Text Box: Welcome to Enchanted Mesa Show Chorus , Sweet Adelines International and the "Wonderful World of Barbershop" !       If you've never sung barbershop harmony before, you probably want to know what's the big deal about picking a part. Well, barbershop doesn't name it's voice parts soprano or alto. We use the terms lead (the melody), baritone, tenor and bass. That's why we need to "pick the part" best suited to you. A Musical Staff member will listen to you and will have you run through some scales. We will place you on the risers next to someone who sings your voice part. You can listen to her and sing along, hum, or just listen. We might even change parts sometimes until we find the part that is just right for you. When we start moving (choreography), you may step down or "dodge". If we're being taught something, it's okay to stay on the risers and learn along with us. If we go into section rehearsal, please join in. As a sign respect to our director or any member in front of the chorus, we try not to talk while on the risers, so we'll be happy to answer all your questions before or after each rehearsal. Keep reading to find out about the voice parts, the music and more...   LEAD   She generally carries the melody line of the song, so she must sing with authority. Ideally, the lead voice has clarity, brilliance, depth, maturity, and a ‘sense of style’.  She utilizes a sufficient amount of vibrato to add interest or warmth to the tone, but not too much as to distort chord accuracy.  Her voice range is normally G below middle C to high C.  Her voice quality should remain consistent throughout transition from her chest register to her head register and vice versa.  She should be capable of a wide range of expressive dynamics.   TENOR With her distinctive qualities, lightness and almost bell-like clarity, the tenor has sufficient maturity of sound to complement the other voices.  Since the tenor is sung primarily above the lead, the voice must be capable of singing high notes, G – B above the high C, with consistent quality and control.  Unlike the soprano voice, the barbershop tenor uses very little vibrato; and should be almost imperceptible.   BARITONE  The baritone (referred to as “bari”) provides the important fourth tone of the chord and she must be the most flexible in vocal quality.  She sings in the same range as the lead, but with less clarity.  The consistency of quality between head and chest registers is desirable, but less important than in the lead voice, for the baritone actually sing with two voices.  When she is below the lead, she sings with the depth of tone that fills the gap between the bass and lead; when she is above the lead, her quality becomes more tenor-like, so as not to overshadow the melody.  Proper handling of the intricacies of the baritone part plays an important role in achieving the lock and ring characteristic of barbershop sound.   BASS  The bass must also possess the ability to sing with authority, for it is she who puts a solid foundation on every single chord.  The bass voice must have a mellow, melodic quality, but with sufficient weight to add the desirable bass timbre to the group sound.  She must be capable sufficient volume and projection on her lowest tones so that the bass sound is not overshadowed by the other parts.  The average bass range is C below middle C to F above the middle C.   PLEASE NOTE:  These are “ideal” qualities we hope to achieve.   BARBERSHOP MUSIC – What is it?  O you know that there are three native American forms of folk music?  They : spirituals, cowboy ballads, and barbershop harmony.  Barbershop harmony contains all the elements of folk music – especially in “woodshedding” (improvisational singing).  It is however, a distinct style, using close four-part voicing and making frequent use of the melodies seventh chord – a chord structure rarely used in other musical forms.   Barbershop music is sung “a cappella”.  The treble clef is sung as written; the bass clef is sung an octave higher than written.  Instrumental accompaniment is used only on rare occasions for variety or special effect.             THE BARBERSHOP CONE Another factor that distinguishes barbershop from other types of music is the “cone-shaped” balance of a barbershop chord.  The basses, with their broad resonant voices, form the base of the cone; the tenors, with their floating quality, form the top; the leads and baritones alternately shift between the second and third positions in the cone (as the melody shirts within each chord).  It follows then, that the baritone will use a broader voice quality when singing below the lead then they will use when singing above the lead.   THE MUSIC We sing many different types of songs, all are four-part harmony, but some are strictly arranged within the barbershop chord structure while others have a more modern sound. There are sentimental songs of the early 1900's, 40's wartime, great Broadway tunes, standard patriotic songs and even original barbershop melodies.   Tempo driven numbers are sung with a solid, pulsing beat - occasionally punctuated and embellished by a swipe or chord progression which may retard or break the tempo of the song.   The ballad, on the other hand, is usually not sung with a metered cadence, but generally sung with free flowing phrasing, ad lib, which serves to accent the meaning of the words. While the inherent tempo is never completely abandoned, the primary emphasis is on artistic delivery of the message of the song rather than strict adherence to the written tempo. Not to worry, under every circumstance, just...FOLLOW THE DIRECTOR!   TAPING You will probably notice that we use tape recorders during rehearsal. Although a lot of us do read music, there are quite a few members who do not. They learn the music by taping the rehearsal and listening to them during the week. We also provide learning tapes for each voice part. As a means of "quality control", the chorus has a taping program wherein each member records herself during a special run-through of a repertoire song and turns that tape into her section leader. They are checked for note and word errors, and help us to ensure that our chords are, indeed four-part. It is probably easiest to use a small tape recorder that can be taken on to the risers. If you don't have one we will help you by loaning you a tape recorder during rehearsal until you can purchase one.   SWEET ADELINES INTERNATIONAL is a grand organization! Singing in a good Sweet Adeline Chorus is an enjoyable experience, unlike any other, and does require effort...but the more a member puts into her Chorus, the more enjoyment she will receive in return. The rewards are well worth it!!!   WELCOME TO THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF BARBERSHOP! AND THE ENCHANTED MESA SHOW CHORUS!!!      

 

 

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