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The Barbershop Harmony Society, legally and historically named the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. (SPEBSQSA), is the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbershop music as an art form. Founded by Owen C. Cash and Rupert I. Hall in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1938, the organization quickly grew, promoting barbershop harmony among men of all ages. As of 2014, just under 23,000 men in the United States and Canada were members of this organization whose focus is on a cappella music. The international headquarters was in Kenosha, Wisconsin for fifty years before moving to Nashville, Tennessee in 2007. In June 2018, the society announced it would allow women to join as full members.
Vocal Majority (VM) is a Dallas, Texas-based men's chorus of over 150 singers, who bill themselves with the tagline "Pure Harmony." VM is the performing chorus of the Dallas Metro chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS). Vocal Majority has won thirteen International Chorus Championships, a Barbershop Harmony Society record. The first eleven gold medals were earned under the direction of Jim Clancy, who retired from International competition after 2010. The most recent championships, in 2014 and 2018, came under the direction of Jim's son Greg Clancy, the current Musical Director of VM.
Founded in 1985 with just a few dozen men, the Masters of Harmony is a 110-member men's chorus, based in Greater Los Angeles, California. Winner of eight consecutive gold medals (1990–2011) in international barbershop chorus competitions, the group possesses a diverse repertoire encompassing not only barbershop music but also classical, jazz, patriotic, sacred, standards and Broadway pops, and sings for various groups and organizations throughout the greater Los Angeles, California metropolitan area. The chorus won another barbershop international competition in 2017, bringing their total gold medal count to nine.
The Ambassadors of Harmony (AOH) is a 120+ member men's barbershop chorus, based in St. Charles, Missouri. The chorus won International Championship gold medals in 2004, 2009, and 2012, each time singing two arrangements by David Wright, under the direction of Dr. Jim Henry, and then again in 2016, under the co-direction of Jonny Moroni and Dr. Henry. Their 2009 victory broke a nearly three-decade winning streak by the Vocal Majority.
The Westminster Chorus is a men's a cappella chorus based in Westminster, California. International Chorus Champions of the Barbershop Harmony Society in 2007, 2010, 2015, and 2019, and Choir of the World in 2009, they are composed almost entirely of men under the age of 40.
The British Association of Barbershop Singers (BABS) is a British organisation of male barbershop singers. It was formed in 1974 and is affiliated with the Barbershop Harmony Society.
The Sound of the Rockies (SOR) is an a cappella men's chorus based in greater Denver, Colorado. They are currently the 4th place International Bronze Medalist Chorus for the Barbershop Harmony Society. In 2007, they co-hosted the International Convention in Denver with the Denver Mountainaires. The chorus comprises between 90-100 voices currently.
Ringmasters is a Swedish barbershop quartet affiliated with the Society of Nordic Barbershop Singers (SNOBS). The quartet received first place gold medals at the Nordic Barbershop Quartet Contest in Stockholm, and won the Barbershop Harmony Society International Collegiate Championship in July 2008 in Nashville, Tennessee. On July 8, 2012, at the Society's International Convention in Portland, Oregon, they became the first quartet from outside North America to win the prestigious gold medal as International Quartet Champions. The quartet sings non-traditional barbershop harmonies with a contemporary touch.
The Chorus of the Chesapeake is a men's a cappella chorus, based in Dundalk, Maryland. Chartered in 1957 as the Dundalk chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society, the chorus is rich in both history and accomplishment.
OC Times is a male barbershop quartet affiliated with the Barbershop Harmony Society. They earned second place silver medals at the International Barbershop Quartet Contest at Denver's Pepsi Center on July 7, 2007, and won the International Quartet Championship on July 5, 2008, in Nashville, Tennessee. The quartet combines traditional barbershop harmonies with contemporary music styles. The music of OC Times is inspired by artists like Michael Buble, Sinatra, and Elvis.
The Northwest Sound Men's Chorus is a men's a cappella chorus located in Bellevue, Washington, as a chapter of the Evergreen District, a part of the Barbershop Harmony Society. The chorus celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2010. The chorus membership draws from the Greater Puget Sound area. The group does a yearly community outreach called "Sing, Sing, Sing!" that offers free singing lessons for men of all ages.
Old School is the barbershop quartet that won the International Quartet Championship for 2011 at the Barbershop Harmony Society's annual international convention, in Kansas City, Missouri. The quartet had earned silver medals the two years before, losing to Crossroads and Storm Front respectively, before winning gold medals in front of future champions Musical Island Boys, Masterpiece, Main Street, Forefront, and After Hours.
Voices of Gotham (VoG) is a competitive and performing chorus composed of approximately 60 singers from New York City and surrounding areas. VoG represents the 'Hell's Kitchen, New York' chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society, and is the 2013 Mid-Atlantic District Chorus Champion. VoG was most recently designated the 10th best barbershop chorus in the world in the 2017 Barbershop Harmony Society Chorus Competition in Las Vegas, Nevada. Voices of Gotham was founded by 12 'charter members' on January 8, 2008 and holds weekly auditions for prospective singers.
Masterpiece is the barbershop quartet that won the International Quartet Championship for 2013 at the Barbershop Harmony Society's annual international convention, in Toronto, Ontario. The quartet's preliminary qualifying score of 88.5% was the second highest among 2013's international competitors. The foursome placed third and fourth in the two preceding international contests, and won two CARA awards in 2013 prior to their international championship. Hailing from the Society's Far Western District, this quartet sings in the barbershop style with contemporary influences.
Musical Island Boys is the barbershop quartet that won the International Quartet Championship for 2014 at the Barbershop Harmony Society's annual international convention, in Las Vegas, Nevada. From Wellington, New Zealand, the quartet began in 2002 at Tawa College, and competed in its first international barbershop contest in 2004. They won the international collegiate contest in 2006 at Indianapolis, and won second-place silver medals in the 2011, 2012, and 2013 international contests. Other awards include the New Zealand and Pan-Pacific Open Gold Medals at the 4th Pan Pacific Barbershop Convention in 2004, and second place in the International Open Barbershop Championships in 2011.
Main Street is a barbershop quartet that started singing as a group on March 20, 2011.
Instant Classic is the barbershop quartet that won the International Quartet Championship for 2015 at the Barbershop Harmony Society's annual international convention, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The quartet had placed eighth in the 2014 international contest, and their single "I Won't Send Roses" was a runner up for Best Barbershop Song among the CARA awards in 2015 prior to their international championship. Instant Classic placed second in the 2012 International Collegiate Barbershop Quartet Contest.
Harmony, Incorporated, is an international organization of women singers whose purpose is to empower all women through education, friendship and singing. Founded by 1959 by Peggy Rigby, Charlotte Sneddon, Mary Avis Hedges, Jeanne Maino and Mary Perry in Providence, Rhode Island, the organization currently has just under 2000 members in the United States and Canada and is closely affiliated with the Barbershop Harmony Society.
James Henry, most commonly referred to as "Jim Henry", is a vocal music professor, barbershop bass singer, and co-director of the Ambassadors of Harmony (AOH). He is a multiple international award-winning quartet member, whose quartets have appeared nationally on the NBC, PBS, and Fox television networks. Henry is the current director of choral studies at the University of Missouri–St. Louis and a contributing author of widely used musical reference works.
Finest Hour is the 2017 European barbershop quartet champion. The quartet also won the 2016 British barbershop quartet championship in Harrogate in May 2016. Finest Hour went to Las Vegas for the international competition in 2017, placing 28th in the world. Since then, their qualifying score of 83%, the UK record for a male quartet, scored in May 2018 in Harrogate, qualified them again to represent the British Association of Barbershop Singers (BABS) at the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS)'s 2019 international competition held in Salt Lake City, where they placed 22nd.
References
- ↑ Hall, Kristin M. (July 13, 2016). "Barbershop singers try to update their image". The Charlotte Observer . Associated Press. Retrieved July 16, 2016.[ permanent dead link ]
- ↑ "Official Scoring Summary, BHS, International, Quartet Finals, Nashville, Tennessee, July 9, 2016" (PDF). July 9, 2016. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
- ↑ "Official Scoring Summary, BHS, International, Quartet Finals, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 5, 2014" (PDF). July 5, 2014. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
- ↑ "Official Scoring Summary, BHS, International, Quartet Finals, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, July 4, 2015" (PDF). July 4, 2015. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
- ↑ "Forefront captures quartet championship". Barbershop Harmony Society. July 9, 2016. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
- ↑ "Forefront". Primarily A Cappella. United Singers International. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
