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From 2012 - Our Executive Director, Todd Wilson interviews his father, Harlan Wilson. Todd and Harlan, along with Bruce Cokeroft and Taylor Wilson founded the Nashville Singers back in 2008. Harlan turns 90 years old on August 28, 2021.

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Our friend Bryson Finney had a 36 minute conversation with Nashville Singers Artistic Director Todd Wilson this past week.  You can check it out here.

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Swedish Quartet Lemon Squeezy Discusses Their Musical Journey with Todd Wilson

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Lemon Squeezy for the Nashville Singers weekly email newsletter. He is one of the founders of the Middle Tennessee-based nonprofit and serves the organization as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

ABOUT LEMON SQUEEZY: Lemon Squeezy was founded a dark and snowy night in the beginning of February 2010. Since then, the quartet has developed a crisp and delightful sound throughout a big variety of songs, ranging from Swedish men’s choir to Elvis Presley.In the summer of 2012, Lemon Squeezy won the Collegiate World Championship in Barbershop. Two years later, in Las Vegas, they achieved 5th place in the open International Competition, moving on to 4th in 2015 and a silver medal in 2016. 

The members include:

Tenor / Alexander Löfstedt Lead / Victor Nilsson Bass / Martin Jangö Baritone / Sam Molavi

TW: What/who brought the four of you guys together?

LS: The most important component in bringing the four of us together would be school, we have all attended (although not entirely simultaneously) the same school. Like so many Stockholmian young barbershoppers, we attended Adolf Fredrik’s school of music for elementary school, then attended High school together at Kungsholmen’s Gymnasium for music. Our attending the same school has definitely kept us together in the sense that we all have had a similar upbringing, and we share similar ideas of how we relate to singing. It’s more of a holistic, abstract feeling knowing you have the same ideology as the others, the same technique for battling the things we singers battle; pitch, tone and portrayal of the song.

But to more directly answer the question, it was Zero8 that brought us together. I also feel it’s important to acknowledge the fact that we are four friends who very much enjoy each other’s company. I believe this is why we have been able to stay together for almost 10 years.

TW: What singing groups do you admire most and what about them inspires you?

LS: Without any particular order: Ringmasters, Zero8, The Real Group, GQ, Pentatonix, Westminster (Chorus) and Vocal Spectrum. What is inspiring about them would simply be the fact that they are groups we listen to! If you listen to a group, there are probably lots of things about them that you like and get inspired from. It can be anything from sound to arrangements, power or the ability to move you.

TW: As someone who has walked in your shoes, what steps have you all taken to maintain a quality quartet/work/life/family balance?

LS: Haha looking at the past few years, we definitely haven’t had that much of a balance. Or maybe that’s what balance is, making it against the odds and what life throws at you? If there are any steps we have taken it would be to not panic when things look grim, and to give each other time when needed. Only bad things will come out of pressuring someone whose life takes a turn that “gets in the way” of the group.

TW: With the rigors that come with being in a sought after quartet, how often are you able to get together to rehearse these days?

LS: Right now we rehearse once a week, usually from 18:00-21:00.

TW: What can you tell us about a few of your most memorable Lemon Squeezy performances?

LS: There was a night in early 2013, we were in Miami and had just met GQ for the first time during a workshop for younger students. After the workshop we were invited to a fancy house close to the water and spent the whole evening just singing for each other. Quite the memory! Our first ever international quartet finals were also quite memorable, Las Vegas 2014 singing Pass Me the Jazz for the first time and getting quite heavily penalized by the judges. Good times. One more thing that comes to mind was last year when we were invited to sing at a street festival in Egypt. Egypt! It’s pretty amazing the places you get to visit through singing!

TW: What was it like to perform at your first BHS International Quartet Contest?

LS: Very nervous. Isn’t it like that for everyone? It was at the 2010 convention in Philadelphia. We had just formed a few months earlier so barbershop was very new to us. None of us had been on such a grand “display” before, so it was quite overwhelming. It’s one of those early performances where you vaguely remember walking on stage, maaaaybe a few seconds into the first song but after that it’s mostly just impressions and feelings. And then *poof* it’s over. But it was enough to get us hooked for the coming nine years!

TW: I'm sure you've had a chance to work with some amazing coaches over the years. What is some of the best advice you have been given by a coach?

LS: We’ve only really worked with one “coach” in the sense that most barbershop groups do. We have had a fair share of different coaching experiences and the first lesson was to learn who and what works for you. If you try to listen to too many opinions and/or coaches you may just end up getting confused instead. In terms of advice there are two people who have meant a lot to us. Doug Harrington and David McEachern.

David has helped us understand the way of actual portrayal of feelings rather than just animating your face without reason (which has been the norm of the past years). If we were to try to relay some kind of concrete advice that works well in an interview it would be David’s strive for honouring the music. To let the music speak for itself in all its many ways. Listen to what the underlying message of the song is, both lyrical and musically and then honour that in every way possible!

Doug has more of a fatherly role to us, he has helped us and taught us in so many ways ranging from large technical advances to small tips, tricks and tools to help us do the artistic things we want to. He has also reshaped a lot of music for us. Up to the point of him moving from Sweden in 2016 there wasn’t one song we sang that didn’t have his touch. We have learned so much from that and now we probably try to do it ourselves.

The past two-three years we have really been each other’s coaches. We work together more than anything, listen, talk, sing, record, confront and build ideas. It’s an artistic process and it needs time, a lot of time.

TW: How has singing changed/impacted your lives?

LS: Very hard to say. We can all attest to not knowing how our lives would look without singing and none of us would probably want to change that fact.

TW: What are a few of your most memorable interactions with fans, either in person, via social media or email? LS: Just the fact that somebody wants to wear a t-shirt with our name is pretty darn spectacular!

TW: What cool stuff do you guys have coming up in the near future?

LS: We are currently recording our second studio album, a project that is more than a few years overdue. But all the more exciting! This album is going to be something different than what has been done the past fifteen or so years. We simply stand in a studio made specifically for acoustic recording and we sing. Just our voices. Very exciting!

TW: What are some yet-to-be-completed things you have on your quartet "bucket list"?

You can follow Lemon Squeezy online through the following links:

Website: http://www.lemonsqueezy.se/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lsquartet Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/LSQbass/videos Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/lemon-squeezy-quartet Twitter: https://twitter.com/LemonSqueezyQ

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HOW CAN I KEEP FROM SINGING by Crossroads

A review by Todd Wilson

So I got a text on July 20th from my friend Fred Farrell. The point of his contact was to ask if I would consider publishing a review of Crossroads' fourth CD release, How Can I Keep from Singing.

Before Fred, Jim, Brandon and Mike came together from other notable champion quartets to form Crossroads, and quickly won the International Quartet Championship in 2009. I have appreciated their friendship and admired their individual musicianship. As I pondered Fred's request for a hot minute, the first word that came to my mind was "Wow!" Like my own championship foursome ACOUSTIX, Crossroads sings a wide variety of musical styles including vocal jazz, blues, gospel, pop classics, and classic American standards. While I have served as a judge at a number of singing events, and for the Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards over a span of almost 20 years, I have never been asked to review a new CD, so I am looking forward to this new journey in my music-filled life. LISTENING ENVIRONMENTS: I listened to these tracks in my car, on my Bose Sound Dock, and using my Fostex T20RP studio headphones. I enjoyed this recording the best in my car, as I could get more gain. My next favorite was the headphones as I could diminish background noise. The Bose speakers were last, but are portable and convenient. DISCLAIMER: Reviews are so very subjective. What I will share are my candid, personal opinions. I do not expect everyone to agree with my assessment.

01 - Just One of Those Things This refreshing new Aaron Dale arrangement opens with a scat solo by bass singer Dr. Jim Henry, and includes a wide variety of musical elements to keep things interesting. While I have no critique of the singing, Crossroads never disappoints in that category - the dynamic range felt a bit too compressed. The mix throughout this project does seem a bit dry for my personal taste but does allow Crossroads to better replicate what you might hear in an an up close and personal live performance in someone's living room at an after, afterglow. The tag was a nice musical surprise, but did not have the climactic feel you might expect. Regardless, this track showcases the amazing skills of these four singers quite well. 02 - Butter Outta Cream I've never heard this composition before and am grateful to Crossroads for expanding my horizons with this one. Great storytelling exhibited with this performance throughout. The melodic line of this song is not easy, but Mike Slamka makes difficult passages sound so effortless. Jim's solo was equally masterful and expressive, but I'd love to hear him showcased a bit more by diminishing the gain of the BGVs a wee bit and adding a touch more verb. The dry mix worked better for me on this track, than the first, however, the compressed dynamic range still left me wanting more of what we might experience from a live performance. And YES, these guys do look like they enjoy butter and cream. : ) 03 - This Heart of Mine This song grabbed me from the first word and held my attention to the very end. That statement defines emotional engagement. On the first two tracks, my ears were drawn more to (lead and bass) Mike and Jim. Fred and Brandon did nothing to call attention to what they were doing or distract me in any way. This ballad was a great vehicle to demonstrate the mood you can create when four gifted voices come together to tell a powerful story. But, it really showcased the vocal prowess of Brandon on baritone and Freddie on tenor. All four singers OWNED this performance. Hearing this made me want to reach out to arranger Brent Graham to request the sheet music so I could perform this song with my brothers in the Nashville Singers. My favorite track so far. Well done gents. 04 - A Wonderful Time Up There Intros can be a chance to capture the attention of the listener, get you in the right mood, and set the tone for the rest of the song. That said, I could have done without the first 10 seconds of this track. With the Blackwood Brothers, this southern Gospel classic showcased their bass singer, J.D. Sumner. David Wright's arrangement, while dominated by the dulcet tones of bass singer Dr. Jim Henry, also included solos by lead singer Mike Slamka and baritone Brandon Guyton. When it comes to nailing the soulfulness you often hear in great gospel quartet soloist, Brandon Guyton won the authenticity award in this mini version of the "Sing-Off." Jim's mastery of his voice through a huge range is very impressive. The over use of the off beat "dots" from the BGVs got a bit tedious for my taste. In a coaching session, I would encourage an alternative of some kind. 

05 - St. Louis Blues A song/arrangement like this was meant for Crossroads. Mike has such a soulful, expressive interpretation of this W.C. Handy masterpiece, arranged by David Wright. The rest of his quartet mates add the icing to the cake. They have fun with the dissonance and occasional bending of the pitch to blues it up a bit, but not too much. Jim drops a low C a few times and I could almost envision him winking as he does it. The guys exhibit a tasteful and appropriate contrast in dynamics. 06 - The Devil Ain't Lazy This chart opens with Dr. Jim and again, he does not disappoint. All four singers generate a great deal of vocal excitement, executing close jazzy chords and tricky rhythms like pros. These guys are consummate storytellers. 07 - Not Like This Wow. Just wow. OK, that's not much of a review. Let me elaborate. Take Crossroads, add the the international mixed quartet champion, Double Date, throw in a killer arrangement by Dr. Jim Henry and a soulful solo by Brandon Guyton and what you get with this track is both magical and beautiful at the same time. I have listened to this track over and over again and do not tire of it. No critique necessary. It's marvelous, and worth the price of the CD on its own. 08 - Get On Board I think you'll enjoy this catchy, uptempo toe-tapper originally popularized by The Isaacs, and arranged by Mike's son-in-law Nathan Johnson. I loved the key changes and solos. 09 - They Could Not I really like this Steve Armstrong arrangement, Mike's treatment on the melody and of course the message. These guys came together to present a majestic performance of this Sandi Patty song written by Ron Harris and Claire Cloninger. 10 - Hello Young Lovers Rodgers and Hammerstein collaborated on this composition for "The King and I."  Arranged by David Wright, this is a huge departure from the original interpretation. Kudos to David for his creativity and vision and to the guys in Crossroads for  bringing it to life. I really enjoyed this jazzy uptempo treatment, the wacky chords, and Dr. Jim's walking bass lines. 11 - How Can I Keep From Singing The lush, fat, and warm chords in the intro set the tone for this gorgeous hymn quite nicely. This David Wright arrangement showcases the sweet, tenderness in Mike's lead voice. He makes it sound so effortless. Jim Henry has many solo sections on this project, but his delivery on this song is my favorite of the bunch. That said, from a mixing point of view, I would have pulled the fader bar down a bit on the BGVs to let Jim's warmth and resonance wrap around me (the listener) even more. The tenderness, dynamics and reverence complemented the message perfectly. Bravo guys!

12 - You're My Best Friend The final cut on this project has Crossroads performing a Queen song arranged by Aaron Dale, includes Vocal Spectrum, solos by Mike Slamka and Tim Waurick, and vocal percussion by Nick Gerard. As with track 7, when you bring that much talent to the table, expectations are going to be huge. Were they met? Almost. But when your expectations are that lofty, "almost" is still very, very impressive. The singing by both quartets (as expected) was superb. The VP wasn't as distracting as I thought it might be. The arrangement kept things interesting, captured the essence of the original Queen score and introduced some new elements to boot. When you record a rock classic like this, comparisons to the original are unavoidable. The solos were stellar, but none of them delivered the sometimes "over the top" edge and passion delivered by the late Freddie Mercury. But then again, not many singers are born with those kinds of pipes? Still, this track left me wanting more. Pardon the minutia again, but similar to one of my observations in track 4, I was a bit distracted by the repeated "dah" on the tonic C note. I probably would have modified this to a "doo" and/or lower the gain a wee bit on that particular element. I liked the sweet and tender treatment at the beginning, but as the arrangement unfolded, I was hoping to hear some more edgy expressiveness to complement what was happening in the arrangement. Speaking of comparisons, when you include a contemporary a cappella chart in your project, my musical brain could not help but wonder what a few of the best collegiate a cappella groups, like the Tufts Beelzebubs or On the Rocks might have done with this chart? To end this review on a night note, (excuse the pun) another thing this track has going for it is a four-octave spread on the last chord. Nice!

In closing, this is a very fine, quality recording project with something for everyone. I encourage you to order your CD or digital download today. It's been nine years since Crossroads won the International Quartet Championship of the Barbershop Harmony Society and these four guys continue to raise the bar musically. It's an honor to have them as my friends and brothers in the Association of International Champions. They have been and will continue to be outstanding ambassadors for the a cappella community. It is no surprise that Crossroads was awarded "Quartet of the Year" in May 2018 by the inaugural A Cappella Music Awards program.

Order a copy of this or other CDs by Crossroads by clicking this link https://www.crossroadsquartet.com/cds/

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A Conversation Between Todd Wilson and Canadian Music Educator, Singer, and Musician Carl Berger

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Carl for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

ABOUT CARL BERGER: Born and raised in Toronto, Carl has been part of the Canadian music scene for nearly 30 years. He is a graduate of Arts York and the York University music program with a Fine Arts degree in ethnomusicology and jazz piano under the tutelage of Phil Dwyer, Mike Murley and Mark Eisenman. Having earned his stripes with such groups as the Toronto Orpheus Choir, York University’s Wibijazz’n’, and the all-male a cappella outfit No Band Here, in 1998 he founded the sought-after vocal band Cadence. That award-winning group has toured the world extensively, gaining acclaim and nominations for various prestigious awards including the Canadian JUNO awards. Professionally, Carl has collaborated with notable artists such as Bobby McFerrin (Don’t Worry Be Happy), Gordon Lightfoot, David Clayton-Thomas (Blood, Sweat and Tears) and have performed for Quincy Jones and Sarah McLachlan. He has recorded for film and TV, including the soundtrack for the 2010 film Casino Jack starring Kevin Spacey.

Carl Berger (baritone and bass), Ross Lynde (tenor), Lucas Marchand (tenor), ​and Kurt Sampson (bass and vocal percussion)

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An Engaging Conversation Between Todd Wilson and Performance Coach Theresa Weatherbee 

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Theresa for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

Todd: What started you down the path of making music?

Theresa: As a church choir member at 16, I was singing alto. Another singer heard my ability to hold harmony and asked if I might like to go hear her barbershop chorus. One visit and I was hooked.

Todd: Which (professional/amateur) musicians/groups do you admire most and what about them inspires you?

Theresa: I appreciate anyone performer that creates a believable character, where they suspend reality for me. If that performer happens to be a singer, it is a huge extra bonus.

Todd: Who are some of the coaches that you admire most and what about them inspires you?

Theresa: Kim Bone Vaughn inspires, motivates and creates such magic with her singer performers and Joe Connelly is such a master of connecting with the music from an emotional place. Debra Lynn connects with the performer first and comes up underneath them, sharing the tools that will allow them to deliver the music at a high level with ease. Brent Graham is brilliant at knowing the music from the inside out, understanding the arranger’s perspective in developing meaningful interpretation.

Todd: What got you interested in barbershop harmony?

Theresa: The chords and how they sounded in a simple warm-up. I heard the unique quality, tried it myself in the a cappella experience and loved it immediately. Having been a competitive athlete in school, there was something about the team sport of it all that intrigued me.

Todd: When did you realize you wanted to become a coach?

Theresa: I was about 24 or so, when I started teaching choreography to my chorus. About ten year later, Richard Treptow from the judging community approached me. He told me that I was such a natural performer on stage, that I should consider teaching others.

Todd: What advice could you share with someone aspiring to become a coach?

Theresa: This work takes commitment to the craft of performance, a total understanding, if you will, of how to achieve artistic outcomes. Coaching requires great patience and people skills, with a strong desire to serve others.

Todd: As someone who appears to spend a great deal of time on the road and away from home, how do you maintain an acceptable work/life balance?

Theresa: Communication is key for me. I stay present in the moment, wherever I am, with whomever I’m with. My family and relationships are just as important to me, as my coaching work and career. The good news with all the travel and time away is that technology now makes it so easy to connect long-distance.

(L to R) Linda Muise (Chairman of Judges/Contest Administrator), Theresa Weatherbee (Performance) and Sandi Wright (Performance)

Todd: For the first time EVER, the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) invited women to seek certification in their judging program. Three Harmony, Inc.- Certified Judges applied to this new program, were accepted, invited to attend, and successfully completed the recent 2017 BHS Judges' Candidate School. You were one of those women. What can you share about that experience?

Theresa: I’m incredibly grateful and honored to be given the opportunity to step into this new chapter in BHS history. In truth, I’ve been preparing for this journey for the last twenty years, as a coach and judge within the Harmony, Inc. system. I’ve experienced such positive support from the men of BHS. I find the journey as a candidate to be exciting, hard work and profound; being held as an equal on so many levels. I’ve been inspired to bring my “A game” to the process. I believe that the addition of women on the performance panel adds a level of emotional dimension for the performer, as they get real time feedback on how effective they are at engaging both men and women with their authentic delivery.

Todd: You've had a chance to work with so many amazing performers over the years. What are a few of the "game-changer" things YOU'VE LEARNED during a coaching session that you've been able to add to your personal coaching toolkit??

Theresa: That the music is always first. Because I started as a visual coach, this awareness has created the biggest shift for me. Learning to utilize the messages within the arrangement itself, allows me to develop creative performance plans that will deliver higher level results with more ease for the performer.

Todd: What are your thoughts on the evolution of the music industry and songwriting over the course of your lifetime? Are you happy with this evolution?

Theresa: I love the integration of barbershop singing into the world of a cappella and vice versa. I believe this will ultimately bring more singers into this world, as this unique sound is so compelling. Reality TV singing shows have helped open the door for more people to access their singing voices and movies like Pitch Perfect, reinforce the importance of singing for all of us.

Todd: What personal accomplishment are you most proud of outside the world of barbershop harmony?

Theresa: Being in front of a camera, whether commercials, TV productions or most recently, as part of a major motion picture as a background actor, give me a unique opportunity to observe how professional directors engage with their performers to create the magic on screen.

Todd: What are a few things that folks may NOT know about you?

Theresa: They may not know that I have an Architectural Degree and that I was once a female boxer, until a knee injury ended that endeavor in my late 40’s. My two grandsons call me “Glamma T,” which stands for glamorous grandma!

Todd: How do you handle a situation where you've been brought in to coach a chorus and the director becomes an obstacle to the coaching process?

Theresa: “Suggest they go for a coffee!” (Ha ha ☺) No, in reality, it is my job to empower the director to be part of the creative coaching process. I’m there to support their vision and ultimate outcome. I always ask what their 3 wishes are and have them describe their desired results. We then work together as a team to help the chorus understand their “job” on the risers and how to work together as a unit towards those goals.

Todd: Is it just me or do you also see and hear the over-use of pitch correction by singing groups in the studio these days? If you had any advice on this subject, what would it be?

Theresa: Yes, I do believe that the world of auto-tuning, making things “perfect” in the recording studio, have created challenges for the average person to understand that it takes time to perform accurately without enhancement. When we hear the singers on recordings, their perceived perfection sets up an unrealistic expectation for acoustic performances. I believe we have become incredibly critical of ourselves, and others, as a result of this falsification of sound.

Todd: Do you have any non-musical hobbies?

Theresa: I love to draw and paint

Todd: What’s the next item on your bucket list?

Theresa: I’m looking at expanding into voiceover work professionally.

Todd: Is there anything else you would like to share about your life?

Theresa: I feel like I’m at a beautiful juncture in my life, where all my past experiences are coming together to create my own new expression within barbershop, the judging community and my professional endeavors. It’s as if I’ve been brought to a new moment of now, activating more passion, joy and love to emerge, as I serve and support an ever-growing community of performers to access and attain their personal dreams of success.

Todd: What cool stuff do you have coming up in the near future?

Theresa: Working on a new project that I believe will assist amateur performers to find easier access to their authenticity on stage. More to come…

To learn more, visit http://www.engageonstage.com/

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Todd Wilson’s Interview with Instant Classic, the Barbershop Harmony Society’s 2015 International Quartet Champion

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Instant Classic for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

TW: What/who brought the four of you guys together?

IC: It's a bit of a long story... I'll try to keep it brief! Kyle Kitzmiller was the one who really got Instant Classic together. Kyle and I (Theo) had sung in a high-school quartet together called Insignia, and then when we went to college got another quartet together called The Goods. Shortly after The Goods disbanded, Kyle suggested a friend from college, David Zimmerman, to be the tenor.  He originally suggested Kohl Kitzmiller, his little brother (who was still in high school at the time) to sing baritone, but I actually shot the idea down and suggested a barbershop friend, James Pennington.  The first year we competed (2009), we tied for 8th place in the international Collegiate Barbershop Quartet Contest (CBQC, now known as Youth Barbershop Quartet Contest). Due to work and personal life restrictions, James left the quartet shortly after the convention and we officially asked Kohl to sing baritone. We competed once more in 2010 and after placed 10th that year.  David and I had just begun student teaching, and the commute was difficult to make with Kohl living 3+ hours away, so we decided to disband.  Kyle encouraged David and I to join the local chapter, Circle City Sound, and the three of us would hang out during rehearsal, sing tags afterward, and became even closer friends.  Meanwhile, Kohl started college in 2011 and was much closer to Indianapolis, so we decided to reform the group in 2011 to fill a gig in Ontario, then competed in the Cardinal District Fall Contest and became the 2011 CAR District Quartet Champions. Throughout that year, we decided that come rain or shine, we wanted to sing together for the joy of it.  We'd compete, participate in conventions, attend Harmony University, and just enjoy the art form with our closest friends.

TW: What barbershop quartets and choruses do you admire most and what about them inspires you?

IC: At coaching sessions with our main coach, Scott Kitzmiller, would play old records of international convention recordings.  Our favorite quartet that we would often listen to was the Boston Common, for their abundant musicality and authentic delivery that was void of manufactured effects.  Another favorite was Scott's quartet, Classic Ring, which gave part of the inspiration for our name.  We also greatly admired the Suntones for their incredible vocal production and dedication to high level artistry, as well as many contemporary quartets of the day, like OC Times, Vocal Spectrum, and Max Q.  As we continued to sing together, we all learned about and grew to love champions from the Cardinal district as well, including Michigan Jake, Interstate Rivals, Bluegrass Student Union,

Considering early influences, we all had a quartet or two that we all individually gravitated toward... Kyle loved Keepsake, I loved Power Play & Keepsake, David loved The Ritz, and Kohl loved Four Voices and Michigan Jake.  We all love those quartets now, but those were some of our early influences. 

TW: What coaches do you credit with making the biggest impact on your quartet in your quest to win the International Quartet Championship?  

IC: We've had the opportunity to work with many amazing coaches, and they've all helped us in some way achieve our musical success.  However, we'll mention three that had the biggest impact on our overal philosophy as a quartet. First, Debra Lynn is one we've worked with several times as she's helped us with our vocal production and taught us many of the important basics of the "Bel Canto" style. Our good friend, Drew Wheaton, tenor of Forefront, was our main singing coach in 2014 leading up to 2015 international, and is still a great friend and coach for the quartet. Finally, the quartet's *true* 5th member, Scott Kitzmiller, was our main coach. Not only did he give us valuable feedback and musical direction, he was also an arranger for the quartet and simply a fantastic life teacher.  He would teach us to "go to school" on any quartet we were listening to, because every quartet has something valuable to teach.  He also taught us the importance of being "good quartet-mates," encouraging us to stay up and sing with anyone who asks, remain accessible to anyone who wants to hang out or sing, close out afterglows, and just "be bros."  That is something we've really tried to hold on to, even today.

TW: As someone who has walked in your shoes, what steps have you all taken to maintain a quality quartet/work/life/family balance?

IC: Truthfully, it is a constant struggle to try and find a healthy balance. In addition to singing on shows or barbershop events 2-3 times a month, we are also active in the leadership of our home chapter, Circle City Sound, which meets every Monday.  We've decided to try and go to one engagement a month, while remaining active in our home chapter and other district events.  Rehearsal schedules have probably suffered the most, because when weeks get busy, quartet rehearsal is usually the first thing to be cancelled.

TW: I'm sure you've had a chance to work with some amazing performance coaches over the years. What is some of the best advice you have been given by a coach?

IC: The best advice we've been given is to stay out of the way of the music. (Scott Kitzmiller) We as performers should be vessels for the composer and arranger - when we are able to take our ego out of the performance and just sing the music, we find it yields the best possible musical product. 

TW: What are your thoughts on the evolution of the music industry and songwriting over the course of your lifetime? Are you happy with this evolution?  

IC: We have been intrigued by the evolution of the music industry, but don't pay as close attention as we probably should. Copyright issues seem to be more and more confusing, and it gets frustrating to try and work around that just to make music.  However, it seems like it is going in the right direction. TW: What do you guys do when you're not doing gigs or rehearsing? 

IC: We are extremely active in our home chapter, Circle City Sound.  Theo is the director, David is the assistant director, Kyle is the chapter president, and Kohl is the baritone section leader. We love sharing our skills with the chorus and are excited for the future of the chapter! We love contributing to our chorus community.  Kyle is also the DRCJ for the Cardinal District, and Theo assists as coordinator of judges hospitality.  We are all active arrangers that write for groups across the US as well.

Dave is a music teacher and teaches in Indianapolis, Kyle is a freelance website developer, Kohl is a full-time learning track producer, and Theo is currently working on getting his Master's in Choral Conducting at Ball State University. Also, Theo and his wife, Laura, are expecting their first child in March 2018!

In terms of fun, we love video games. Mario Kart 8, in particular.  We also all enjoy Laphroaig scotch, going to bonfires at Dave's condo, eating dinner at Theo's house, and traveling together. 

TW: Do your co-workers have any clue about your rock star status outside of the office?

IC: Haha! Nope. More than anything, we get made fun of (and poke fun at each other).

TW: What cool stuff do you guys have coming up in the near future?

IC: We are working on our third album and singing on shows! We are still actively performing around the world and are enjoying every moment.

TW: What are some "yet to be completed" things you have on your quartet "bucket list"?

IC: We are excited for the possibility of performing in New  Zealand, and also have several other international trips on the "potential performances" list. We are hoping to release a Holiday Album someday, as well as several other albums.  David really wants to be in a comedy quartet, but we won't let him.

TW: With the rigors that come with winning the gold medal, how often are you able to get together to rehearse these days?

IC: Ideally, once a week. Realistically, 2-3 times a month (not including rehearsals at show weekends). 

TW: What are your thoughts on the evolution of the SPEBSQSA,  now doing business as (DBA) the Barbershop Harmony Society?  

IC: While we love the traditions of SPEBSQSA and will always appreciate our history, we believe that the new branding of the BHS and its many new endeavors are only exposing more people to our amazing art form.  We believe that any change that is helping to increase positive exposure and good singing (in general) is a great move for the BHS.  We particularly support all Youth in Harmony initiatives, as education is something near and dear to our hearts, and we are willing and ready to support the BHS in any way we can to help promote our beloved hobby and art form and are excited to see the evolution as we extend our reach across the world.

TW: What can you tell us about a few of your most memorable Instant Classic performances?   

1) We had the opportunity to sing with Circle City Sound on Pike High School's choir concert as a deal we struck with the auditorium manager to let us use the facility for one of our district conventions.  Singing for those high school kids was incredible, and provided one of the most enthusiastic audiences we've ever sung for. 

2) Several years ago, Scott Kitzmiller wrote an SATB jazz chart, "Skylark" for a mixed quartet he was in.  The soprano of that quartet was Cathy Wehrwein, and though the quartet had learned the chart, they had to disband before performing it because Cathy got really sick.  In 2013, Amanda McNutt and Katie Gillis agreed to sing the song with Theo and Kyle, and we all happened to run into Cathy at the 2016 International Convention.  The best part of that convention was singing that song with her.

3) In 2015 at the International Convention, each performance in the contest felt special.  We were in a great mindset the entire week, enjoyed sharing the music with the audience, and we were overwhelmed with the love and support we received that week.  One of our favorite moments was the semi-finals, shortly after we sang "Til I Hear You Sing."  We walked off stage, very emotional, and happened to run into the judges backstage (we were the last ones before the intermission).  Many of the judges approached us, and though they were extremely professional and disclosed no sensitive information, many of them gave us hugs and congratulated us on a powerful performance.

4) The quartet (with a stand-in lead, Jeremy Mang) sang "Spend My Life With You" at Theo's wedding in 2012 for their first dance.  Fast forward a few years, and we sang it for Jeni Kitzmiller to celebrate Kyle and Jeni's marriage in January of 2018.

5) At Harmony University in 2015, we were out at the Cantina (nearby restaurant/bar) until the early hours of the morning. It was Saturday night (technically Sunday morning) and the last day of HU.  It wasn't a performance, but it was just the four of us hanging out, and to close out the evening we decided to sing a song just for us, "All the Things You Are." It was a simple gesture, but profound to us, because after all of the performances and wonderful opportunities we've had together so far, we still just sing for the joy of singing together.  

TW: What was it like to sing on your first AIC Show as champions?

IC: Incredible! To sing on stage with all of your childhood heroes is an amazing feeling.  It was surreal, intimidating, humbling, and exciting all at the same time. 

[nashvillesingersblog]

Todd Wilson Explores Four Part Harmony in Finland with FABS President Jan-Erik Krusberg

Todd had a chance to interview Jan-Erik Krusberg for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

Published December 25, 2017

TW: What person or group do you credit with bringing barbershop harmony to Finland?

JEK: I think that the most important ambassador of barbershop singing in Finland is Mr. Markku Kanervikkoaho. He is born in Finland and moved to the U.S. at the age of 17. He actually is a U.S. Vietnam veteran (!). Due to his broad network among barbershopers in the U.S. and Canada, Markku has for decades brought the best quartets to Finland from the U.S. to the Vaasa Choir Festivals (in the city of Vaasa). In this way Markku has provided Finland with the best barbershop singers and coaches in the world, coaches like Tom Gentry, and quartets like Friendly Advice, Love Notes, Masterpiece quartet, Men in Black, Ringmasters, and Sterling, just to name a few. These visits and the coaching we have got from these groups, has been the source of inspiration and development for Finnish barbershop singing.

TW: What can you tell me about those early years?

JEK: FABS was founded in 2004 by Mr. Tuomo Ketomäki, together with his Raija. Their efforts made barbershop organized and visible both in Finland and internationally. Among the ladies, a group called Lade Shave Porvoo Chorus was founded already 32 years ago. I think it is fair to say that this chorus really was the one that inspired barbershop to go international. Several ladies quartets have their roots in the Lady Shave chorus. Both men and women are members of FABS.

Before FABS was founded a few different men´s quartets and Lady Shave visited international conventions, among which SNOBS and Nordic Light Region were and still are important venues. Also Holland, U.K. and Ireland have been important destinations for the Finnish barbershop groups.

TW: What/who got you hooked on barbershop harmony?

JEK: A good friend of mine asked me to join a small men´s chorus called Part A Boys in 2009 (In Finnish  parta means beard, Beard boys (in Finnish) works quite well in Finland but not elsewhere). This is still the most common way to become hooked on barbershop. The most important reason that I still am hooked on barbershop, is our music director Mr. Juha Aunola. Juha is also the former president of FABS. TW: What exactly do you do as the leader of the Finnish Association of Barbershop Singers? What are your key responsibilities?

JEK: FABS is a small organization, hence the “man has to do what the man has to do”. FABS do not pay salaries for management and administrative work.  My key responsibilities are external relations (to other associations, both BS and others), long term activity planning including joint shows/concerts and Harmony Colleges for FABS. Shortly, my key task is to find ways to attract new members, and to systematically push them forward through “quality” coaching to international (basically European) convents. My colleagues in FABS board take care of our communication (website, national magazines, social media), music content, sing out venues etc. Most work we do as a team.

Barbershop is my hobby, I do not have any degrees in music/singing. I am an economist by profession, with a PhD(Econ.) degree from a Finnish Business School. I am 63 years old and live in Helsinki.

TW: Do you have any hobbies outside of barbershop singing?

JEK: I used to be heavily involved in Finnish sports organizations, and used to be an orienteer. But today barbershop singing and playing guitar is what I do, and I enjoy very much reading books (right now read a good book about Sir Winston Churchill)

TW: What is something that you would say your organization does very well?

JEK: Well organized Harmony Colleges with international, high quality coaches, often from Sweden. For example Mr. Doug Harrington (Zero8), Mr. Emanuel Roll (Ringmasters) and Mrs. Jeanette Gellervik. TW: What is something that we in America could learn from the Finnish Association of Barbershop Singers?

JEK: We have from the start been a mixed organization. Up until recent years men and women sung in separate groups, with small contact areas though. The mixing of men and women in our choruses and quartets today makes it easier to find good “tenors” and it also seems easier to find new members (to increase). I think we avoid the risk of becoming an “old men´s club” by mixing men and women, the barbershop harmony still works very well.

TW: How many quartets and choruses are singing barbershop in Finland today?

JEK: 4 choruses and currently around 10 quartets, including men´s, women´s and mixed ones. TW: What percentage of your performing groups would you estimate are focused on competition (performing at a high level of proficiency) versus those attracted more to the social (camaraderie) aspects of the hobby?

JEK: 2 choruses: (Lady Shave Porvoon Chorus (women) and Scholares Americantus (men)), and 2-3 quartets.

TW: How often are you in communication with the leaders of BHS, SAI, or the other international affiliate organizations?

JEK: Difficult to say, depends on the matter, but not very frequently. Basically in matters concerning the affiliate´s BHS agreement. On the other hand BH´s Basecamp keeps me well up-dated on BHS organizational matters.

TW: What would you say is the biggest challenge you face as an organization today?

JEK: The small number of performing quartets and choruses. Difficult to get a “critical mass” in Colleges and Shows. We need to attracting new, young members and to avoid becoming the “old men´s club”. TW: What would you say are your top three organizational objectives in the next 24 months?

JEK: 1) attract new members/groups, 2) attract world class coaches in our Harmony College, 3) organize a national convention

TW: How would you describe the governance and management structure of your organization? Do you have paid staff and office space or is this an all-volunteer organization? (chapters, clubs, board-driven, staff driven) Male members? Female members?

JEK: All-volunteer organization, practically board-driven (9 members) no office space or “own” street address. TW: What sustains your organization financially? (dues, events, merchandising, donations, grants. etc)

JEK: Membership fees, sales of concert tickets and Harmony college fees (sometimes small grants for specific projects)

TW: What are the top three items on your wish list for 2018?

JEK: 1) Revenues/grants that would enable us to support young teams/groups (coaching, participation in international conventions), 2) Better command of Social media, 3) 2-3 new performing groups

TW: If a philanthropist came to you to stating that he/she really loved barbershop and wanted to make a difference, along with an offer to donate $1,000,000, to the Finnish Association of Barbershop Singers, where/how would you invest those funds to make the biggest impact on your organization’s future?

JEK: Differentiated and systematic education/coaching (make it possible for singers to have “full time training”, meet the needs for different age groups and/or social groups).

TW: Let’s flash forward five years from now. If there was a feature story about barbershop singing in your biggest national magazine, what would the story likely be about?

JEK: Shortly: The characteristics of the barbershop harmony and singing; the cappella genre; the good spirit among barbershop singers worldwide; the well-functioning international network with conventions and harmony colleges etc; the mixed group success in Finland and the raising, teenage quartets.

TW: Do you have a email newsletter or magazine where people could subscribe to stay in touch with the activities of your organization?

JEK: No email newsletters. All relevant information concerning upcoming activities we share on our website fabs.fi. Therefore there is no medium for articles or “reports”. Annual reports are found on our Intranet (for members only).

TW: What cool and exciting events do you have coming up in the near future?

JEK: Valentine´s day concert/show in Helsinki with all FABS member choruses and quartets on Feb. 11, 2018 and Harmony College in Helsinki, 28-28 Oct. 2018

TW: If someone was visiting Finland and wanted to visit a local barbershop club, chapter or chorus, what’s the best resource for them?

JEK: fabs.fi or through our choruses directly, for example partachorus.fi, and ladyshave.fi. All groups are not using www-pages.

[nashvillesingersblog]

Todd Wilson Explores Barbershop Harmony in Australia with BHA President Ian Mulholland

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Ian Mulholland for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

Published December 18, 2017

Ian Mulholland has been involved in music from an early age. He can play most brass instruments, piano and guitar.  A barbershopper since 1987, Ian has done it all. He has directed choruses, arranged over 50 songs(and published the Great Australian Barbershop Songbook), sung in two BHA champion quartets and the BHA champion chorus, representing BHA at International level seven times. He helped form the Australasian Guild of Barbershop Judges, and is a qualified Music Judge. He has served on the boards of BHA and Western Region, and is currently BHA President and a Life Member.

TW: What person or group do you credit with bringing barbershop harmony to Australia? IM: Barbershop music existed in Australia, and there were a few scattered groups singing it, but there was no organisation as such, of either quartets or choruses. In 1984 a quartet from Perth, Western Australia, who had discovered barbershop and then found out about SPEBSQSA, attended the International convention in the USA. They returned to Australia excited about barbershop music, and started the Western Australian Association of Men Barbershop Singers (WAAMBS) in 1985. By 1987, this has become the Australian organisation known as AAMBS (the “Western” dropped off). Initially there were two choruses, one in Perth and one in Gold Coast. There were a few scattered quartets, and the early competitions were conducted via video entries. In 1991 the first AAMBS Convention was held with choruses and quartets competing.

TW: What can you tell me about those early years? IM: Barbershop music was new, and everyone, including the public, was excited by it. As the movement grew in Australia, AAMBS expanded, and now has 800-900 members at any one time, with 25 Registered Clubs (called chapters in the USA) and over 70 registered quartets. In the early years, Conventions were held every two years. The winning quartet and chorus were offered the chance to compete at International, but representation was sparse. We simply didn’t have the background, skill set, or knowledge to compete internationally. That has changed in recent years. Each year now, we have choruses and quartets who qualify on their scores alone to compete at International, and in 2017 our youth quartet came 3rd in the International Collegiate quartet contest, and 22nd in the Open quartet contest. Our best chorus has finished as high as 14th in the International contest. TW: How many quartets and choruses are singing barbershop in Australia today?

IM: As above, around 25 Registered Clubs and 70 quartets. TW: What percentage of your performing groups would you estimate are focused on competition (performing at a high level of proficiency) versus those attracted more to the social (camaraderie) aspects of the hobby? IM: About 50% are keen on competing - they do other things too. Generally we get about 50% of our members attending conventions. This has changed over the years unfortunately, as our top groups get better, those who don’t reach the same levels get discouraged and don’t compete anymore. It’s one of things we try to manage by offering other performance opportunities at our Conventions, in a non-competitive setting. It is starting to have the positive effect we had hoped. TW: Your organization underwent a name change in 2012. Was there some resistance from some of your members? What lessons were learned from that process? IM: The name change in 2012 was logical, and met with very little resistance. The change we made to include mixed harmony in 2015 caused much more concern amongst some of our older members, who completely misunderstood the reasons for it. They saw it as a threat to their male-only Clubs. However, we never intended that Clubs would have to go mixed. Instead, Clubs could choose. We already had two mixed Clubs who were looking for a home, and in our last contest we had two mixed choruses and 9 mixed quartets, with the top mixed chorus marginally out-scoring the top male chorus. The lessons learned were that change always presents challenges. If the change is for the good, then stick to your guns, and make it happen, despite the mud that gets thrown. TW: What is something that you would say your organization does very well? IM: We are open and willing to learn from other organisations and other musical genres. TW: What is something that we in America could learn from BHA? IM: Be open to new ideas and embrace progress. Note, with reference to BHS, the recent strategic view certainly puts this on the table. TW: What is the biggest challenge you face as an organization today? IM: Building membership, against a backdrop of ever-increasing pace of life, and competition from other hobbies. TW: How would you describe the governance and management structure of your organization? Do you have paid staff and office space or is this an all-volunteer organization? (chapters, clubs, board-driven, staff driven) Male members? Female members? IM: We are an incorporated, not for profit, organisation. We are volunteers, except for an Executive Assistant, who we pay about 10 hours per week. We have about 800 male members and 40 female members. TW: If a philanthropist came to you to stating that he/she really loved barbershop and wanted to make a difference, along with an offer to donate $1,000,000, to Barbershop Harmony Australia, where/how would you invest those funds to make the biggest impact on your organization's future? IM: We’d definitely invest in more education and coaching visits, using experts from around the world. We would also launch a much bigger campaign to educate youth about barbershop singing. TW: Let's flash forward five years from now. If there was a feature story about barbershop singing in your biggest national magazine, what would the story likely be about? IM: Australian group wins International Barbershop Contest. 

TW: What/who got you hooked on barbershop harmony? IM: For me personally, it was the group of guys in Perth who were singing barbershop, and I liked the harmonies and sound. I had always been a harmony singer, in bands and other genres. What really got me going was obtaining a recording by The Second Edition (1989 International champion quartet), who sang songs and arrangements that really connected with me. Very soon I had a rather large collection of International quartet CD’s! TW: Do you have any hobbies outside of barbershop singing? IM: Yes, I also sing and perform musical theatre, and play guitar/keyboards/sing in a rock band. TW: What exactly do you do as the leader of the Barbershop Harmony Australia? What are your key responsibilities? IM: As President, I oversee all aspects of our organisation. We have Vice Presidents in a number of areas - that we believe need to be our focus to grow and develop our member groups. These are: Events (conventions and the like), Membership (both recruitment and retention), Marketing (getting the message out to members and the general public), Music (education, including chorus director development), Youth Development (encouraging young people to sing barbershop), and Contest and Judging (training our own judges, running our own contests, independent from BHS). Our policies generally align with BHS, but not entirely. We are an autonomous organisation. For example, we have female members, and we encourage and foster mixed harmony singing. TW: What sustains BHA financially? (dues, events, merchandising, donations, grants. etc) IM: Our yearly fees sustain or non-discretionary expenditure (such as insurance, performing rights, cost of contests etc.). Our discretionary expenditure (e.g. music education, youth development etc.) is largely funded by surpluses we make from our Conventions. TW: How often would you say you are in communication with the leaders of BHS, SAI, or the other international affiliate organizations? IM: On a weekly, or at least, monthly basis. We have a chat group, facilitated by BHS where we can post ideas, and generally keep in touch with each other. Also, at International Conventions we have an Affiliates meeting as well as a meeting of the World Harmony Council (that includes Sweet Adelines International). On a local level, we cooperate with the Sweet Adelines continuously. In Australia we have six regions (being a big country) and we invite Sweet Adelines quartets to compete in our regional contests (although we don’t have female quartets in our National contest). We also share education and coaching opportunities as they arise. In many places, the local male and female Clubs combine for concerts etc. TW: What are your top three organizational objectives in the next 24 months? IM: 1) Roll out of our national education initiative (every Club gets an education visit every year), 2) Continue to run successful Conventions, with increasing attendance each year, 3) Continue to build our membership, especially amongst youth, and awareness of barbershop through the school curriculum. TW: What are the top three items on your wish list for 2018? IM: 1) Continue to support our members through services such as education, 2) Take up by all Clubs of our National education initiative, 3) Increased attendance at our National Convention, with improved scores. TW: What cool and exciting events do you have coming up in the near future? IM: We have our Regional contests rolling out in April-May, followed by our National Convention in September. Details are available on our website.This year we brought out Deke Sharon to run some workshops and it was very successful. We’re looking at doing something similar in the next 1-2 years. TW: Do you have a email newsletter or magazine where people could subscribe to stay in touch with the activities of your organization? IM: Yes. It’s called “In Harmony”. You can find it here: https://www.barbershop.org.au/newsletters TW: If someone was visiting Australia and wanted to visit a local barbershop club, chapter or chorus, what's the best resource for them? IM: Our website: contacts for Clubs is here: https://www.barbershop.org.au/clubs

[nashvillesingersblog]

Jean-Baptiste Craipeau

Todd Wilson explores a cappella music in France with Youtube multitracking pioneer, singer, and musician Jean-Baptiste Craipeau

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Jean-Baptiste Craipeau for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

Published December 11, 2017

TW: When did you know you wanted to be a singer?

JBC: I've been fascinated by and exposed to vocal music since I was a kid. My dad has always been a choir director so all sort of vocal music was played in the house and I got the chance to sing solos as well which reinforced my love for vocals.

TW: Your arrangements sound like they were influenced by the work of some of my favorite a cappella groups, like Take 6, the Singers Unlimited, and the Hi-Los. Are there other a cappella arrangers or groups that have inspired you along the way?

JBC: These are my 3 favorite vocal groups but I may want to add The Real Group, The Kings Singers and Bobby McFerrin

TW: Outside of a cappella, what soloists or other bands/groups seem to find there way most often to your personal playlist?

JBC: I've had some intense periods of listening to several bands for the last 10 years including Jaco Pastorius, Queen, Earth Wind & Fire, Bill Evans and Snarky Puppy.

TW: You have a plethora of multi-track a cappella videos on your Youtube channel. That's how I learned about you. Many of these videos have been featured in our newsletter over the years. As far as I can see, eight of them have over 100,00 views and THAT'S AMAZING! What about your Daft Punk cover of "Get Lucky" do you think caused it to attract so much attention - over a million views (so far)?

JBC: I had a pretty active period on YouTube some years ago where I built an audience. I tried different things and some of them worked better than others ! I can't explain why...

TW: Can you describe the popularity of a cappella music in France?

JBC: There is a scene in choral and classical singing in general, but the jazz or contemporary a cappella is not so popular. People barely know groups like PTX for example. They seem to always love a cappella music when they hear it though.

TW: In your response to my request for this interview, you mentioned being a fan of ACOUSTIX. I'm flattered. How did you discover barbershop harmony, and what about barbershop captured your interest in this American art form?

JBC: I started doing multitracks around 2005 and when I decided to put some clips online I found some guys doing split screen videos on YouTube ! I was amazed by the concept of showing each parts in squares. These guys were doing barbershop tags. I kinda fell in love with the sound of well balanced and tuned chords. I had never heard barbershop before, so I searched for quartets doing this and of course I quickly found Acoustix, which remains one of my favorites. The thing that I love the most about barbershop is the tuning challenge : the goal is to have all chords ring, which is the best school for a cappella lovers/singers. When a fifth rings and you hear overtones, it's a very exciting experience. Also some arrangements are pretty advanced for only 4 parts so I soon started transcribing songs to understand more this style which is very unique!

TW: Your a cappella group Accent is described as an online collaboration of musicians from several countries looking to bring you the best in a cappella and jazz.  But I've also seen lots of videos of live performances, tags, promos, and jingles recorded all over the place. My three-part question about Accent is this: 1) What brought you together? 2) What are some of your aspirations as an ensemble? and 3) What can you tell us about Accent's new recording project "In This Together?"

JBC: As I said before I was doing multitracks videos, and most of the other guys were doing the same. We all met on YouTube sharing our passion for a cappella/jazz/barbershop music by sending arrangements, transcriptions, rare recordings etc. Very geeky stuff haha! I first "met" Simon Åkesson from Sweden on a forum about The Hi-Lo's. I discovered this group through Take 6 when they mentioned their influences. Simon amazed me by his knowledge and very refined vocal work! I'm talking about 2006 or something, he already had arranged a ton of stuff, composed a mass etc. So we get along pretty quickly having the same background in music (classical, jazz, rock lovers). He's the most talented person I know! It took a while til we decide to record a song together ! It actually started as a quartet with Andrew (Canada) Evan (USA) and my brother, then Danny joined (Canada) and then we thought it would be great to cover Gold Mine by Take 6 ! So I contacted Simon again and the London Based James ! Funny thing is I met James some years before at a Take 6 concert in London. He reached out to me and from that day we kept chatting and sharing stuff together.

Our influences as a group are quite obvious. We love The Hi-Lo's, The Singers Unlimited, Take 6, The Real Group. These groups are the main reason why we are together! We recorded a first CD in our own places but this second CD is special for us cause we recorded together in the same room, all standing in circle. The songs are all originals from group members or legends like Mervyn Warren or Siedah Garrett which we feel so lucky to have around us!

TW: You guys recently spent some time with Jacob Collier in the UK. Is there a new vocal or arranging collaboration in the works?

JBC: This was probably the most exciting moment in Accent so far! This guy is a genius, probably the most unbelievable musician of his generation ! The funny thing is that he contacted me when he started doing his one man band thing on YouTube. So I really saw him grow very fast and big ! Very inspiring. We don't have any collaboration in mind at the moment, but it's a great idea...Let's work on this !

TW: When did complete your first vocal arrangement. Do you remember the name of the song?

JBC: I think it was Fly Me To The Moon that I wrote for 5 parts, later on I adapted it for 6 and now we sing it in Accent as part of our show.

TW: Can you describe the arranging process or what basic elements you feel every good arrangement should include?

JBC: I think it's important to have a unity in the song and to decide what do you want to keep from the original and what do you want to change...could be the tempo, the groove, the style, the chord progressions etc. There's so much you can do! You just have to take some decisions. Also the more I arrange the more I try to build a song. Starting somewhere and going to another place. Rather than harmonizing chord by chord or phrase by phrase. It's about creating some moments-tension/release.

TW: Do you arrange for your own multi-tracks or for Accent exclusively or do other groups ever commission you to create a custom chart?

JBC: Most of my work so far has been for my multitracks or for the groups I'm part of. But I'd love to work for some choirs or groups at some point.

TW: Do you ever encounter writer's block, times when your creative juices are not flowing adequately enough to get an arrangement started? If yes, how do you usually overcome that situation?

JBC: Oh yeah, it happens all the time haha! I think what helps me is to try to "zoom out" a bit. I try to sing the melody again and again, find a way to make it more simple and effective. It's okay to write complex chords but they have to work together too. A good tool for that is to check both vertical and horizontal approach to an arrangement. Adding some rests here and there, make sure singers have time to breathe etc. Simple tips but always good to keep that in mind!

TW: What is some advice you could share with aspiring arrangers?

JBC: Go transcribe all your favorite songs/arrangements! That's the best school! Start with easy pieces maybe only 3 parts, then SATB pieces then more closed voicings. I had the bad idea of starting to transcribe vocal music by Take 6! My ears weren't ready yet...so it was a bit frustrating. I don't want this to happen to anyone else !

TW: You've had a chance to work with some amazing performers over the years. What is some of the best advice you have been given by another singer/arranger/performer?

JBC: The best advice would be to listen closely, pay attention to details and do your homework so you are ready when you need to!

TW: What are your thoughts on the evolution of the music industry and songwriting over the course of your lifetime? Are you happy with this evolution?

JBC: I think the music industry evolved a lot with the digital music and internet in general. I personally love how it turns out : everyone can record their music with almost anything and it's easy to share it to the world. But it's somehow difficult to sell this music aside from touring! So the best is to build an audience that go to your show!

I kinda miss the old recordings that sounds very natural and live though. That's why I rarely listen to the radio because of these really compressed mix, that sound unnatural and unmusical in a way (No dynamics). My albums collection consists mostly of old CDs haha!

TW: Do you have a day job like so many of us, or do you make your living as a professional musician?

JBC: I'm lucky enough to live from music. I play in many bands of any kind, from classical vocal ensemble to acoustic folk trios, even some rock bands. I'm excited by any kind of music and I really think any opportunity helps me to become a better musician.

TW: What personal accomplishment are you most proud of outside of music?

JBC: Being the father of 2 kids! Alicia (2,5 yo) and Gabriel (1 month). It's just amazing!

TW: Do you have any hobbies outside of music?

JBC: I like sports in general, traveling and going to the beach during summer! Just wish I had more time for these things!

TW: What new and exciting projects do you have on the horizon?

JBC: Accent always come up with cool ideas to help us working with new people, new challenges etc. We really love collaborating with big bands or lead singers, so maybe we will go in that direction!

TW: How can our subscribers find out more about YOU and Accent while you're at it?

JBC: We are active on social media, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. You can follow us @AccentVocal! Feel free to drop a message!

[nashvillesingersblog]

Todd Explores Four Part Harmony in Spain with Lyn Baines, President of the Spanish Association of Barbershop Singers

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Lyn Baines for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

Published December 4, 2017

TW: What person or group do you credit with bringing barbershop harmony to Spain?

LB: Nico and Jorge de las Peñas Plana. They found barbershop on the internet, went to a BinG Harmony College and came back determined to find like-minded people in Spain. They searched the internet and emailed me to arrange a meeting. Six of us met in July 2008 and agreed to form The Spanish Association of Barbershop Singers (SABS). We celebrate our tenth anniversary next year.

TW: What can you tell me about those early years?

LB: We were a very small organisation, but we worked hard to spread the word. We found five British, two Spanish choruses and one Portuguese chorus, as well as several quartets, around Spain, who became members and SABS has continued slow growth since then.

TW: What/who got you hooked on barbershop harmony?

LB: It was by accident. I had never heard of barbershop until I saw a ladies’ chorus performing in a garden centre in the UK in 1994. I was invited along to their rehearsal and was amazed at their ability to sing four part harmony and remember all the notes and words, with no sheet music. I didn’t think I would ever be able to be as accomplished as them, but I worked hard and I’ve never looked back.

The main influences for me through my barbershop life have been The White Rosettes, Cheshire Chord Company and Amersham A Cappella (all LABBS choruses). Quartets who have made an impact on me are numerous but, to name some: Musical Island Boys, OC Times, Vocal Spectrum, Acoustix, Signature, Old School, Finesse, GQ and Love Notes.

TW: What exactly do you do as the leader of the Spanish Association of Barbershop Singers? What are your key responsibilities?

LB: My main objective is to encourage more people to sing barbershop in Spain. This entails organising workshops for people of all ages at various locations in Spain. As a small organisation, we have few people on the team, so I have several jobs to cover, but my main responsibilities are:

Team Management

Publicity

Marketing/Promotion

Recruitment

Convention Organisation

Workshop Organisation

Harmony College Organisation

Merchandising

Corporate Identity

Website

Social Media

International Liaison

TW: Do you have any hobbies outside of barbershop singing?

LB: No. I’m too busy with barbershop.

TW: How many quartets and choruses are singing barbershop in Spain today?

LB: Quartets: Total 10 - Male 4, Female 5, Mixed 1 / Choruses: Total 6 - Male 1, Female 4 and Mixed 1

TW: What percentage of your performing groups would you estimate are focused on competition (performing at a high level of proficiency) versus those attracted more to the social (camaraderie) aspects of the hobby?

LB: 90% work towards convention contest every year.

TW: How often are in communication with the leaders of BHS, SAI, or the other international affiliate organizations?

LB: I am in regular contact with BHS via the BaseCamp app and by email. I am also in contact with leaders of all the other international affiliate organisations through the World Harmony Council.

TW: Do you have a email newsletter or magazine where people could subscribe to stay in touch with the activities of your organization?

LB: Time prohibits a regular newsletter issue, but we forward to our members all newsletters, online magazines and news from BHS and other affiliate organisations.

TW: If someone was visiting your area and wanted to visit a local barbershop club, chapter or chorus, what's the best resource for them?

LB: Our website has full details of SABS choruses here:

http://www.sabs.es/cm2/membership/find-a-chorus/

Our ‘Meet The Team Page’ has full contact info:

http://www.sabs.es/cm2/team/

We also have an Association Facebook Page:

https://www.facebook.com/BarbershopSpain/

And a Convention Facebook Page:

https://www.facebook.com/SABSEnArmonia/

TW: What is something that you would say the Spanish Association of Barbershop Singers does very well?

LB: Ensuring that our members see and learn from the very best in barbershop by inviting European and International Champions to our small and intimate conventions (maximum of 650 people) and Harmony College. So far, we have been fortunate enough to have had the following guests:

LoveNotes

Musical Island Boys

GQ

Old School

Pzazz (UK)

Finesse (UK)

Reckless (UK)

Double Trouble (UK)

In 2018, we will have Crossroads and the LABBS/European 2017 champions SoundHouse, followed by Vocal FX from New Zealand and Brothers in Harmony from New York in 2019.

TW: What is something that we in America could learn from your organization?

LB: Being able to give members a spectacular convention experience with a limited budget.

TW: What would you say is the biggest challenge you face as an organization today?

LB: Recruitment of new members, especially Spanish. Barbershop is still relatively unknown in Spain and we work hard to spread the word in a large, geographic area, with just a small team.

TW: Has Catalonia's fight for independence impacted SABS in any way?

LB: In my experience, no. Some of our best quartets come from Barcelona (The Hanfris Quartet has twice represented Spain at international) and Girona, and barbershop and they are all part of the SABS family. Barbershop and politics don’t go together.

TW: What would you say are your top three organizational objectives in the next 24 months?

LB: 1) Promotion of barbershop, 2) Recruit new members, 3) Youth initiative

TW: How would you describe the governance and management structure of your organization? Do you have paid staff and office space or is this an all-volunteer organization? (chapters, clubs, board-driven, staff driven) Male members? Female members?

LB: We are a Spanish-registered ‘not for profit’, all volunteer organisation. We have a Board, all of whom are unpaid, consisting of the following members: President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Convention Manager, Membership, Secretary

Total Members: 184 (Male: 45 Female: 139)

TW: What sustains your organization financially? (dues, events, merchandising, donations, grants. etc)

LB: Subscription Fees, (15 Euros per annum), Convention Registrations, WHC Grant (we apply each year)

TW: What are the top three items on your wish list for 2018?

LB: 1) Large increase in membership, 2) Finding a theatre with hotels around it (a real challenge in Spain!), 3) Judges, coaches and convention guests from USA with financial support from BHS

TW: If a philanthropist came to you to stating that he/she really loved barbershop and wanted to make a difference, along with an offer to donate $1,000,000, to the Spanish Association of Barbershop Singers, where/how would you invest those funds to make the biggest impact on your organization's future?

LB: Persuade a national Spanish TV company to run a show, similar to Deke Sharon’s Pitch Perfect, but for barbershop quartets and choruses only, to promote our art form. Some of the funds would be put aside to run country-wide workshops, run by Deke Sharon.

Well, I can dream...

TW: What cool and exciting events do you have coming up in the near future?

LB: 2018 Convention (5-8 April) in Benalmádena, Málaga, with guest quartets Crossroads and SoundHouse / 2019 Convention (4-7 April) with guest choruses Vocal FX and Brothers in Harmony / 2019 Harmony Workshop (October) - workshop quartet yet to be decided.

TW: Let's flash forward five years from now. If there was a feature story about barbershop singing in your biggest national magazine, what would the story likely be about?

LB: The Hanfris Quartet Wins International

Kind regards

Lyn Baines President Spanish Association of Barbershop Singers (SABS) www.sabs.es https://www.facebook.com/spanishbarbershop https://www.facebook.com/EnArmonia

[nashvillesingersblog]

Ken Hatton shares his insight about performing with the Bluegrass Student Union, the Louisville Thoroughbreds, his experience as a director, solo performer, and arranger, and his very candid opinions about the evolution of the music industry and the Barbershop Harmony Society.

Top photo: Ken Hatton

Bottom photo: Bluegrass Student Union 1978 International Quartet Champion of the SPEBSQSA (DBA Barbershop Harmony Society) (L to R) Ken Hatton, Allen Hatton, Dan Burgess, Rick Staab

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Ken Hatton for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

DISCLAIMER: Some of our readers may find Ken’s responses to a few of Todd’s questions a bit edgy. Due to the length of this interview, only a small portion was published in the Nashville Singers newsletter. Hatton’s views do not necessarily reflect the views of the Nashville Singers organization.

TW: When did you know you wanted to be a singer?  

KH: It’s impossible to remember not being a singer.  Granddaddy and Dad were both “song-leaders” in the Church of Christ (“Minister of Music” was considered too “uppity”), and Dad joined the Louisville #1 Chapter of SPEBSQSA, Inc. as a tenor with his high school gospel quartet, in 1951.  Mom was a fair pianist and could hold a tune pretty well too.  Brother Allen was born in 1954, and I came along in 1955.  

The Church of Christ held that instrumental accompaniment was a sin when making a “joyful noise,” so all the worshippers sang in 4-part harmony, you know, just like that original quartet, “Matthew-Mark-Luke-and-John.”  It was all we knew as toddlers, so I can’t really recall when I learned to sing harmony.  It just always was.  Dad taught us to use our “musical ear” to find the harmony, using the shape-notes in the hymnal.  His advice was, “When the note moves up, sing higher, and when the note moves down, sing lower, until it sounds good with the melody-note.”  That was how we learned to woodshed; it was a spiritual thing.  

I do remember at the age of five, when I learned my first popular song.  Allen was in the first grade, and I would wait for his school bus every day on the front steps. I really missed my playmate!  Each afternoon, he would teach me all the things he had learned that day in school.  On one of those afternoons, he sang me a song that some of his fellow first graders had heard on the radio.  Within a few minutes, we were singing it in unison, and with some occasional improvised harmony.  “When I was a little bitty baby, my mama would rock me in my cradle, in them ol’ cotton fields back home.”  I’m not sure that’s when I knew I wanted to be a singer, but that’s when I realized that I was one.  

TW: What can you tell us about growing up in the Hatton family?  

KH: We were encouraged to participate in music-programs in school by our parents, and we enjoyed those activities.  Perhaps talent at a given discipline affects one’s motivation (For some reason, I did not really dig long division or algebra).  Allen learned to play the trumpet, and both of us took piano-lessons as youngsters.  Later, our younger sisters displayed similar talents for singing, and the oldest of the three, Jo Anne, played piano.  Dad was one of the original Thoroughbreds, when the chorus was formed out of the old Louisville Chapter, and Mom sang with the Kentuckiana Chapter of Sweet Adelines, Inc. (later, Sweet Adelines International).  Both parents dabbled in quartet-singing from time to time, and their ensembles always sounded musical, but never seemed to stay together long enough to earn rank in competition.

Dad took Allen and me to an occasional chorus show, where we would be seated in the audience and admonished not to move.  Then, we would watch the chorus rehearse for their performance, and would enjoy the show. I can recall getting an unexplainable lump in my throat whenever that chorus of men would sing with reckless abandon. The highlights of those shows were the several chapter-quartets, including the Derbytowners and (later) the Citations, both of whom were really good competing quartets.  We didn’t realize that the goose-bumps and throat-lumps were being caused by the ringing of chords.  The big thrill for us, as kids, was to experience the Club House Four. They were a pretty good singing District Champ quartet, but those guys really worked at entertaining.  Their jokes and routines were not as “edgy” as the Brian Lynches of the world might prefer, but old folks and kids alike just couldn’t stop laughing whenever the “Club House” was on stage.  

The Thoroughbreds’ Musical Director was a guy named Bill Benner, who had moved to Louisville for work, after having directed the Lake Washington Skippers to a second place finish in international competition in 1957.  Over a four year period, he took the brand new Thoroughbred Chorus to 8th, 6th, 2nd and 1st place finishes, winning their first chorus championship in 1962.  Soon after that competition, Bill resigned as director, though he still conducted the Sweet Ads for a while.  It seems he had been so focused on barbershop that he had ignored his wife and his job, and they both sort of fired him.  He needed to get paid for directing the chorus, and the 1962 T-breds didn’t like that very much.  So, our family took him, in, and Dad provided him with a job at his real estate company.

The saddest part was that Bill was being considered for the Society’s Music Services Director position. The Thoroughbreds’ 42 singers had finished second in 1961 to the 160 voice Chorus of the Chesapeake, under the direction of Bob Johnson.  It was revealed later that year that a certain judge was a member of the winning chorus, and he had over-scored the winners and underscored the ‘Breds.  The judge was kicked out of the judging program, and the Thoroughbreds received a secret apology, which was delivered in person by the new Music Services Director – Bob Johnson!  It probably was a good thing, as Bill’s tunnel vision personality might not have been a good match for that position.    

Bill proved not to be much of an agent, but he sure was fun to have around the house!  While he was thinking about what he was going to do with the rest of his life, and eating Mom’s home-cooked meals every night, Bill would teach us tags.  The guy was a savant, carrying all four parts in his head, and could teach the whole song by rote – eight bars at a time, with no “spots (That’s what we called sheet music back then).”  In fact, that’s the way Bill had had taught most of the charts to the Thoroughbreds for four years – by rote.  

So, Allen and I had one of the Society’s premiere musical smart-guys in the bedroom next to ours, and we got quite an education during his year and a half long visit.  It turned out that we were pretty quick studies, which was a good match for a bipolar type, like Bill.  There were five us in the house at that time who could hold our parts, and it was fairly easy to sing one of Bill’s tags after very little teaching time.  The first one we learned was “I Found in My Mother’s Eyes.”  

Bill moved to Chicago, and none of us ever heard from him again.  Jim Miller and Joe Wise had been appointed co-directors, and with the help of coach/arranger Ed Gentry, ushered in a new era of barbershop chorus singing through the Thoroughbreds.  Meanwhile, Mom took Bill’s place as Musical Director of the Kentuckiana Chapter of Sweet Adelines, Inc., later directing Falls of the Ohio Chapter, Derby City Chorus and Song of Atlanta.  She served as a judge in SAI contests, and sang a pretty mean baritone.      

Most choruses had a rule back then that excluded men under the age of 16. The exception was that one could join at 15, if your dad was an active member.  The thinking was that the members looked forward to their night out with the men (not with the women or the children).  They didn’t watch their language, and if they felt like having a beer or a smoke, they didn’t have to worry about being a role-model for just that one night each week. Boy, I miss those days!

Allen and I both joined at 15, and sang in our first Chorus Contest in Atlanta, in 1972, in which the chorus placed third.  We were disappointed, as the Thoroughbreds had won the championship without our help in 1962, 1966 and 1969, and were tied with Pekin, IL for the most international wins. Allen headed off to Morehead State, and back home, Rick Staab, Danny Burgess and I got our feet wet, singing with an “old” Thoroughbred named Paul Morris on tenor.  Paul was 28.  We sang together for about six months.  Rick went away to attend Georgetown University, breaking up the group, and Allen came home to attend University of Louisville.  Then, Rick surprised everybody, and came home to attend U of L as well.  That’s when the final combination of the Bluegrass Student Union was formed, with Allen on tenor.  Now, we had four guys about the same age, with similar skills and education.  

Mom (Mary Jo Hatton) was our first coach, and refused to let us work on craft, focusing instead on singing with the right muscles.  She knew we wouldn’t go back and do that grunt-work after we had earned the “cheap” points.  Mom was concerned about us damaging our young voices, so she demanded that we master vocal production first – a smart move.  

TW: What got you interested in barbershop harmony?

KH: One could say, “See Question #2,” and just stop there, but there is a twist.  As a young teenager during the hippie-years, barbershop was associated with the establishment, and we young people had our own subculture. We were told not to trust anyone over 30, and pop music was progressing in a different direction from Tin Pan Alley and the Great American Songbook.  I perceived barbershop in those days as a fun hobby for older fellows, but the quartets and choruses I had heard didn’t seem like a good fit for the musical trends I was following as a baby-boomer.

Allen and I attended our first International Convention on our parents’ coattails in 1964.  Later, we attended our second one in 1968 (I was twelve), and discovered that barbershoppers had lots of pretty daughters in the “Barberteens” room, but didn’t appear to have very many sons. That turned out to be handy for us. We enjoyed attending those conventions, and sang some tags, but didn’t really pay much attention to the musical goings-on – too many distractions.    

Fortunately, Mom and Dad had a library of recordings of the Society’s Top Ten quartets, as well as recordings of live shows and Long Play (LP) record-albums produced by top quartets like the Renegades, Roaring Twenties, Boston Common, Dealers Choice, Regents, Gentlemen’s Agreement, Sundowners, Sidewinders, etc..  We listened to them all, and enjoyed some more than once.  But far and away, the quartet whose records I fell in love with were produced by the Sun Tones (later the “Suntones”).  My headphones and I spent hundreds of hours poring over their fantastic renditions of popular songs set to barbershop, and that music convinced me that this particular a cappella style could actually be “cool.”  Later, I would wait by the mailbox for each new Suntones-record, as it was released.  I listened until I had accidentally memorized all four parts to all of the several “Sunspots” records that we had.  That was the final piece of the puzzle.  I then joined the chorus, because I simply had to.

TW: You were a member of the Thoroughbreds, considered one of the most successful barbershop choruses in history.  Can you share a few of your own experiences with the T-breds?

KH: Like you guys, I could write a book.  Most of my experiences would be similar to those of other long time barbershoppers, and if I started telling about funny things that happened, we would never be able to list them all.  I will mention one general happening that helped create my personal mission and philosophy.  

Our 120 man chorus showed its best face during competitions, but after winning each trophy, about half of the guys would take a “break” for a couple of years.  We would be left with 60-70 active singers, who did the business of the chorus, week in and week out.  That core of “lifers” sold the tickets and program-ads, built the scenery, commissioned and tweaked the arrangements, rehearsed the show-tunes and performed the package-shows. The rest of the guys came back only to compete.

To our director, Jim Miller, it didn’t matter how small the audience was, or whether it was a prestigious event.  He spent the same energy in preparation and performance, whether we were singing for a banquet of 75 people or a stadium of 10,000.  I can recall many tough shows for small audiences who were not expecting the entertainment to be some barbershop group.  Jim would plan the show carefully, knowing that we would have to work hard and smart, in order to please the “tough” crowd.  Then, he would rehearse us for a couple of hours before the performance, to see which key people were missing, and would change his plan accordingly, moving certain singers to different voice parts to achieve balance, and substituting some second string MCs, soloists and quartet-singers.  

After a complete run-through, the chorus would hit the stage, and Jim would let the audience know with his body language and apparent effort that we wanted to please them. He would work up a sweat, and motivate us to dig in, so as to deliver the most emotional and exciting performance we could muster.  We always exceeded the expectations of those tougher (smaller) audiences, and each performance made the event seem more important to them and to us than it really was.  

BSU followed Jim’s example in that regard, and, with few exceptions, we exceeded the expectations too. For three decades, our quartet did a complete run-through before every performance.  We found that our percentage of remembered lyrics and accurate intervals went up, while our number of seconds of dead time went down.

Music Educators generally teach singers to perform without showing any apparent effort, but that was exactly the opposite of our approach.  We always wanted the audience to sense how hard we were working for them, so we made sure that all of our effort was apparent.  That made our audiences feel special, which is supposed to be “the job,” isn’t it?  Jim’s and our approach was one of the things that set our chorus and quartet apart from most others, who tried to hide their effort during performances, for some unknown “sophisticated” reason.  

One exception?  We sang for a United Nations General Assembly dinner at the Waldorf Astoria in the early 1980s, and we gave ‘em our best stuff, performing with reckless abandon.  We never got more than a white gloved golf-clap from those diplomats. Our host explained that they had all been taught to be very reserved, when in the presence of each other.  But our job was to make them forget their emotional training, so we failed that day. There were no whistles, shouting, hats in the air, money or room-keys on the stage, and no tears or laughter from anybody.  It was miserable.  Later, at the reception, the audience-members were quick with the compliments flattery, but I just wanted to crawl under a rock.

The rest of the 33 years of shows pretty much run together in my mind, because they were the same in this regard:  We gave everything we had in preparation and performance, and fell across the goal line each time, totally spent and exhausted… victorious!  Looking back, our experience was a lot more fulfilling than if we had taken some drugs, skipped across the stage, and tried to hide our efforts from the crowd.  Thanks, Jim!

TW: What were the names of some of the quartets and quartet-singers you sang with before the Bluegrass Student Union?  Compared to those quartets, what was different about the BSU?

KH: BSU was the first organized quartet of which I was a member.  Years later, I sang in several other quartets; Kids at Heart, The Sensations, The Exchange, Four for the Price, Bold Venture and The Daddy-Ohs!  One difference with BSU was trust.  Since I knew that the other parts would always be where they were supposed to be, I was free to think about the message of the song and our emotional connection with the audience, instead of being preoccupied with a few synchronization errors, out of tune chords or horizontal tuning (song going sharp).  The other main difference was the fact that BSU was all business.  When the last man arrived at rehearsal or at the studio, we started singing, and we didn’t quit until the first guy had to leave. On the road, we didn’t sight-see or attend a lot of parties.  We discussed future plans on the plane or in the car, had our carb-dinner together, rehearsed at the hotel, went to the venue early, set up our recordings in the lobby, dressed and made up, did our complete run-through, and gave our performance. Then, we repeated the process before the afterglow.  We often listened to the show tape on the way home, and discussed improvements for the next show.  Every action was designed to maximize the quality of performance.  In some of those other quartets, we spent a little time more enjoying ourselves, and that was fun, too, but in a different way.

TW: What can you tell us about a few of your most memorable BSU performances?  

KH: There was a sameness about our performances over the years that makes them all kind of a blur.  The common denominator was the audience-reaction. We started with a short, fast, high pitched opener, designed to get the audience’s attention away from whatever had preceded us on the show. We followed with self-deprecating humor, to make them like us personally. Then, we sang a swing-tune to charm, and followed with a sincere love-ballad, for the “kill.”  After that, we could sing our novelty songs, to demonstrate virtuosity, and repeat the process ad infinitum.  We were never really a one-song standing ovation kind of quartet. Our approach was a selling process, designed to earn the audience’s respect and love over the course of the performance.  Typically, the long or standing ovation would come at the end, as designed, and only then would we agree to perform an encore. Incidentally, you never saw BSU take cups or bottles of water on the stage. What’s up with that?  Do beta-blockers dry you out?    

Of course, we saw our share of far-away places and prestigious venues, but prestige and exoticness were not what made a performance memorable. Again, it was the audience.  One that stands out was in Viborg, South Dakota.  This community had one hotel, made of unpainted concrete blocks. There was no phone in the room, and a black and white TV was advertised at 50 cents extra per day.  The venue was a high school gymnasium, and our expectations were low.  Nevertheless, we prepared according to our training, and when we hit the stage, we realized there was standing room only in the place; people were hanging from the light fixtures to get a chance to see this show.  We didn’t know that South Dakotans rarely got to see any kind of live entertainment.  People had driven to Viborg from several hundred miles around.  It was such an appreciative crowd, and we were able to deliver a solid performance because we had not taken them for granted.  Carnegie Hall was nice, but this crowd was deafening!

We were invited to sing on the Saturday evening show at the Buckeye Invitational, in Columbus, Ohio, 30 years after our first performance.  It was to be our second appearance at the Buckeye, which was rare, so we were excited about the opportunity, late in our long career.  

We decided to dress and make up in our hotel rooms, and arrived during intermission, knowing that there would be a feature quartet before our spot as the headliner, which was traditionally the final act.  The stage manager excitedly welcomed us into a dressing room, expressing surprise that we were so late, and advising that we were scheduled to open the second half of the show.  I apologized, and asked, “Who is headlining?”  “Max Q,” he replied (who at that time was a silver medalist).  

Barbershop-etiquette calls for the International Champion to headline the show, which should have been us. It was (and is) a slap in the face for any champion to play second fiddle to a second place quartet.  Of course, it was possible that the show producers were neophyte barbershoppers who didn’t know any better.  However, there is no way that Max Q would not have known that tradition.  They should have declined immediately, when asked to headline, but evidently, they had decided it was appropriate for them to be the stars of the show, for some reason that was more important than good manners.  

We decided that the only thing to do was to remain quiet about their offense, and to simply do our “talking” with our performance, as we had been trained to do.  We spent a few minutes in the dressing room, rearranged our song-order and palaver for maximum effect, and went through the curtain with big ol’ grins, about half pissed off.  We opened with “Back in Business,” and the crowd went wild.  We just banged every song, and there was nothing left for Max Q, but a pile of juice.  In the lobby after the show, our recording table was mobbed, and theirs had four lonely guys in tuxedos holding pens, with a couple of crickets chirping, and no autographs to sign.  Second again!

As we were packing up, Jeff Oxley ambled over, and said sheepishly, “I guess you guys probably should have headlined this show.”  Ya think? Yeah, that one was memorable.  We never told anybody about it, until this writing.  

In the 80s, we did some research by surveying the various chapters.  There were over 800, and about 600 of them held an annual show, with a guest quartet.  If you took out the holiday weekends, on a given Saturday night, there were 15 annual chapter-shows going on in the country.  All of the show-chairmen wanted a champion, a past-champion or a top ten quartet as their headliner.  As one of the most popular show-quartets, we had our choice, so we conducted a survey, and began to be selective about which bids we would accept.  Our goal was to maximize fun and profit.  We started to perform only where the chapter had a larger crowd (good for recording sales) and a reputation of hospitality where other guest quartets were concerned (good for the fun).

We pitched in with the Citations, the Harrington Brothers and eventually the Suntones, to organize three special weekends.  We approached chapters about sponsoring special shows that would feature BSU and each one of those other quartets, with only quartet-singing – no choruses.  The idea went viral, and the three weekends were spectacular - so much fun!  The last one was in 1991, with the Suntones.  We performed on a Friday night, two shows on Saturday and one on Sunday afternoon in the southern Michigan and northern Ohio areas.  What a kick to ride around for the weekend with our idols, and get to know them personally!  We included a set as an octet, since we knew all of their tunes, and we traded two of our guys for two of their guys at the afterglows.  It was a dream come true, and BONUS – we all became good friends.

TW: What BSU CD recording project generated the biggest sense of pride, and what about that project was different?  

KH: We were proud of all of our recordings, because we took great care in the production of each one. From a young age, we knew that our quartet was finite, and hoped that people would listen to our recordings, long after we were gone.  That thought was on our minds with the planning and execution of each project. Bobby Ernspiker was our recording engineer, and he was also the son of a Thoroughbred.  

On the first two albums, “After Class” and “The Older the Better,” we had a largely technical approach, caring more about the accuracy of the notes, the ringing of the chords and the intelligibility of the lyrics than about the art.  We were making pretty good bucks on the road, so we decided to give Bob unlimited control over the duration of sessions.  Bob was our fifth set of ears, and was instrumental in capturing the best performances we could muster. Unlike other quartets, we spent six months to a year in weekly recording sessions, to do our best work.  It was our perception that those albums were not perfect, but they were better than most others.  We made money, although our sales were not yet commensurate with the expense and effort we had invested.  

Having met Walter Latzko, we decided to do our first theme album, which would be the first one created by any barbershop quartet.  We chose Meredith Willson’s “The Music Man” as the theme, and set to work on Walter’s fantastic arrangements.  We spent more time listening to Bobby’s guidance in the studio about emotional performance. It took a year to take the tunes from the paper to the stage, and another year to record them.  This time, we spared no expense on the studio time, the costuming, choreography, graphic art and photography, in an attempt to create the best show-package and recording in the history of the Society. The result was an artistic success, but again, the sales were no better than those of any ol’ past champion.

In spite of the apparent unwillingness of the buying public to notice any difference, we were pleased with the product, and decided to look for another theme.  We eventually settled on the songs of the 40s, and the idea for our “Jukebox Saturday Night” album was born.  Latzko and Waesche, our two faves, collaborated on the charts, and we applied the same attention to detail (and spent the same moneys), to create the best product possible.  We accelerated our attention to capturing the right mood for each song.  When that recording hit the streets, the sales went through the roof.  It was puzzling; perhaps the barbershoppers were tired of the Music Man theme, but excited about hearing tunes adapted to barbershop that they had not heard before. For whatever reason, this particular theme appealed to them, and Jukebox catapulted us to a new level of acclaim that left the other past champs behind.  The perception was that we were progressing, improving and pushing the edge of the envelope musically, just as our great examples, the Suntones and the Buffalo Bills, had done twenty and thirty years before.  

We continued that approach with a collection of tunes written by George Gershwin, whose chords and progressions had earned his songs taboo-status in previous Society competitions. But we liked them, and so did Walter (Latzko) and Ed (Waesche).  The result was our album, “Here to Stay,” the first one we did not release as an LP record, but only as a CD and a cassette.  The songs were more sophisticated, the arrangements were arguably better, and the performances were emotional.  The singing demonstrated greater savvy, while our technical execution was just a hair less precise than that of the previous two recordings.  The perception was that this was a lateral move, kind of an extension of Jukebox, and the sales were just as strong as those of the previous album.

In 1998, we introduced “LEGACY,” a 25 year collection of audio recordings in a 3-CD box set, including all five studio-albums, several previously unreleased tracks and a recording of a live show, complete with declamatory stuff between songs.  In 2006, we created our final recording product, called “COMMENCEMENT,” a 2-disc set (1 CD and 1 DVD).  The audio disc includes a few tracks that we were messing around with when we decided to retire for good.  The video disc includes the best performance of each song that we could find on video tapes we had collected over the years.  

Fans of “Here to Stay” and “Jukebox” have since gone back and checked out “Music Man,” and found it to have been under appreciated by past generations. We understand that our video of the Music Man show-package has been used by teachers at Harmony University for decades, to demonstrate showmanship, the way to put a show together, avoidance of dead time and the use of costumes, props, lighting, effective pauses and voice-over-music, to enhance a quartet’s performance.  That pleases us very much.  All of our tracks are available perpetually and digitally through iTunes, CDbaby.com and Pandora.  We have discontinued production of all hard copy CDs, etc.    

We are certainly proud of all of the products, since those five (original) releases each represented our best work at a certain stage in our development.  By design, many of the songs in the second half our career had a timeless appeal that continues to pay dividends.  Thanks to some good taste in song selection, great arrangers, hard work, outside-the-box engineering and professional artwork, our collections of recordings are still being purchased and listened to today.  We anticipate that people will enjoy our music a century or two after we start keeping each other company at the ol’ marble orchard.

TW: The Nashville Singers had a chance to sing your arrangement of “Manly Men” a few years ago, and the audience loved it!  When did you complete your first vocal arrangement?  Do you remember the name of the song?

KH: Glad you liked that one, but sorry, I really don’t remember the first one. When BSU started, I was not adequately educated to sight-read. That skill was developed slowly, and by necessity, over the years.  BSU was a hybrid quartet – that is to say, we were products of the woodshedding generations of the 40s, 50s and 60s, but were also affected by the work of genius-arrangers of the 70s and 80s.  As a result, we did not trust some aspects of the written arrangement, and always reserved the right to woodshed our own changes. Sometimes, they were necessary, to facilitate breath-points and “covers” of pickups.  Other times, they were swipes that we heard and felt, as we learned the chart. Helping to create the tune was a big part of the fun that we simply refused to give up.  

Most arrangers think it is presumptuous of others to change anything about their work.  That attitude is hypocritical and presumptuous in itself, since an arrangement, by definition, is composed of changes from the songwriter’s original work, who is the real (and legal) artist in question, anyway.  As we experienced different arrangers, we figured out which ones had a problem with our changes, and we quietly declined any and all opportunities to sing their charts. Ed Waesche was the first to exhibit an appreciation for what he called our “musical sensibilities,” and endorsed our changes, unless we committed a form-error, which he would help us to correct. Later, Walter Latzko encouraged those same sensibilities, so we had two of the smartest geniuses in our corner, which was more than anybody else had.  Those who wanted to dictate every aspect of the way we sang a song could go find their own quartet.  This one was ours!

The woodshedding accelerated my learning process, and over the years, I learned to spell some of the chords, identify intervals, tell a major key from a relative minor key, make up simple key-changes, etc.  Before long, I could sight-read all four parts, and would know them cold before we had our first rehearsal on a given song.  

It wasn’t until 2002 that I bought my first Finale software.  Friend Walter, had suffered a stroke several years prior, but was still writing arrangements daily, using his left hand to operate the mouse of a computer. The Finale system would enable me to be of assistance to him.

In his salad days, Walter could write an arrangement with his lead pencil and some blank staff-paper while on an airline flight that lasted a couple of hours. He could see the notes on the page in his head, could hear the tune being sung (also in his head), and he could write it down as fast as you or I could write a letter to Mom.  That was his genius, and it explains why only a handful of our Society members were respected arrangers in those days.  In no case did it take Walter longer than a few hours to hand write an arrangement of a single song.  

However, the stroke had robbed him of the use of his strong writing hand and of some of his energy. On the computer, it then took Walter about twelve hours to write an arrangement.  It became a two day job, so he would sometimes tire of the piece before he finished, and would send it to me for ideas from my old “musical sensibilities.”  We collaborated on a lot of charts during the last years of his life, and he taught me a lot about arranging.  

Lacking formal musical education, I am certainly no match for the geniuses who have that special (in their head) kind of talent.  However, with the aid of the Finale program, I found that I was competent to write a chart that included some original ideas.  With the computer, I could listen to my work through speakers, instead of “in my head,” and, with effort, could tweak the chart until it met my own standards as a top quartet singer.  

It was a labor of love, and I was mentored by a guy whom I loved.  I found that, even as my performing ability began to slow down, my strong imagination produced the same endorphin-rush, while writing, that I had enjoyed as a performer.  Over the past 14 years, I have compiled a modest library of 60 or 70 charts. However, I was not the only one who discovered that Finale can take the place of those certain genius-skills. There are now more competent arrangers than there used to be, all competing for the attention of the top ten quartets and choruses.  Of course, there only ten of them, right?  So, my catalogue has been placed with friend Jay Giallombardo and his wife Helen, in the hope that some hot shot quartets might notice them.  Some of those charts are listed on Jay’s web site, but I am not writing much these days.  

Some favorite arrangements that I wrote include a medley of songs from “Paint Your Wagon,” a millennial song popularized by “Five for Fighting” called “100 Years,” and a five part solo (with barbershop chorus background) called “I’m Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town.”  My favorite collaboration with Walter is a contest-chart of a song written by Mel Tormé and Bob Wells, called “County Fair” for an obscure Disney film called “So Dear to My Heart.” We finished that one shortly before my old friend passed away.  All of those tunes have matching learning tracks, which should be available from Jay.  You can hear full mixes of several of them on my album, “Walter and Me,” available on iTunes and CDbaby.com.  Thanks for the commercial.

TW:  From 2004 to 2011, you released four recordings as a soloist. What/who inspired you down that path? How would folks purchase some of those products?

KH: In January of 2002, the phone rang, interrupting a BSU rehearsal on a Sunday evening at Thoroughbred Hall.  A tiny voice said, “You don’t know me, but my name is Chilton Price, and I’ve written a song to honor the fallen firefighters from the 911 disaster.  We would like for the Thoroughbreds to sing it.”

Usually, such a phone call resulted in an embarrassing experience, because I would have to tell the person that they had written a bad song.  This time, such was not the case.  Ms. Price faxed me her song, and on Monday, I sent it to Walter, who wrote a chart that same day.  That evening, I passed it out to the chorus, and we learned in the same night.  Two weeks later, we performed it for a thousand attendees of a convention of the National Association of Retired Military Officers and their bejeweled significant others, at the Grand Ballroom of the Galt House Hotel, in downtown Louisville.  The place came apart.  

I visited Ms. Price the following Tuesday evening, to present her with a recording of that performance, and to thank her for thinking of us.  She said,” Ken, I didn’t tell you who I really was, because I wanted you to judge my song by its own merits.  I have several gold records hanging on the wall in my hallway.  I wrote ‘You Belong to Me’ and other hits from the 1950s. They stopped recording my music when Elvis came along, because I refused to change my writing style.  But I have continued to write new songs that sound just like the Great American Songbook tunes for the last 50 years.  No one with talent has ever heard them before.  Would you be willing to listen to some?”  

Chilton played, and I sang. I felt as if I had won the lottery. The first song made me cry, and each one was better than the last one.  This was the start of a beautiful friendship that lasted 400 Tuesday nights over an eight year period, until her death at the age of 96.  We catalogued her music, and wrote verses and extra lyrics together.  We collaborated on new original songs.  And we talked about every aspect of our lives, keeping no secrets.  You guys should know by now that when you make music together, it is one of the most intimate things you can do with another person. When writing together, we had to communicate the same feeling to the listener, so we had to compare our feelings and life-experiences, in order to tell the same story.  It really was one of the thrills of my life, to become friends with an accomplished songwriter, and Chilton, in particular, was a genuine person, with great wisdom and class.  She taught me how to write songs.  

Along the way, Chilton expressed her desire to have other artists sample her work.  We were already familiar with the freshly budding careers of Michael Bublé and Josh Groban, so she was inspired to hire a pianist and record a demo-CD of original songs, with me doing the singing.  We called it “Pure Price.”  The project turned out well, but we were advised that new songs presented by a new singer was a tough sell.  So, we went back to the studio, and recorded a CD with half original songs and half familiar songs, called “The Best Is Yet to Come.”  Then, we were advised that, while piano-vocal was charming, the tunes really deserved more accompaniment.  So, we went back a third time, and recorded yet another CD of half familiar and half original songs, but this time with a full 17 piece big band and a dozen string-players. The original band-charts were written by our favorite pianist, Jay Flippin, who also put together the best musicians in Louisville for the project.  Man, this was a dream come true!  To be the Sinatra-guy, with a studio full of hot players and the actual songwriter, smiling behind the glass.  It really was heaven.  We got to meet with Michael Feinstein for an afternoon, but so far, none of Chilton’s and my unpublished works have been recorded by anyone famous.    

By that time, BSU had slowed down, and in December of 2006, we called it quits for good.  Another singer who was working at the studio had a steady gig, fronting a big band on the Cunard cruise-ship “Queen Elizabeth II,” and needed some relief, so he could spend more time with his family. So, he got me set up to take his place on several trips for 35 days at a time over the next two years (2007-2008). That was a real learning experience. I was surprised to learn that those musicians do not rehearse.  They don’t need the practice, because they can sight-read it the first time, and make it sound like some guy on the radio.  The only question was, could I keep up with them?

We had several thousand passengers on the ship, and several hundred of them came on board strictly for the ballroom dancing in the ship’s famous Queen’s Room, which was designed and furnished in the style of the Titanic, from the original White Star Line. It was a classy joint, full of rich folks from several continents, who were very sensitive to the tempo required for each different kind of dance.  We performed two one hour sets each evening, seven days a week, and we were not to repeat a song during any certain cruise, some of which lasted for more than two weeks. I had the opportunity to perform several hundred different songs, and I had a whole four measures to figure out the key, tempo, meter and rhythm of each one, before coming in on time and in tune.

The international montage of musicians was mostly fresh out of college, using their talents to work their way around the world, before settling down with a job and family. These guys were all pretty jaded, and showed it with their playing.  Everybody was in business for himself, and not enjoying the room, the crowd or even each other.  It became apparent that they had been taught by their university professors to look down their noses at the listeners and at other musicians who could not play as well. We had a trombone player who was a great sight-reader, but who was not an experienced improviser.  They would “throw him the ball,” and then laugh hysterically (in full view of the audience) at his feeble attempts to play a trombone-solo.  

I dressed them down pretty good during the next break.  I let them know that this was unprofessional behavior, and I expected them to get a haircut, be sober, stop showing up with spotted ties and wrinkled clothes, and to act like pros, instead of amateurs.  They could set me off the boat in Tahiti, and I could fly home – no problem, and they could explain the absence of the singer for the rest of the month.  Then, I began to recognize horn players from the stage whenever one would distinguish himself with a solo.  I gave them nicknames, like “Mr. Incredible (Ukrainian)” and “Lady-Killer (Canadian).” Before long, those guys were smiling at each other, calling out the measure-numbers and enjoying playing as an ensemble.  We didn’t feature the trombone player anymore.            

It was a little nerve-wracking at the start, but after three or four days, I was comfortable enough to look up from the music-stand and perform.  After another few days, the music-director in charge of all the acts asked me to handle the speaking between songs.  At the end of our first 17 day cruise, the passenger-evaluations gave us a score of 85 out of 100, which turned out to be the highest score ever awarded to that particular room.  The musicians and the bosses were pretty doggone happy, and the band-director got a raise.  All that resulted from a barbershopper – an amateur with a professional attitude – being thrown in with a bunch of professional musicians with bush-league attitudes.  I found out from the band-cats that singing in tune on that ship made me an anomaly, which helped.  

We made some good noise, and I learned a lot.  The favorite tunes we played turned out to be a samba called Quando Quando Quando, with lyrics by Pat Boone, and a waltz-rendition of “If You Were the Only Girl in the World.”  The young cats had never heard of the latter, but played it well, and told me, “Dude, you sang that tune like you wrote it!”  It was fun!  I was able to stick and jab – to back phrase – whenever I felt like it; much different from singing homophony with a quartet.  No rehearsal was necessary.

After each performance, we had a midnight buffet, and then I would stay up all night in my cabin, writing band-charts.  What was cool about that?  The band would play the chart the next night, and would then give me pointers about my writing.  It was a great experience, but after two years, I had enjoyed a lot of songs, and had learned everything the ship could teach me.  I came home, and fronted for the Don Krekel Orchestra, a big band in Louisville, for a couple years, before retiring from solo-singing.  It was a kick, but in the music biz, “you is either famous, or you is pore!”  My last gig was a party for some rich folks at the Galt House on New Year’s Eve of 2015. I looked marvelous, but filled the room with mediocrity.  Time to move on.

By that time, I had collaborated with Walter on some great charts, and I had written some myself that I liked, so I produced an a cappella recording, singing all four parts.  I called it “Walter and Me, and it appears with my three solo recordings on iTunes and CDbaby.com, under the artist-name Kenny Ray Hatton.

TW: Can you talk about some of the choruses you have had a chance to lead over the years? What advice could you give to aspiring choral-directors?

KH: It was always a dream to someday be front-line director of the Thoroughbreds.  At the same time, I had watched as the guys who followed John Wooden at UCLA and Adolph Rupp at University of Kentucky do well, but fail to come close to the records of the great ones.  I did not relish the thought of following Jim Miller with the ‘Breds.

Brother Allen got his shot when Jim resigned in 1985, as co-director with Ken Buckner.  Then, when Bunk left town to work for the Society in Kenosha, Allen was the man!  He did well, and if you listen to the recordings, the chorus did some of its best singing ever, under his direction.  But certain other choruses were getting better exponentially, and even though the T-Breds tied for first in 1990, the proverbial “coin-toss” went to Dr. Greg Lyne and his Masters of Harmony.  Egos, trends and politics divided our chapter after that. Choruses have a way of assigning all the credit for a chorus’s success and all the blame for its failures to the director, neither of which is true.  But directors and chorus-members know that going in, so I suppose it’s fair.

When Allen resigned in December of 1992, I was not active in the chorus, but the BOD sent guys to talk to me.  I had recently started my own business, and was not prepared to discuss the matter until August of 1993.  They had appointed a guy as “interim director,” while they conducted a “search.”  The Board asked me to keep quiet about their approach, so they could make that guy think he was getting the job permanently, while they waited six months for me.  I refused to make that promise, but I did not go out of my way to let him know. I regret that.  

That’s the thing about chorus-directing that I detested – the politics.  The official BOD of our beloved Thoroughbreds deceived that poor fellow, an action which was, in their minds, “in the best interests of the chapter.” I never understood how lying to a guy could ever be in the best interest of any chapter.  But that’s what you get, when you put humans in charge.

A seasoned judge once wrote, “You get good marks, and win a scholarship. You finish pre-law, and get into a great law-school, where you graduate with honors, and land a job as a clerk for a Federal judge.  You get on with a prestigious firm, and after several years, they make you a partner.  Then, you run for circuit-judge, and win the election.  Your first trial is almost over, and who makes the decision?  Two retired guys, three housewives, a file clerk, a bricklayer, a schoolteacher and ditch-digger!”  That’s kind of the way a barbershop chorus works.  The Board of Directors searches to find the most skilled and knowledgeable person they can to be the Music Director.  Then, knowing they are less qualified, they complicate your efforts with frequent attempts to micromanage. Unless you can earn enough implied authority with the troops, it is a built-in recipe for failure.      

Regardless, I showed up to accept the directorate in August, and we went to the Cardinal District prelims a few weeks later.  We won handily, with a group of about 70 men, and began to prepare for our annual Christmas Show, as well as the 1994 International Chorus Contest in Pittsburgh, with 92 guys on stage.  

International competition was a different story.  Our ranks had been decimated during the prior year by the formation of the Louisville Times Chorus by David Harrington and Mark Hale, along with a couple of dozen of our better singers. The new group had a tough audition for admission, and didn’t invite any of our “average” singers to participate.  Wonder where that idea came from?

That loss of so many good singers gave us a tougher row to hoe, but we started in earnest on the fundamentals.  We tackled a new Ed Waesche medley of Hoagy Carmichael’s “Billy-A-Dick” and Jule Styne’s Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat,” along with a new chart of “Till We Meet Again.”  We had Sally Whitledge, of International SAI Champion “4th Edition” fame as our choreographer, and her husband, Bob, of the “Gentlemen’s Agreement,” was our bass section leader and one of our associate directors.

We worked hard, but the resulting performance was scored in the mid-80s; not up to the chorus’s reputation, nor to my standards.  I was privately embarrassed by the singing, even before the scoresheets revealed a 6th place finish.  Another year and two new contest songs later, our 1995 contest performance in Miami was equally embarrassing (to me), and the rank was identical (a gift, in my opinion). In the meantime, we had done a lot of exciting B-level singing on shows, and held on to most of our local following.

When Ken Buckner announced that he was moving back to Louisville, I was sure that he could lead the chorus to greater heights than I.  As it turned out, the performance we gave in the 1995 fall contest was the best singing the chorus had ever given under my direction.  I had my letter of resignation in my pocket, and handed it to the Chapter President immediately after we came off stage, and before the call-off.  I was finally proud of a contest-performance, even before I learned that we had won, and we had beaten the second place chorus, the Louisville Times, by 20 points. I handed the baton to Bunk, and wished him well.

Three years later, in February of 1998, the chorus was struggling even harder, and I was approached by the president and one of the associate directors to again serve as front line director.  When I showed up at the Board meeting to respond, both of those guys denied in my presence that they had approached me.  Once again, they didn’t want to hurt the feelings of the guy who was in charge at the time.  More politics – more lying.  

I then announced to the Board that this idea must have come to me in a dream during the night.  I would be out in the parking lot long enough to have a smoke – about four minutes, and then my offer would be withdrawn. They came out and got me to serve as director three minutes later, but explained that they had to complete their “search,” so it would be a couple of months before I would start my term. That wasted time led to a slim defeat in the fall contest at the hands of our rivals, the Louisville Times – more embarrassment.  We weren’t even the best barbershop chorus in town!  Still, we received a “wild card” bid to participate in the International Chorus Contest, where they finished eighth, and we finished fifth.  

This time, I quickly got Brother Allen on Board, appointing him as co-director for the duration.  The group improved exponentially in preparation for the 1999 chorus contest in Anaheim.  We commissioned a new Waesche arrangement of the Irving Berlin tune, “Pack up Your Sins, and Go to the Devil,” and dusted off Ed’s old chart of “Over the Rainbow.”  The Anaheim contest saw the Thoroughbreds return to the medals, although it was a bronze, awarded for a 5TH place finish.  In the old days, it would have been disappointing, but our guys jumped for joy, as they had failed to even qualify for the dance the previous year (for the first time ever).

We seemed to have a tiger by the tail, but that’s when the wheels started to come off.  Allen and I agreed to implement individual performance-accountability, and divided the chorus into two groups – one performing group and the other remedial.  This was our way of competing against the “hand-picked” choruses – by focusing our teaching efforts on smaller groups and individuals where they were needed most. We had not predicted that the remedial group would be embarrassed to the extent that they would vote as a political block.  The following year, we competed with fewer singers, and dropped out of the top ten choruses, and in 2001, in Nashville, finished 14th. That was it!  Allen and I were pretty much out on our ear.  

We left the chapter with about 30 guys, and formed the New Horizon Chorus, leaving the ‘Breds in even worse shape.  We had allowed ourselves to be affected by the individual performance accountability standards which were running rampant around the Society, but our Thoroughbreds were not willing to accept them.  In retrospect, we would have been smarter to have continued the path of John Henry against the steam drill.  We still would not have won the championship, but we would have gone down swinging! Instead, we joined the plethora of chapters who had divided themselves in the interest of the elitist-singer. We had become what we had previously scorned.  We ended up with three “also-ran” choruses, in lieu of the mighty International Champion Thoroughbreds.  

In 2013, I moved to Alabama for work, and also accepted the job of Music Director of Voices of the South, in Birmingham, Alabama.  We started with sores of 68%, and (several times) raised those scores to the middle 70s. We finished second in our first spring chorus contest, and three years later. We tied for second, one point out of first, in my final contest performance as a director.  We sang some good shows during our three years, and the guys were kind enough to sing some of my arrangements, along with some written by my late pals, Walter and Ed, as well as two original songs written by my dear departed friend, Chilton Price and me.  I retired in 2016, because some physical ailments made it difficult to perform the athletic tasks associated with conducting.  Also, I had not been able to figure out how to grow the chorus. We started with 22 active, and we ended with 22 active.  I thought perhaps a younger guy could do better.            

What did I learn that I can share with aspiring chorus directors?  I was not smart enough to figure that  out.  All hail Jim Miller!  He used to say, “I hate when you guys whine, ‘I don’t know what to do, Jimmy.’  Maybe I’ll smack you in the balls, and then you’ll sure know what to do.  You’ll say, ouch!”  I wrote an e-book about Jim’s life called, “If Not for Jim,” available on Amazon and iBooks, which was released in 2012, a few months after his passing, at the age of 87. Read the book, and maybe you can get some advice from Jim. My advice is, if you don’t know what to do, stick to quartet-singing, or you might get smacked in the balls.    

TW: You’ve had a chance to work with so many amazing coaches over the years.  What is some of the best advice you have been given by a coach?

KH: Well… not so many.  In the 70s, Jim was too busy directing and singing in the Citations to coach us as a quartet.  Ed Gentry was already coaching the Citations, the Thoroughbreds and the Cardinals quartet.  My mother was our first coach, as previously mentioned.  Her lessons had to do with breath support and using the right muscles, which held us back at first, but raised the level at which we would perform later.  We failed to qualify for International in our first two attempts, in 1974 and 1975. However, we had won the Cardinal District Championship, in the fall of 1974, a year after our formation.  Back then, there just weren’t many good singing young quartets.  Most good ensembles were in their thirties, forties and fifties.  The hot-shots of our youth had been the Sundowners and the Grandmas Boys, who were six to ten years older than we.  

The Johnny Appleseed District had scouted us at our convention, and invited us to an all-expense paid trip to the JAD spring convention, in 1975.  There, we sang for the quartet contest audience, while the scores were being tallied. Let’s just say, we were having a good day.  We sang almost everything we knew, and there were money and panties thrown on the stage.  We got to our dressing rooms, and already had our jackets off, when the MC came to get us, and said, “They won’t stop clapping until you guys come back out here. They don’t care who won the quartet contest.”  

So, we went back out, and sang the only other song we knew; the Suntones’ “Lollipops and Roses,” being sure to apologize in advance for the fact that it wasn’t suitable for the contest stage.  In the judges’ pit that night was a man named Don Clause.  When we left Dayton on Sunday, he was our new coach. Don was one of the writers of the category description of the new “Sound” category, and was getting ready to be C&J Chairman, which we didn’t care about.  He was also the coach of the 1973 and 1974 International Champions, the Dealers Choice and the Regents.  We recognized him from his picture on the back of the DC’s first album, which we did care about.  

Within a year, Don had introduced us to several original Ed Waesche contest-arrangements, had us as his guests on Long Island for a weekend coaching session, had interpreted all four of our new contest songs (which we recorded), and had challenged us to master our craft, using the Society’s “green book,” a craft-manual patterned after the one Ed Gentry had written for the Thoroughbreds.

We didn’t always sing every phrase the way Don had instructed, but he never noticed that. What Don did for us was to convince us that we could master our craft, and provide a tie-breaker to keep us from arguing about how to sing each phrase.  We did all of our homework within six months, having applied our new craft to the four Waesche charts, including “Midnight Rose,” and “I’ve Found My Sweetheart, Sally.”  In the spring of 1976, at the ages of 20 and 21, BSU won the Cardinal prelims, and in San Francisco, in our first International Quartet Contest, we were awarded a 4th place medal.  That was the biggest thrill in my quartet career, to this day.  It was so unexpected by so many people, including us!

Don’s impact was the greatest, but not the only one from great coaches.  He put each of us in touch with our weaknesses.  Mine was pushing down low, instead of trusting my fellow singers to help create my note.  Ricky’s was forgetting the dynamic plan.  Danny’s challenge was to be firmer with his diction.  Allen’s was to keep his falsetto tenor balanced (softer).

Our visual presentation coach was the great Ron Riegler, from the Roaring Twenties, who came in fifth to our fourth, at the San Francisco Convention. Ron taught us to move to the outside when singing louder, and move to the inside when singing softer.  He taught us to do a preparatory move in the opposite direction from which we intended to move, like Jackie Gleason before he would say, “And away we go!” Sadly, Ron became gravely ill in early 1977, and passed away after the 1977 convention.  We recruited my high school drama teacher, Gene Stickler, to choreograph four new tunes for the 1977 and 1978 contests.  You would have sworn that Gene was Ron’s brother; they were so much alike!  

The third coach was a more modest fellow, also from Cincinnati, Ed Weber. Ed was a stage presence judge, who specialized in facial expression, focal point and the fundamentals of stage presence.  He taught us that it mattered where we looked in the audience during each phrase, and that our facial expression should be planned to mirror the emotion suggested by the changing message of the song.  Ed taught us never to raise our hands above the waist, unless there was a planned reason for them to be up there.  And don’t ever close your eyes.  They are the windows to the emotions.  

Our makeup guy was Joe Bruno, who taught us which stage makeup to buy, and how to apply it modestly, so that we looked normal and handsome on stage, rather than like a bunch of clowns.  The makeup was a part of our ritual of preparation, which helped us to feel an aura of invincibility before we took the stage.  The longhairs coming out of the universities to save us all from ourselves have since convinced our lazier members that such efforts are unnecessary. Consequently, their faces wash out in the stage lights, and we can see their expressions only by watching the big screen – when there is a big screen, that is.  We miss you, Joe.    

Our costume-designers included Louise Cecil, a professional, who made the brightly colored thrift-store knickerbockers that we wore during our three contest years for $143.75 – for all four them!  Another was clothier and barbershopper Mike Mazucca, who designed our unique kelly green tuxedos and our rose colored (pink) tuxedos for the other two contest sets. Our last costume-designer was Dan’s wife, Cyndy Burgess, who had a degree in Home Economics from the University of Kentucky.  She designed and built our Music Man costumes – the ones that appeared in the photograph, with the plumed hats and reversible jackets.  We wore them on stage for many years.  

TW: What are your thoughts on the evolution of the music-industry and songwriting over the course of your lifetime?  Are you happy with this evolution?

KH: Well first, let me say that Irving Scrooge Berlin was a greedy SOB. Besides refusing to allow barbershop arrangements of his songs because our genre was not “legitimate,” thanks to that stuck up, crusty old curmudgeon, who never learned to read a note of music, and played piano only by ear in the key of F sharp, and thanks to his lawyers, the term of a song-copyright was extended from 50 years after the copyright started to 90 years after the death of the longest surviving collaborator.  I don’t like that very much.

I am glad to see the money-people, whose only talent is to recognize and take advantage of the potential of others, finally being left out of the mix, thanks to technology.  With the advent of cell-phones, video and social media, any artist can reach the public directly with his or her songs, voice and instrument, from the safety and obscurity of his bathroom or basement. He or she no longer needs cow-tow to the David Fosters and Phil Specters of the world, in order to be “discovered.” If his or her talent is special, it will now be noticed by the real judges.  In the words of the late George Gershwin, “It is not the few knowing ones whose opinions make any work of art great; it is the judgment of the great mass that finally decides.”

Of course, I detest licensing agencies BMI, ASCAP, SESAC, and abhor publishers Hal Leonard and Alfred Publishing for what they have done to the undiscovered songwriter and hobby-singer/player of music, and I am embarrassed and angry that our Society is playing ball with them.  By the way, BHS is both a licensing agency and a publisher.  The former group of pariahs caters only to the writers of songs featured in blockbuster movies, the top 100 grossing concerts annually and of protected works that get radio, TV and internet airplay.  The latter group is squeezing the rest of us out of mere participation by the high cost of permission to arrange, perform, record and promote, and our Society is helping them do it by agreeing to their terms.  

Our better option is to join together to boycott all protected works, and resort to Public Domain songs and original songs copyrighted by our own members, and to make sure not to allow any of those publishers or licensing agencies (or our Society) to participate in even partial ownership of our protected works. This happened once before, you know, when ASCAP got too big for its britches in the late 1940s, and took all of its catalogue off the radio airwaves. That’s what gave birth to the country music industry and caused BMI to be formed.  Perhaps such a boycott now, would birth another industry called a cappella. There are thousands of public domain songs that are very fine vehicles, and we are perfectly capable of writing our own songs that fit the style.  

Meanwhile, if you want to adapt any protected work to the barbershop style represented by one of these licensing agencies or publishers, just so your quartet or chorus can sing it in a show or a contest for which you might earn no moneys in exchange, please be prepared to pay several hundred dollars to the copyright owner, just in exchange for permission.  Of course, another way is to woodshed your own arrangement of a protected work, which constitutes “fair use,” under the law, as long as it is not written down. We used to all know how to do that!

TW: What personal accomplishment are you most proud of outside the world of barbershop harmony?  

KH: Many people like to say they are proud of their families.  I cannot take the credit for the successes of my children, and I will not take the blame for their failures.  We lead the horses to the water, but it is up to them to make the choice to drink.  I feel good about having done my job.  They did not ask to be brought into the world.  Their mother and I made that decision, and all three arrived kicking and screaming mad about it.  We owed them good food, clothing, shelter, education and love.  We paid our debt and provided additional things like cars and money after they were grown.  Since then, it has been up to them.  To their credit, they are all paying taxes, and none are drug-addicts or criminals. I am glad for their varying degrees of success, even while meeting different levels of hardship, because I love and want only good things for them.  But to be “proud” would claim responsibility for their success, which I cannot do.  There are people close to me who have had adult children who made wrong choices that resulted in incarceration and even death.  Those children enjoyed the same benefits that mine did.  If I claim credit for my own children’s success, I would be blaming other parents for the failures of their kids, which would be over-the-top inappropriate.  That’s why I cringe when I see parents bragging about “pride” in their adult children’s successes, and it’s why you won’t see claims of pride in my kids’ accomplishments on my Facebook page.  

That being clarified, I suppose I am proud of the fact that I work hard every day, and that I am not a burden on my family or on society.  I am proud of the kind of work I do, and that makes it necessary for this answer to overlap the answers to your good question numbers 15 and 16.

TW: Barbershoppers probably know you best as the energetic performer and lead singer of the Bluegrass Student Union, the 1978 quartet champs of the SPEBSQSA, now known as the Barbershop Harmony Society.  What are a few things that folks may NOT know about you?

KH: I can juggle.  I discovered as a teenager that I could isolate overtones with my voice, and play tunes with the overtones while holding the same note, simply by changing my mouth opening and tongue position.  I speak fluent Spanish.  I have not been able to walk farther than a block and a half without resting for ten minutes since 2003.  That will likely never change.  I didn’t like Irving Berlin when he was alive, and now that he is dead, I still do.  Oh yeah, we covered that.    

I have worked as a loading dock equipment and industrial doors application-expert on and off since 1986. When I entered the industry, I was sent to a school held by our main factory, which was called KELLEY, inventor and manufacturer of the hinged lip dock leveler, a bridge between the loading dock and the trailer bed.  The fellows who taught that school were the same ones who had been around since the invention of the device, in 1953.  They had been the first generation of sales persons, who introduced the product to American industry, and they imparted to me their noble mission.  Their product had revolutionized the safety and comfort of the loading dock worker, and, along with a later invention by a competitor (the trailer restraint), had saved the lives and limbs of countless people around the world, none of whom realized that they would have died or been maimed without it.  

Most businesses provide goods and services that help people in some way. We don’t all get to be astronauts or Supreme Court Justices. Most of us make our contributions to humankind in smaller, less famous ways.  On our tombstones, it won’t say, “He laid a lot of brick,” or “She counseled a lot of crazy people.”  On mine, it won’t say, “He sold a lot of levelers, restraints and overhead doors, and made sure they were properly installed.”  But that is exactly the thing of which I am most proud.  Funny how one can attain something akin to immortality by doing a little singing, but the day in and day out saving of lives by most of us who do it goes unnoticed.  

When I was a kid, I didn’t imagine growing up to be a dock leveler salesman. The job sort of found me, instead of the other way around.  But I developed a keen interest in the product and in applying and installing it correctly.  I found that once I embraced the noble motivation, my clients could sense that sincerity.  When I get the job, lives are saved, the work area is more comfortable, the customer’s management enjoys the savings that comes with increased productivity, and my commissions take care of themselves.  It’s a great business, because my degree of personal fulfillment just happens to be commensurate with the financial rewards.  What a great country!  I have to believe that unless you are a criminal, or you work in the liquor- or tobacco-industry, your job probably offers similar fulfillment.  We are all here to serve each other, and most jobs allow you to do that.  I can only hope that it brings you similar rewards.  

TW: What’s the next item on your bucket list?

KH: That’s a tough question, because I have had such a great life!  I had two marriages that lasted a total of 36 years, and 29 of them were pretty darned good.  I loved me some women.  I am now divorced and single, and life is really stress-free these days.  My three kids are healthy and standing on their own six feet.  I have a special relationship with my son, Mike.  I always treated him as an equal; not as a child.  As a result, he is now my friend, in addition to being my son, which pleases me very much.  I enjoy my work, and will never retire, as long as I can walk and think.  I have lived many of my dreams, helping the Thoroughbreds to earn four gold medals and some other colors too, winning quartet contests with my three “brothers,” Allen, Danny and Rick, and then going on to join the Suntones-Buffalo Bills-Boston Common-club.  I got to direct the Thoroughbreds in competition on several occasions, although it didn’t turn out as well as I had envisioned. I traveled around the world a few times, and got to visit 47 states, most of them multiple times.  I directed a chorus across mainland China for four 2-week trips, and coached my way across New Zealand and Australia.  I learned how to arrange music, with no formal education, and I sang professionally in jazz clubs with a great accompanist.  I became friends and wrote songs with a real award-winning Great American Songbook writer.  I met idols, heroes, presidents and other famous people along the way, who all turned out to be regular guys, just like me.  My quartet recorded some of the best-selling barbershop-recordings of all time.  I recorded a big band album with 33 top musicians that sounds like it belongs on the Sirius Sinatra channel.  I wrote a biography about the life of my mentor, Jim Miller.  I made a barbershop recording dedicated to my other mentor, Walter Latzko.  I made three recordings that honored yet another mentor, Ms. Chilton Price.  I wrote original songs and arrangements, and heard them sung by others.  On occasion, I even got to perform on the ‘lectric television.  Hoo-wee!  

I promise you that I have done everything that I wanted to do, and more.  I have a few regrets, but owe no amends.  There is no bucket-list, but I discovered something else that I enjoy, just this past year.  You see, I moved to Alabama five years ago, for my work, and I have no “old friends” here. New friends are nice, but there is nothing like the friends with whom you share some history.  I see Allen, Rick and Dan once a year, at a reunion at Allen’s lake house.  I hate to think that I might see those guys only a handful (or two) more times before one of us takes a header.

I have other friends around the country, with whom I stay in touch.  Still, there are others who I care about deeply, but don’t get to see anymore.  Last June, I visited Marjorie Latzko at her home in Lewes Delaware, where she lives, with her daughter, Melanie and her husband and two boys.  Marjorie is one of the tenors of the Chordettes, of Mr. Sandman fame, besides being Walter’s devoted wife for over 50 years and one of my dearest friends.  After a great three day visit, I took the ferry across Delaware Bay, to Cape May, New Jersey, and drove to Brigantine, where I met with old friend Carol Plum. We took her parents, Ellen and Neal, out to dinner, and enjoyed reminiscing about his quartet, Sound Revival, back in the 70s and 80s.  

The next morning, I met pal Jack Pinto, of Old School quartet, for breakfast, and we traveled to New York City, where we had dinner with genius arranger, judge and quartet-man Steve Delehanty and his wife, Connie, along with medalist lead singer Scott Brannon, of the Cincinnati Kids.  I enjoyed spending time with these many good friends, and made a new friend, Keith Harris, the barbershopper and professional opera-singer.  It took some effort and expense on my part, but this was more fun and fulfilling than going around the world.  I did that already, and got paid for it – twice!  It couldn’t be as much fun the third time, especially if I’m paying.  But this trip was a gas, because I got to see those lovely people one more time.  

So, I don’t have a bucket-list of things I want to do and experience.  I just want to see my old friends one more time.  So, I have already planned my trip for 2018.  In February, I will see Todd and Jennifer Wilson, in Nashville, and then hop on a plane to see Holly and Brian Beck in Colorado Springs.  With any luck, Bobby Gray and Terri will be available for dinner, and maybe I can sneak in a luncheon with George Davidson, Terry Heltne and Kurt Hutchison in Denver, before visiting old quartet-buddy, Vince Winans and his wife in Salt Lake City. After a couple of days, I will head for Palm Springs, California, to visit former Thoroughbred Jonathan Friedman and his wife, Annabelle, where they will introduce me to their new baby girl, who is to be born next month.  Then, it’s on to Oakland, where I will spend a few days watching some of my grandkids play soccer and volleyball.  

I might try to visit old pal Greg Lyne, while I am there.  He always tries to tell me that the Thoroughbreds should have won that contest in 1990.  I like that about him.

[nashvillesingersblog]

Todd’s chat with legendary vocal arranger Kirby Shaw

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Kirby Shaw for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

Published November 6, 2017

TW: When did complete your first vocal arrangement. Do you remember the name of the song? KS: As crazy as this sounds, my first "arrangement" was a composition 5 Psalms For Unaccompanied Double Chorus for my Masters of Arts degree at San Jose State in the mid 1960's. Growing up playing trumpet in school bands, singing in school/church choirs/jazz combos/bands all through college, as well as spending time being glued to the black radio station in Oakland, California KSAN (the same town that spawned Tower of Power) prepared me to jump into music/writing/arranging in a variety of ways. I didn't fully realize this at the time, but looking back now it makes sense. TW: Can you describe the arranging process or what inspires you along the way? KS: My arranging process for American popular music begins by working to honor the artists(s) whose music I've chosen to arrange. In addition to duplicating the rhythmic groove, harmonies and melody that often don't appear in the published sheet music, I try to capture as many stylistic details as possible. If it's a song that I think could benefit by adding a horn section (usually Trumpet 1 and 2, Tenor Sax and Trombone so as not to drown out the choir) I'll include that as well. 

My inspiration for writing/arranging school music is two-fold: 1) As a choral educator, I'm continually thrilled with what happens when people come together to sing: everything becomes better...troubles are lessened...endorphins are created...feelings are expressed and shared in a special communal way.  I've come to the realization that, as choral educators, we are in the people empowerment business and choral music is the vehicle!...2) The United States is easily the groove capitol of the known universe! Every cultural contribution to music-making can be found here. I feel so lucky to have grown up in a time that spans 30's- 40's style music all the way into this century. Much of this rich elixir of musical styles has come from Black America...freedom of expression derived from messing with melodies, rhythms and harmonies. I work hard to include these in many of my arrangements. In truth, I'd like to be known as the blackest white arranger I know! TW: What percentage of your arrangements are commissioned works, where people/groups come to you vs. songs you just decide to arrange on your own? KS: I do a few commissioned pieces each year, but most of my income comes from writing/arranging for the major music publishers...Hal Leonard/Alfred/Shawnee Press. I was fortunate enough to be at the right place (Reno Jazz Festival) at the right time (1974) with the right choral group (College of the Siskiyous Vocal Jazz Ensemble..one of the first community college jazz/pop choirs in California). A representative from Hal Leonard looking for something different to add to their music education offerings heard our group and asked me if I'd like to do some arranging for their company. That started the arranging ball rolling. Most of my arrangements are tunes that I like and happen to be available for the various publishers. TW: What are some of the groups that have commissioned you to create a custom vocal arrangement? KS: Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Acoustix, numerous high school and college choirs, Barbershop Harmony Society, Cor Vivaldi.

TW: How long does it usually take for you to complete an arrangement from start to finish? KS: Depending upon the length of the piece(s) one day to a week. TW: Do you ever encounter writer's block, times when your creative juices are not flowing adequately enough to get an arrangement started? If yes, how do you usually overcome that situation? KS: Honestly, I hardly experience writers' block. I feel so honored to be a part of what I consider to be the richest popular music treasure storehouse in the history of the world (the USA), I stay stoked! TW: David Lettermen time... What would you say is your top 10 list of Kirby Shaw arrangements you are most proud of? KS: This is hard to nail down, but here goes: Bridge Over Troubled Water, Let There Be Love, When I Fall In Love, Tear Them Down, Star Spangled Banner, Jamaican Noel, Blues Down To My Shoes, Operator, Higher Ground, I've Got The Music In Me, Java Jive (I lied..that's 11) TW: What advice could you give to aspiring arrangers? KS: Jump in...and keep jumping in! Good ears are a big help...some piano chops and keyboard harmony are a good idea, and have a group where you can try your stuff out. Keep learning...keep exploring! TW: Many people only know you as an arranger, but you're a performer too. I was listening to your quartet Just4Kicks this past week. Are you guys still singing together? KS: Singing in Just 4 Kicks has been one of the most enjoyable activities in my life. Clue...our first rehearsal lasted for 10 hours and we laughed for 9! We find it hard to believe that we've been together for 25+ years. With the inevitable changes that occur in long-term relationships, we're hoping to keep this thing going, and we'll always love each other as brothers in song. TW: As a performer, when you're putting together a set list for a gig, do you have a particular process for choosing the songs and the order of those songs? KS: A) It's a song I like...B) Styles/Grooves/Lyric content need to vary from song to song...C) Keys need to vary from song to song D)..most importantly, don't be boring! TW: When we had the grant funding available, you served as a clinician for one of our Acappella Academy sessions. I know the intent is for you to impart your knowledge on others at these kinds of sessions. Can you describe some of the "aha moments" you have encountered along the way, times where you learned something new? KS: Honestly, every time I come in contact with a choir (even a few spontaneous times in airports!) there are a-ha moments. Why?..because of the uniqueness of every individual in that choir. For me, each of us is a unique spiritual being and each of us has interesting things to bring to the music table. It's a wise choral educator that allows these a-ha moments to happen in a rehearsal. Possibly my biggest a-ha moment recently was in Calw, Germany. A female tenor in her mid-20's came up to me after our final performance and said "Thank you, Dr. Shaw, for saving my life. I was in a padded cell at a mental hospital after trying to kill myself, and listening to the practice tracks for our concert inspired me to not give up." It was truly a humbling experience for me to hear that. TW: What are your thoughts on the evolution of songwriting over the course of your lifetime? Are you happy with this evolution? KS: Quality songs will always be written...for me, these will be songs that honor the 5 elements of music...Melody, lyrics, harmony, form, rhythm and tone color (Ok..I added one here too!). However, I agree with Deke Sharon and a large contingent of knowledgeable music writers and arrangers that these are dark times for popular music.  I believe the slow downward spiral started in the 1990's. Part of the problem could be that with technology, (the good news and the bad news) anyone can now write a song. For me and my wife, we try not to roll our eyes when we're in a restaurant and hear a pop melody that's limited to a boring 4-note pentatonic 4-yr. old level melody that repeats...and repeats...let's see, one time we counted 14 repetitions! We find this to be truly beyond belief, and our hope is, as music has moved in the past, that music will swing back to a more interesting place than where it is now. TW: Which musicians/groups do you admire and what about them inspires you? KS: There are too many groups and individuals that have inspired me to cover in this brief interview. To mention even a dozen would do a disservice to the others.  It's a veritable treasure trove of talent, that's for sure! TW: What other vocal arrangers do you admire? KS: This is a tough call as well, but a few of my many faves would include Gene Puerling, Phil Mattson, David Wright and Rosana Eckert. TW: Do you have any non-musical hobbies? KS: I did a lot of surfing (before the Beach Boys..yikes!)..hiking in the Southern Sierras and northern California's Marble mountains and Trinity Alps,..cleaning up the forest on our 24 acres at 5100' above Ashland Oregon's Rogue Valley...landscaping, planting Japanese Maples, Sequoia Giganteas, Douglas Firs and digging the planting holes by hand...getting away from it all with my wife, Markita, and our dog, Tux. TW: What cool stuff do you have coming up in the near future? KS: Besides a bunch of rewarding teaching/concertizing In Australia couple of months ago, I'll be in Los Angeles starting in December to record my new choral arrangements for Hal Leonard. The choir my wife and I direct, The Jefferson State Choral Coalition, is now a non-profit and we'll be doing a Holiday Gospel concert soon with Darlene Reynolds-Cooper, a former student of mine who's one of the most soulful singers I will ever know. I'll judge at the Smoky Mountain Music Festivals next April. In spring of 2018 our choir will do a Blues and Grooves concert in the Medford Oregon Craterian Theatre with the Hank Shreve Blues Band. Hank is a world-class harmonica player, and hey, his dad plays bass in the band!. I'll be in Calw, Germany again next June, along with some mid-west music reading sessions for Show Choir Camps of America. TW: Is there anything I have not asked you about that you would like to share with our 2,000 or so subscribers? KS: Be kind always...this'll be a nice contrast to the current nastiness going on in our country. If you're a singer, you're an actor...get your faces on and make it real. Do not require your audience to figure out what you're  feeling. What we do as singers in choirs is really important. We can truly make the world a little better every time we join in song. Give it everything you've got! Cheers - Kirby

http://www.kirbyshaw.com/

[nashvillesingersblog]

Deke Sharon talks to Todd Wilson about Pentatonix, Home Free, tips for aspiring vocal arrangers, the evolution of the music industry, and more...

Todd Wilson had a chance to interview Deke Sharon for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

You can subscribe to our newsletter by texting the word SINGERS to 42828

Published October 30, 2017

TW: What started you down the path of making music? DS: My parents tell me I sang myself to sleep before I could utter a word, so it was perhaps always inevitable. I joined church choir at age 5, the San Francisco Boys Chorus at age 7, and by 9 I was singing in operas and touring the US. From there I had no desire to slow down. TW: The number of descriptors about who you are and what you do seems to grow with every passing year - singer, arranger, composer, director, producer, teacher, leader, promoter and author. Two-part question: Which of these pursuits brings you the most personal satisfaction? Which of these pursuits has provided you with the greatest personal challenges? DS: Ooh... The greatest joy is in impacting people's lives, which I see and feel most directly when I'm coaching groups. Movies and television reach more people and get them excited about a cappella, but it's when I'm in a room with them that I feel I can best inspire them. As for the biggest challenge... editing a book is thankless, eye-crossing work. Imagine rereading something you've written ten times, and imagine that thing you wrote was 400 pages. Ugh. TW: Some a cappella" authors have described you as "the father of contemporary a cappella." That has to be rather humbling. Knowing your direct knowledge of the many movers and shakers in the world  of a cappella, who do you think is most deserving of earning the title of "mother of contemporary acappella?" DS: That's tough. Current title holder would likely be Amanda Newman, owner and producer of the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella, High School A Cappella, and the new tournament open to anyone (called, appropriately enough, "The Open"). We make the Best of College A Cappella and High School A Cappella compilations together each year as well. Before her it was former CASA president Julia Hoffmann, who for many years steered the non-profit side of our community brilliantly. TW: Your time with the Tufts Beelzebubs seems to have been quite transformative. What are your fondest memories of your college days? DS: It's the little things: the in-jokes, the vocabulary, the four hour album title discussions, getting breakfast on a groggy Sunday morning before a twelve hour drive back to campus. It was the greatest thing about college, and a big part of why I started CASA was so that more people would have that opportunity. TW: You founded the House Jacks in 1991 and traveled all over the world with the group. How did you come to the decision to leave the group in 2015? DS: I honestly never thought I'd leave the group. i figured I'd be like he old, white haired guy on the end of the King's Singers who hangs in there until they put me out to pasture. Thankfully my career took off like a rocket, and yet I was having to sub out of over 1/2 of all gigs because of movies, television, and other impossible-to-turn-down-opportunities, so it seemed the only reasonable, fair thing to do. TW: I read somewhere that you have completed 2,000 vocal arrangements so far. When do you sleep? Seriously,  when did you complete your first vocal chart. Do you remember the name of the song? DS: Indeed! It was "When I'm 64", junior year, for my barbershop quartet in high school. I wanted to start singing pop songs in addition to barbershop and doo-wop, but nothing was available, so I had to figure out how to do it myself. That drive to always sing the latest music in the most compelling way is what drove me to start integrating instrumental vocal sounds in college, and when other groups heard what I was doing my phone started ringing. By the time I graduated, I was making enough money from arranging that I never had to work a day job, and for the next fifteen years pretty much every group that wanted a modern contemporary a cappella arrangement (and didn't have their own arranger) called me, so I was doing arrangements during every spare moment (my max: five in one day). Plus, I had a staff of arrangers who did the ones I couldn't handle. By the time the internet took off and others started advertising that they were arranging, I was exhausted, too busy, and tired of managing so I focused elsewhere, to the point that now when people contact me I almost always have to say I'm too busy. TW: Do you ever encounter writer's block, times when your creative juices are not flowing adequately enough to get an arrangement started? If yes, how do you usually overcome that situation? DS: Of course. The way I get over it is by reminding myself that arranging is a craft - an art with a specific function - not a purely artistic endeavor, and these people have a need. The most useful analogy I have come up with is that of being a chef: sometimes you want to be Thomas Keller creating a gourmet, world-attention-getting meal, but most of the time people aren't expecting or wanting that, they just want a meal, especially for the kind of college and high school groups who don't have their own arrangers (which is to say newer, less experienced ones). Not fllet mignon, but a burger. And I can make a really delicious burger, quickly and easily. So, I just jump in, tell the "artiste" in myself to shut up, and start cooking. TW: What advice could you give to aspiring arrangers? DS: Repetition, repetition, repetition. It's like Ira Glass says: you start with great taste but not great skills, and the difference between what you love and what you can do is deeply troubling. Don't let it stop you, just keep creating, and you'll get better. Moreover, don't try to make every work a Picasso, with your groups highest and lowest notes, and some crazy overarching leitmotif. Arrange a simple song well, one you can learn in a rehearsal and sing the very same weekend. Get good at making burgers before you try to make filet mignon. You're not gonna want to, and you're not gonna listen to me, but after you turn a couple nice pieces of meat into a rubbery brick you'll step back and enjoy the process of working your way up. TW: What are your thoughts on the evolution of the music industry and songwriting over the course of your lifetime? Are you happy with this evolution? DS: In short, no. Whereas there are some great modern songwriters (Ed Sheerin comes to mind), it has been a downward journey. The Great American Songbook was born of a time when everyone had their specialty: One person wrote lyrics, another wrote the melody and chords, a third arranged, a fourth lead the band, a fifth sang the melody, and so on. The sixties brought the singer-songwriter, which gave us more personal and unique songs in some cases, and allowed for more socially and politically impactful statements, so that was perhaps a net gain, but then the Eighties destroyed everything, as those solo artists were prized for their image and dance moves more than their voice and songwriting ability (Madonna, for instance). The universally singable song became a personal statement and furtherance of a brand (have you every heard a compelling cover of Michael Jackson's "Thriller"?) Nowadays, songs are created initially by a producer who creates a four chord loop in his synthesizer/computer program, and then someone sings a melody over the top of it. The result is a batch of songs so repetitive and mundane that I feel bad for my kids (who eschew EDM for classic jazz and the songs coming out of musical theater, which remain well crafted). Oh well, we lived through the clumsy, four-chord songwriting of the 1950s and early 60s when rock and roll was being figured out, and I have faith that at some point this clumsy robotic technology-driven pop will eventually give way to a rebirth of great songwriting. TW: I read on your Wikipedia page that you were able to convince Home Free to pursue a path in the direction of Country A cappella. What inspired that thought and what was their initial response to this suggestion? DS: The guys had come to every Sing Off audition, and by Season 4 I felt a little bit bad as I had a feeling I knew that once again they wouldn't clear the bar, but they had two guys with Southern accents and a country rock swagger (Austin and Tim), so we simply asked if they could come back the next day with a country song. We did this all the time with groups we liked but didn't feel they'd lived up to their full potential, as NBC wanted clear stories and styles rather than a dozen groups who all sing pop songs. Little did we know... TW: You made a splash on TV with your behind the scenes involvement in the Sing-Off and on the big screen with Pitch Perfect. Now Pentatonix is winning Grammy Awards. Are you surprised it took so long for a cappella to become more mainstream? DS: Back in 1994, when The House Jacks were being pursued by a couple of different record labels, an A&R guy told me "You know, there are two kinds of music that everyone loves, that always draw a huge crowd at festivals, but no one knows anything about: reggae and a cappella. Sure, there's a group or two that are well known, but it stops there. You guys could be the next big thing, no doubt"... but we weren't, for the reason that our college agent pointed out: "People need to see you. If they just hear you, they can't tell it's not a band with instruments. You need a way to get in front of people." We were ahead of our time, clearly, but as technology caught up, as collegiate a cappella grew to the point the media took notice, as YouTube made it possible for a cappella groups of all styles to reach people in their homes, a cappella got the recognition I knew it could. It was an overnight success, 25 years in the making! TW: Speaking of Pentatonix, do you have any inside scoop on their quest for a new bass to replace the departing Avi Kaplan? DS: Indeed! Their new bass for their upcoming Christmas tour and album, is Matt Sallee, Berklee College of Music grad and member of both Pitch Slapped and The House Jacks. He's a great addition to the lineup, and my money is on him becoming the permanent replacement. TW: With your work in other countries like Sing-Off South Africa, the Dutch Sing-Off, Sing-Off China, and on the BBC1 show Pitch Battle, how does the audience response in those countries compare to fans of a cappella in the USA? DS: A cappella was the first music, and music the international language, so the love and joy that a cappella brings remains constant throughout the world. In South Africa, where a cappella is a big part of the culture, it was fully embraced. In the Netherlands, the reception was more cool and intellectual, as fits their culture. In China, a cappella - at least how we do it - was completely new, so people were as shocked as they were excited. We took old folk songs and Maoist anthems and turned them into modern pop, disco and the like, so the "wow" factor was as much that creativity as it was their first exposure to vocal percussion and the like. This summer, when the BBC1 show aired, I don't think a single person in the UK hadn't seen Pitch Perfect, so not only wasn't there any shock, people expected it to be a cappella... but it wasn't (there was a live band, with only one a cappella group each episode). The backlash was the #1 story in the media, as many were expecting and hoping for an a cappella show (with the title "Pitch Battle", with the riff offs, and with me behind the scenes as well as on camera). Looks like we need to create a new a cappella show, don't we? TW: Straight No Chaser garnered national attention with their appearances on PBS. What is your connection to the group? DS: Atlantic Records chair Craig Kalman roped me in to arrange and produce their second album ("Christmas Cheers") to make it more fun and energetic, along the lines of their original Twelve Days viral video. I also helped with their breakthrough PBS special, their first non-holiday album ("With A Twist") and a bunch of other projects. They're a joy to work with, much like being back in college. TW: In 2013, you published an article on the CASA website entitles Barbershop: A cappella's Martial Art. What are some of the groups that inspired you to reach such a notable opinion of this art form? DS: I'd always loved barbershop from my early high school days, but it was groups like The Gas House Gang, FRED, and your own Acoustix during the 90s while I was creating and running the CARAs (Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards) that opened my eyes and ears to the new sound and style. TW: In 2016, you were bestowed with honorary membership in the Barbershop Harmony Society. What was that experience like for you? DS: Surreal. I was not expecting it, and am pretty certain I'm the least famous person to have ever been given the honor. I will do my best to remain worthy of it. TW: Is it just me or do you also see and hear the over-use of pitch correction by singing groups in the studio these days? If you had any advice on this subject, what would it be? DS: Of course, the "roboticization" prevalent in current pop music is frustrating, but I think it just drives more people into the a cappella, where they can hear and feel the honest human voice. Granted it is used in a cappella recordings as well, sometimes to extremes, but just as it took a little while for bands to figure out how to mix their albums in stereo (some Beatles albums remain awkward, with the guitar only in one ear and the drums only in the other), we'll get there. When used judiciously, it's a gift, just as photoshop can be used well or horribly. TW: With so many accomplishments under your belt, what is your proudest achievement to date? DS: I don't really know. I don't feel like I have great perspective down here in the trenches, I just keep digging. At some point I'll come up for air. TW: Do you have any hobbies outside of music? DS: Indeed! In fact I don't often listen to a cappella in my free time to stave off burnout. I read around 80 books a year, do all the cooking for my family (I love cooking exotic cuisines like Burmese and Singaporean), enjoy gardening, and for exercise hate the gym but love taking long walks. TW: What's the next item on your bucket list? DS: It was Broadway, but that's done thanks to In Transit ...and I'm back at it again with a new project that I can't announce just yet. Honestly, I don't think in terms of what I need, I think in terms of what will most benefit the a cappella community, and at this point we could really use a new show on TV to motivate new groups, help launch more future stars like Pentatonix, and show a new generation what a cappella can be. Then again, with a cappella seemingly everywhere, maybe they already know. Maybe I should take the weekend off. Deke Sharon http://www.dekesharon.com http://capublishing.com

[nashvillesingersblog]

16 Year Old Quadruplets Sing Barbershop!

(L to R) Julia, Kelsey, Ian, & Anika Todd Wilson had a chance to interview this talented foursome for our email newsletter. Todd is one of our founders and serves the Nashville Singers as Executive Director and Artistic Director.    

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Published: September 25, 2017

TW: When and why did you start singing?   VMQ: The first time we ever sang publicly was at our 4th grade talent show.  We sang a 'Sound of Music' song in unison (everyone has to start somewhere, right?) It was something we just decided to try for fun, and we have loved singing ever since. TW: Do any of you play musical instruments? VMQ: We have been invested in both our local middle and high school music programs. In middle school, Ian, Kelsey, and Anika all played musical instruments: Ian played the trombone, Kelsey played the french horn, and Anika played the Saxophone. Subsequently, Julia was in choir throughout all of middle school. When high school started, we truly wanted to focus on singing by joining choir. TW: What was the first barbershop song you ever learned? VMQ: The first barbershop song that we learned and publicly performed was 'On the Sunny Side of the Street,' which we competed with in our 8th grade Solo Ensemble competition. That year we received a perfect score at state and qualified for another state contest called the Schmitt Brother's Quartet Contest.  We were actually unable to compete in that contest as it was only open to high school students; however, we are currently the two-time Wisconsin State High School Barbershop champions. .   TW: Do you perform any other genres? VMQ: Part of the "Mix" of Vintage Mix is that we sing several genres including: Standards, 1940's music, show tunes, barbershop, classical music and hymns.. Our music selections fit very well with singing at retirement communities, barbershop chapter shows and churches. TW: Which famous musicians do you admire and what about them inspires you? VMQ: There are many musicians/music groups that we look up to. Some from the 1940's era include The Andrew Sisters and Frank Sinatra, and some more modern groups are The Manhattan Transfer, The Real Group and Voctave. The Andrew Sisters and Frank Sinatra perform 40's music so well that they inspire us to learn that musical style. The Manhattan Transfer is so inspirational because they are one of the best vocal jazz groups and their stage presence is incredible. We enjoy The Real Group from Sweden and their style has really inspired us with a cappella and jazz. A newer a cappella group that we absolutely love is Voctave. They are all top notch singers at Disney, and we love that some of the musicians in Voctave enjoy singing barbershop too. TW: What are a few of your fondest musical performance memories so far? VMQ: One really neat memory we have had as a quartet is singing the National Anthem at the 2017 Green Bay Packer Family Game Night. Also, we really enjoyed singing a Barbershop piece at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville. God has truly blessed us with these amazing opportunities! TW: Have you been influenced by the recordings of others performing artists? Can you name a few? VMQ: Two major recordings that we enjoy listening to are Ambiance Quartet's "Rhapsody In Blue" arranged by David Wright, and "The Disney Fly Medley" by Voctave. Both are amazing recordings that we love to listen to. There are many more, of course, but those two are definitely at the top of the list. TW: How do you handle mistakes during a performance? VMQ: When it comes to mistakes, we are always able to learn from them. We work through challenges and keep going when something happens now that we have had more experience performing. TW: Do you ever get nervous before a performance? VMQ: When we first started singing as a quartet, we would be quite nervous; however, now that we are more developed as musicians and have a larger repertoire to choose from, we feel more confident when we perform for audiences. TW: What advice would you give to beginners about getting nervous before or during a performance? VMQ: Some advice that we would give to beginners about getting nervous is to never shy away from performing publicly. When starting out, we sang for small open mics and retirement communities and both had great audiences that were very encouraging to beginning musicians like ourselves. TW: How often do you get together to rehearse? VMQ: Our practice schedule generally depends on how busy we are. We have much more time during the summer so we practice quite frequently,  but when school starts, we are busier so we receive classical training at the Hartland Conservatory of Music once a week and work practicing around our homework and school activities. TW: How do you balance your music with other obligations - school, family, social life? VMQ: As semi-professional artists, we have to balance school, family, and our social lives. We all work very hard to do well in school and even when we are not singing, we truly love to spend time with each other. TW: What is some of the best advice you have been given by a vocal/performance coach? VMQ: Some of the best advice we have received from our coaches is to always be ourselves and be authentic and true to who we are. TW: What are a few of your unfulfilled dreams, in or outside of music? VMQ: Two of our main goals as a quartet include promoting youth in harmony and competing in the 2018 Mixed International Barbershop Competition in Germany. We are currently preparing and fundraising to try and qualify for the Mixed International Barbershop Competition. As well, we all, but especially Anika, have a very big dream to do a music video with Voctave. TW: How many performance opportunities are you accepting in any given year? VMQ: In a given year, we receive and accept nearly 100 performances including barbershop shows, church events, retirements communities, and more. We truly enjoy singing for all of these events. TW: How do each of you aspire to make a living when your schooling and education is behind you? VMQ: We all hope to sing together as a quartet the rest of our lives. We aren't sure if we will someday sing full time, or just perform as a fun hobby, but we are going to see where the Lord takes our singing and enjoy the ride. At this point in time, Anika, our CFO, has enjoyed her work very much within the financial side of Vintage Mix and is currently planning to pursue a career within finance. Julia has an interest in the marketing side of Vintage Mix, and is looking into career opportunities that will fit her interests and skill set. Kelsey has a keen sense of managing. She is a skilled leader and does an excellent job of making decisions overall for the benefit and continued success of the quartet. These skills have inspired her to contemplate a career that will match her interests and and desire to  help others. Ian, our musical director, has many skills that apply in multiple fields of work. He is still pursuing career interests that fit his skill level of leading and musical interpretation. Contact Information: Website: https:/www.qvintagemix.com Email: qvintagemix@gmail.com Phone Number: 1(262) 6RINGVM