The Barbershop Harmony Society

LATEST NEWS: 4th of July | 2010 Spring Show | Philadelphia International Competition | Temple Square Concert Series | More...

Keep the Whole World Singing

About The Barbershop Harmony Society

Motto: Keep the Whole World Singing

Worldwide Activity: We have affiliated barbershop organizations in Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Ireland, South Africa, Sweden, The Netherlands, and Great Britain. There are also barbershop singers in Denmark, Israel, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and parts of

the former Soviet Union.

Founding: First meeting: April 11, 1938 at the Roof Garden of the Tulsa Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Charitable Activities: Barbershoppers donate money, time, and performances to local charities. They also proudly support the Society’s official charity, Harmony Foundation, Inc. The mission of the Foundation is “to be a leading philanthropic force dedicated to perpetuating the barbershop harmony art form for present and future generations to enjoy.”

Competition: Society-sanctioned contests in quartet and chorus singing are held at local, regional, and international levels. International champions are named in chorus, quartet, youth chorus, and college quartet divisions at the international convention each July; international seniors champions named at the midwinter convention each January.

Barbershop Harmony Defined: Four-part, unaccompanied, close-harmony singing, with melody in the second voice, called the “lead.” Tenor (counter-tenor voice) harmonizes above the lead singer; bass sings the lowest harmonizing notes, and the baritone provides in-between notes, to form consonant, pleasing chords. Barbershop is a “melting pot” product of African-American musical devices, European hymn-singing culture, and an American tradition of recreational music. Melodies are in the vocal and skill range of the average singer, with lyrical emphasis on simple, heartfelt emotions.