven Wang, who earned an award for their outstanding arrangement of the set, say they chose a theme of managing internal conflict rather than the typical a cappella fallback of romantic love.
Members of Furmata give a Dubs Up for their second-place ICCA win in New York.
Co-music directors Alex Zuniga (left) and Steven Wang won an additional award for their outstanding set arrangement.
“Furmata had such a different culture and different vibe than what I was used to. That cultural shift I felt, that's honestly the reason I decided to keep going, because it was so refreshing, so much more fun, so much more impactful.”
Zuniga first learned about Furmata during a UW Welcome Week fair before their first year, but after 11 years singing in choir, they thought maybe a break was in order. A friend joined first — the group is so competitive that less than 10 percent of those who audition make it in — and urged Zuniga to audition the following year.
“It was hard to adjust, because Furmata had such a different culture and vibe than what I was used to,” Zuniga says. “The choirs I grew up in were way more strict, way more intimidating than having a college senior writing and directing all the music. That cultural shift I felt, that’s honestly the reason I decided to keep going, because it was so refreshing, so much more fun, so much more impactful.”
Furmata will hold their senior showcase, which will include their ICCA set, on June 7 at the UW Samuel E. Kelly Ethnic Cultural Center & Theatre Complex at 7:30 p.m.
Story by Chelsea Lin // Photos courtesy of Furmata
