2008 Woodie Awards
S. P. E. B. S. Q. S. A.?
Von Lewis
Issue date: 9/4/08 Section: Features
At first glance, you might be wondering what S. P. E. B. S. Q. S. A. means? The acronym stands for the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America. The society, established in 1938, now has more than 25,000 members in the U.S. and Canada; all belonging to their respective chapters of the largest men's a cappella singing organization in the world.
"With the U.S. and Canada, and affiliates in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Germany, The Netherlands, Finland, Ireland, South Africa and the emerging Japanese entity, barbershop harmony is truly a worldwide brotherhood," said Bartow Houston, a skilled member of the society.
Greenville, indeed, has its own barbershop chapter that meets every Monday evening at 7:30 p.m. at Shepherd Library East Branch, and they are looking for more members.
"The Greenville Barbershop Chapter is currently trying to 'rejuvenate' itself," said Houston. "I first sang with the chorus in 1962, and over the years its fortunes have waxed and waned. I am hopeful that the 'Brotherhood of Harmony' is once again moving in the right direction."
"With a dynamic director and a number of 'veterans,' the only missing aspect is adding some enthusiastic new singers, especially younger men," Houston said.
Houston has been enthralled with barbershop singing for a long time and hopes to pass on the tradition to the younger generations as it was passed on to him.
He recalls, "In 1949, when I was ten years old, a young man moved to my Little Washington hometown to start a choral music program in the local high school. He took a room with a family across the street from where I lived. He let me listen to records (1978) of college men's glee clubs and some barbershop quartets. Although I became "hooked" on the unique sound, especially those chords, I really could not have explained it then. In 1954, as a high school sophomore, I was selected to sing in a barbershop quartet. That was when my life-long love affair with that genre of music began. Incidentally, the man who introduced me to choral music, and especially barbershop, retired many years later as Dean of the School of Music at ECU, Charlie Stevens."
"With the U.S. and Canada, and affiliates in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Germany, The Netherlands, Finland, Ireland, South Africa and the emerging Japanese entity, barbershop harmony is truly a worldwide brotherhood," said Bartow Houston, a skilled member of the society.
Greenville, indeed, has its own barbershop chapter that meets every Monday evening at 7:30 p.m. at Shepherd Library East Branch, and they are looking for more members.
"The Greenville Barbershop Chapter is currently trying to 'rejuvenate' itself," said Houston. "I first sang with the chorus in 1962, and over the years its fortunes have waxed and waned. I am hopeful that the 'Brotherhood of Harmony' is once again moving in the right direction."
"With a dynamic director and a number of 'veterans,' the only missing aspect is adding some enthusiastic new singers, especially younger men," Houston said.
Houston has been enthralled with barbershop singing for a long time and hopes to pass on the tradition to the younger generations as it was passed on to him.
He recalls, "In 1949, when I was ten years old, a young man moved to my Little Washington hometown to start a choral music program in the local high school. He took a room with a family across the street from where I lived. He let me listen to records (1978) of college men's glee clubs and some barbershop quartets. Although I became "hooked" on the unique sound, especially those chords, I really could not have explained it then. In 1954, as a high school sophomore, I was selected to sing in a barbershop quartet. That was when my life-long love affair with that genre of music began. Incidentally, the man who introduced me to choral music, and especially barbershop, retired many years later as Dean of the School of Music at ECU, Charlie Stevens."
Be the first to comment on this story