When is National Barbershop Quartet Day?
Tuesday April 11thToes re-harmonise on April 11th as a result of National Barbershop Quartet Day. Barbershop quartets have a way of making the heart flutter. They take us back to a simpler time or at least make it standstill, or at least make it standstill.
Barbershop quartets are a form of a cappella or unaccompanied vocal music. Their music includes songs with clear lyrics and easily singable melodies.
Barbershop music gained a following between 1900 and 1919. It began to fade into obscurity in the 1920s. However, the barbershop quartet saw a revival when the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America was established. This tongue twister of a men's group quickly grew, as did other similar groups promoting barbershop music as an art form. SPEBSQSA members today, with just under 25,000 men in the United States and Canada.
But men aren't the only ones performing four-part harmony, and they aren't the only ones singing four-part harmony. Organizations like the Sweet Adelines bring women of all ages together around the country, melding their voices together and attracting crowds of people to fun tunes, from swooning to fun tunes. The women also compete, much like the men's clubs. They tune their voices and rehearse while also performing locally.
