Collegiate Quartets Bring High Energy To International Singing Competition, Hits Anaheim 6/28-7/5

The sounds you hear will be harmonious. They will be plentiful. And they will be uniquely American in their roots, but expansively international in their impact. They will come from thousands of people gathering to join in song in Anaheim, California June 28 – July 5.

Close harmony singers from across the world will meet in Anaheim for the Barbershop Harmony Society’s 71st annual international convention and competitions. Singers and their fans from several countries will gather for shows, clinics, competitions, and good old-fashioned sing-alongs.

Twenty-eight collegiate barbershop quartets square off in the finals of the 18th annual Bank of America Collegiate Barbershop Quartet Contest Saturday, July 4 at 8:00 a.m. in the Honda Center
 
Competing quartets will come from the USA, Canada, Sweden, Britain, and New Zealand. Many hope to follow in the footsteps of previous collegiate quartet winners Road Trip (2007), Vocal Spectrum (2004), and Four Voices (1996), as all quartets went on to best the “big boys” and win international men’s quartet contests.
 
Like their counterparts in the Society's regular contest, these groups have come through qualifying competitions to earn a spot in the finals. Medals, trophies and bragging rights await the top five finishers.
 
"College-age men love the full sound and overtones of barbershop harmony,” said Ed Watson, chief executive officer for the Society. “And, of course,” he adds, laughing, “singers are quite popular with females.”
 
The college quartet contest is judged under the same rules and criteria as regular Society quartets in international competition, however the collegiate quartet contest only has one round. The men’s contest has three rounds.
 
Additional information regarding the Barbershop Harmony Society’s 71st annual international convention and competitions will be released as it becomes available. Tickets to this event are included in the full registration package. To get more information or purchase a registration, visit www.barbershop.org/anaheim.
 
About the Barbershop Harmony Society:   Founded in 1938 in Tulsa, Okla., the Barbershop Harmony Society is the largest all-male singing organization in the world with nearly 30,000 members including 1500 quartets in 800 chapters. Another 4,000 barbershoppers are members of affiliated organizations in Australia, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, The Netherlands, Finland, New Zealand, South Africa, and Sweden. The Society is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, and is home to the Old Songs Library; the world’s largest privately held collection of sheet music, containing 750,000 sheets and 125,000 titles from the heyday of Tin Pan Alley. The Heritage Hall Museum of Barbershop Harmony, also located in Harmony Hall, serves as a repository for barbershop memorabilia, early recordings, costumes, research materials, and historical documents tracing the roots of the barbershop style.

Barbershop harmony is a uniquely American musical art form. It is known for its four-part harmony and the “expanded sound” created by its unique chord.