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What's a These days, it doesn't necessarily refer to four slightly sloshed old farts standing around the corner lamppost, singing loud and slightly out of tune. Au contraire: many of us are just youngsters; we try not to Sing Under the Influence; we seldom sing on street corners; and we pretty much sing in tune. Barbershopping, which originated before the turn of the century right here in the good old USA, is basically a kind of 4-part a cappella singing (i.e., no accompaniment by musical instruments). In a barbershop quartet, the part that sings the melody is called the lead. The high, squeaky part is called tenor: he harmonizes with the lead, generally about a third above. The bass is the low part, generally staying close to the root of any given chord. The baritone sings the "garbage" part: whatever's needed to fill in the chord, which means that usually he's between the lead and the bass, but sometimes he's above the lead. Baritones are generally pretty smart, but a little weird. One of the reasons barbershopping has been such an enduring art form is that when it's done right, it produces some pretty amazing sound -- sound that's pleasing to the audience, and downright thrilling to the performers. In fact, when a barbershop quartet sings a big, fat dominant 7th chord, well tuned and with the vowel sounds matched and the four parts well balanced, it starts to play tricks with the physics of sound. It actually produces overtones (harmonics) that are so strong that they're sometimes experienced by the audience as a fifth part. Strange but true: we can sound like five men, instead of four.
© Hourglass Quartet |