Barbershop 101
Singing barbershop harmony is a challenging yet rewarding endeavor. Imagine performing a song with three other harmonizing singers, each hitting the perfect pitch when bam—you hear it. An overtone vibration, a resonant ring, a different sound than any one tone being sung by any one singer! These overtones provoke a visceral reaction and one of the hallmarks of barbershop music.

Although the voice parts in treble barbershop harmony have different names and functions than they do in other SATB or SSAA vocal styles, the foundation is the same—beautiful ​music, stunning chords and a passion to create the intangible essence of music that brings us together.
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​Barbershop harmonies use a cone-shaped balance of voices as we aim for a cohesive and ringing sound. Our top voices sing with less weight and intensity than lower voices.

THE BARBERSHOP CONE
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Voice Parts in Barbershop
TENOR 
Tenor is a harmony part, sung consistently above the lead. The tenor has a light, pure tone that floats above the other parts. Light lyric sopranos generally make good tenors. The range for tenor is from G above middle C to high G above the clef.

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​LEAD
Lead is the melody, sung with authority, clarity and consistent quality throughout the lead's range, which is A below middle C to D near the top of the staff. The lead adds color and warmth to the sound and conveys the interpretation, emotion and inflections of the song.
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BARITONE
Baritone (bari) covers a similar range to lead. Baritones typically have a good ear for complex harmony, similar to alto I or soprano 2 singers. The baritone part fills out the chord to achieve the unmistakable barbershop sound.
BASS
Bass is the lowest part in the barbershop chord. Bass singers should have a rich, resonant voice to sing this foundational harmony part. The typical range is from E flat below middle C to G above middle C, similar to a contralto or alto 2 part.
About Our Organizational Structure
The San Diego Chorus​ is an award-winning chapter of Sweet Adelines International. Sweet Adelines began in 1945 and is dedicated to preserving and celebrating the unique sound of a cappella barbershop harmony and empowering women.

​The San Diego Chorus is part of the Golden West Region 21 of Sweet Adelines International. The Regional Management Team oversees events and management for choruses in Region 21, including Spring Convention, Competition, education events and workshops.
Sweet Adelines
International (SAI)
Founded in 1945, encompassing 24 regions and more than 20,000 singers worldwide
Region 21
Golden West (R21)
Represents 16 Choruses across Southern California, Hawaii, Arizona, & New Mexico
San Diego
​Chorus
San Diego Chorus chartered in 1952 and is a two time International Champion
The Barbershop Music Community
Sweet Adelines International is one organization within a larger community of singers dedicated to performing and competing in the barbershop musical genre. Although this list is by no means exhaustive, it highlights some key organizations that exist to shape and advance the American art form of barbershop music.
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Sweet Adelines International  (SAI)
Sweet Adelines International is a highly respected worldwide organization of women singers committed to advancing the musical art form of barbershop harmony through education and performance. This independent, nonprofit music education association is one of the world's largest singing organizations for women. Members extend over five continents and belong to more than 500 choruses and 1,200 quartets.

​Harmony, Incorporated
Harmony, Inc. is an international, non-profit organization whose purpose is to empower all women through education, friendship and a cappella singing in the barbershop style. Since 1959, the organization has expanded from its Eastern roots to include chapters in the United States and Canada from California to Newfoundland, and from Alaska to Florida.

​Mixed Barbershop Harmony Association (MBHA)
The Mixed Barbershop Harmony Association (MBHA) is a 501(c)3, non-profit charitable organization serving the needs of mixed barbershop harmony in North America. Established in 2014, its leadership comprises men and women with vast experience and participation in the barbershop style and performing in the mixed barbershop harmony genre. The MBHA is an affiliate of the Barbershop Harmony Society.
Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS)
The Barbershop Harmony Society, is the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbershop music as an art form. Founded by Owen C. Cash in 1938, the organization quickly grew, promoting barbershop harmony among men of all ages. As of 2007, just under 30,000 men in the United States and Canada are members of this organization whose focus is on a cappella music.
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​Harmony Brigade
Harmony Brigade is also known as the Association of Extreme Quartetting Harmony Brigades. Established in 1993 in North Carolina, the organization exists to support Harmony Brigade Rallies - an invitation-only weekend event for barbershop singers. Events feature speed quartet matching, performance and competition and builds skill through a unique, rapid-fire format that requires focus, intensity and a high level of musicianship.
Barbershop Quartet Preservation Society (BQPA)
The Barbershop Quartet Preservation Association (BQPA) is an international group of individuals dedicated to the preservation and performance of traditional barbershop quartet singing following arrangement and lyric guidance set forth in our Style Definition. The BQPA encourages local associations of singers and chapters to concentrate on developing quartets that choose to sing barbershop music reminiscent of times gone by.
Influences on Modern A Cappella Music
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Deke Sharon
Deke Sharon is a performer, arranger, music producer, author, producer and coach credited by many as being responsible for the current sound of modern a cappella. While at college, he pioneered the dense vocal-instrumental sound that we today take for granted as the sound of contemporary a cappella.

Deke founded the Contemporary A Cappella Society while in college, and is responsible for creating many seminal a cappella programs, including the CARAs (Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards), the ICCAs (International Championship of College A Cappella), the BOCAs (Best of College A Cappella Compilations), the first contemporary a cappella conference (the A Cappella Summit), the Contemporary A Cappella League, several professional ensembles including DCappella, as well as the educational residential program Camp A Cappella.

Sharon is contemporary a cappella’s most prolific arranger, having arranged over 2,000 songs, with over a thousand of them in print worldwide. 
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Deke helped popularize a cappella in the mainstream. He vocally produced five seasons of The Sing Off for NBC in the US as well as international versions in the Netherlands, South Africa and China, and served as music director for Disney+ Best in Snow. He was arranger, on-site music director and vocal producer for all three of Universal’s hit films in the Pitch Perfect franchise and was featured in Lifetime Television’s Pitch Slapped.
Deke Sharon is heralded as “The Father of Contemporary A Cappella”

Contemporary A Cappella Society
The Contemporary A Cappella Association (CASA) was formed to create a community between singers and fans of contemporary a cappella. "contemporary a cappella" is a moniker used to describe the idiom of popular a cappella (voices only - no instruments) that arose during the mid-late 1980s, and now spans a wide variety of styles including rock, pop, r&b, hip-hop, country, jazz, etc.

​Varsity Vocals
Varsity Vocals is the home of collegiate a cappella since 1995. Varsity Vocals gives singers in high school and college the opportunity to compete, learn from each other, get feedback from the pros, and perform in  venues around the globe. They believe that competition fosters growth - both in vocal performance and personal development. 
Mainstream A Cappella
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Pitch Perfect Movie Franchise
Universal's Pitch Perfect franchise was musically produced by Deke Sharon. Recognized as one of the most successful film franchises of all time, Pitch Perfect 1 and 2 are two of the top grossing music comedies.
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Pentatonix
Three-time Grammy award-winning and multi-platinum-selling artist Pentatonix has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide and performed for hundreds of thousands of fans at their sold out shows across the globe.
Straight No Chaser
Straight No Chaser (SNC) is a professional American a cappella group that originated in 1996 at Indiana University. The group is student run group and has expanded to include both a recording and a touring group.
Voctave
Voctave is an 11-member a cappella group based in Central Florida. With multiple #1 songs and albums on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify, Voctave has also ranked in the top 25 on Billboard Magazine’s charts. 
DCapella
DCappella is Disney Music Group’s premier a cappella singing group featuring 6 world class vocalists. Known for reimagined Disney classics, the group originally came together as a result of a nationwide search for the best vocal performing talent in a cappella and stage. 
GQ Quartet
Founded in 2011, GQ has a sound that is uniquely their own, and is passionate about vocal music education for young singers. As the first female quartet to compete in the Barbershop Harmony Society, they made history as the 4th place Quartet Finalists in the BHS International contest in 2022.