What is the Barbershop Harmony Society?

In 1938 a small group of men gathered one evening to sing their favourite old-time songs. From this informal meeting and the singers' enthusiasm grew an international organization dedicated to preserving one of North America's unique song styles -- barbershop harmony.

The founders named their organization the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America (SPEBSQSA) as a parody of the multi-initialed government agencies which existed at the time, i.e. CCC, WPA, NRA, etc. In 2005 the society was renamed to the Barbershop Harmony Society in order to better represent the world-wide membership. The original group of 26 men would take great pride in the Society that today numbers more than 40.000 members in 2,000 chapters throughout the United States, Canada and the rest of the world. As barbershoppers travel the world they take their hobby with them making this the largest all male singing group in the world.

Barbershop singing, like jazz and spiritual, is a truly North American style of music. It is a chromatic four-part harmony sung by four unaccompanied voices. In barbershop harmony the melody is sung by the lead, which the tenor part is sung above the lead. The bass sings lower than the lead and the baritone provides the in-between notes that complete the chords which give barbershop harmony its distinctive four-part sound.

Barbershop harmony may be sung by either a quartet or a chorus. While quartets have only four singers, choruses may number from 10 to more that 200. The basic unit of the Society is a chapter whose members sing in the chapter chorus and may also sing in quartets. Chapters have one or more quartets in their ranks as members are often attracted to singing in the format the Society founders first promoted.

The Barber Shop Quartet Society is organized geographically, grouping states and provinces into 16 districts. An international office in Kenosha, Wisconsin coordinates all Society activities. An executive director supervises a staff which provides services to chapters, districts and Society members. The majority of Society activities are planned, organized and implemented by members who volunteer their time and talents. An International Board of Directors guides the Society's development and provides leadership for the organization.

For more information on Barbershopping, visit the Barbershop Harmony Society, Sweet Adelines, or the Land O' Lakes District Home Page.

BARBERSHOP CODE OF ETHICS