The Fredösphere

Wow.  Just what I needed.  Go see barbershop quartet arranger David Wright's presentation on the topic of barbershop style.  It's packed with tantalizing snippets of great vocal harmonizing, with great examples from old-tyme groups such as the Flat Foot Four.  It also offers a peek at the internal debate raging within the Barbershop Harmony organization on what music may be "contestable," i.e., allowed to be sung in official barbershop singing contests.

Don't read the text first; go straight to the video, so as to hear the musical examples referenced.  The photos in sepia tones of quartets from decades past are priceless.  Consult this barbershop dictionary if you don't know the lingo.

Wright is a liberal (ahem!) who argues for the use of tight sixths and other influences from jazz and blues.  His examples show these chords' presence in barbershop harmony for decades.  Apparently, "reforms" during the 1970s severely limited what embellishments and polyphonic effects could be used in official competitions, resulting in many classic barbershop arrangements being marginalized in the movement they helped define.

Best line:  "Note the long sequence of chords, exaggerated even more by the performance, clearly sung for the pure enjoyment of barbershop harmony. Is it indulgent? Some might say so.  Is it a part of the barbershop style? Most definitely."

Labels: BarbershopHarmony