Raagapella, Stanford’s newest a cappella group, has advanced to the semifinals of the International Championship of Collegiate a Cappella (ICCA), which will take place tomorrow in San Rafael at the Marin Center for Performing Arts.

Raagapella — an all-male 13-member group that was founded in 2002 — specializes in the fusion of South Asian and Western musical styles.

Music Director Vivek Agrawal ‘07 said Raagapella is the first South Asian a cappella group to reach the ICCA semifinals.

“Since ICCA is the highest a cappella championship around, we are proud of our achievement as a first-time participant,” Agrawal said.

Founded in 1996, ICCA is held every year from January to April in seven regions throughout the United States and Western Europe. In the semifinals, Raagapella will compete in the West division against eight groups. Financial Manager Nikhil Kamat ‘09 said Brigham Young University’s Vocal Point, which won last year’s event, will be Raagapella’s toughest competition this weekend.

“In our semifinal performance, we plan to present a fusion of three different kinds of songs,” Raagapella President and Business Manager Christopher Lin ‘09 said.

The three songs are “Chan Chan,” an instrumental song from the Oscar-nominated movie “Water;” “Without You,” an original composition by Agrawal; and “Mangaliyam — O Hum Dum Suniyo Re,” a fusion of Sanskrit chants and a Bollywood song.

Group members are optimistic about their chances in this weekend’s tournament.

“Given the feedback from the show’s coordinator and the judges on our quarterfinal performance, we have a good chance of making it to the final,” Kamat said. “They were pleased by our vocal clarity and uniqueness of sound and were impressed by our choreography which they referred to as being ‘organic.’”

“Right now, we are working on issues with volume at times, and are trying to sharpen our choreography,” he added.

In addition to their berth in the ICCA semifinals this weekend, the group plans to tour the East Coast during spring break and will develop a full-length show for spring quarter.

While five other Stanford groups have advanced to the ICCA semifinals in the past, only one — Talisman in 1997 — has won the championship.