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Barbershop Style Barbershop is a style of a cappella harmony characterized by a cone-shaped sound and specific chord structures (arrangement), delivery and interpretation. These integral factors contribute to the lock-and-ring sound in which a perfectly sung chord creates unsung harmonic overtones. In simple terms, barbershop harmony is vocal harmony produced by four parts: tenor, lead, baritone, and bass. It is different from any other kind of choral or group singing. One of the distinctive qualities of barbershop harmony is that the melody, sung by the lead voice, is below the tenor harmony. This follows the pattern of many early American hymns written for men and women, with the melody in the male tenor voice and the women singing harmony above. The babershop harmony of today is a highly stylized art form requiring the same high degree of singing skill as other types of choral music. *From The History of Barbershop, Sweet Adelines International |