Last month current and former Mezumenet singers reunited in the Hoff Theater in STAMP for the 15th anniversary and send-off concert for the treble Jewish a-cappella group. 

The last Jewish member in Mezumenet, senior Environmental Science and Policy major Alyssa Levin is set to graduate in May, so Mezumenet is set to go on a hiatus. The other four members of the group will form their own a cappella group that’s entirely separate from Mezumenet. 

According to Levin, there have been fewer Jewish students auditioning for the various on-campus a capella groups, and since Mezumenet was founded as a modern Orthodox group, Jewish singers are key to the organization’s success. 

“When they first formed the group [the founders] had to turn people away because there were so many individuals who are Jewish that were interested in singing a capella and that’s not the case now,” Levin said. 

About 30 alumni returned to sing together once more. In classic Mezumenet tradition, some former members finally received their M, decorated with photos from their time. One senior, Ceoli Jacoby who graduated in 2023 got to sing her senior song “Feeling Good” a year later with the current group and some alumni. 

Mezumenet was formed by four Jewish women who started singing together during their gap year in Israel. The group arrived in College Park in the Fall of 2008, growing tremendously during its 15-year run at the University of Maryland. 

“We started with four members singing in Hillel on a Friday night,” Eliana Sudikoff, one of the founders of the group said. “…We were creating our own arrangements just by singing together and now what I hear is that they have mics, sheet music and structured parts.”

Mezumenet is known for creating Jewish parodies to popular American songs and closed out the concert with some classics including the Shabbat Medley and “Rabbi’s Son,” a parody of Fountains of Wayne’s “Stacey’s Mom.”

Members came near and far to participate in this 15th anniversary send-off with at least one member flying in all the way from Israel to be there for the special weekend. The alums’ dedication to come back demonstrated how important the group was to shape their college experiences, and just how tight-knit everyone still is. 

“I almost skipped out on the Mez callback,” Levin said. “…Some of the [local] alumni came out and sat with me in the hallway while I was working on my piece for the callback and helped me learn that piece. I probably would not have gotten my callback without that but it was that sense of community and family and genuine care that was really important to me.” 

As part of the weekend, Mezumenet had a group-wide Friday night Shabbat meal, lunch Saturday and then havdalah to end Shabbat before the concert Sunday afternoon. 

Many alums are sad to see the club go on a hiatus but are happy with how the send-off concert and anniversary weekend went. 

“It was really nice to have an official way to say thank you to the people who have kept this group going over the last 15 years,” Emma Fensterheim who graduated from the University of Maryland in 2015 said.

Even though Mezumenet’s run as an official UMD student group has come to a close for the time being, the traditions and memories will still carry on for all the alumni.  

Mezumenet will be recording their final studio album, at least for the time being, this summer.  

“Mezumenet has always been more than a capella group,” “It has always been a family first and foremost and a singing group second,” Fensterheim said.