| Portsmouth & District Barbershop Harmony Club | |
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The history of Solent City ChorusBarbershop singing started in the USA in the 1920s. It is believed that a small group of men would be sat waiting in a Barbers, either the customers, or the barbers themselves, and would pass the time by singing together. There were no musical instruments to hand, so the guys had to sing a capella (without accompaniment), so to make songs more interesting they would alter their voices and blend them together in ever more interesting ways.In order to keep the Barbershop style of singing alive, the American Barbershop Harmony Society (known as SPEBSQSA) was set up in 1938, and after a period of informal singing in Britain, the British Association of Barbershop singers (BABS) was formed in 1974. Soon after in 1975, a group of men met at a public house called the Ship and Bell in Horndean. Nobody kept record of how many pints were consumed that night, but those men started to sing together on a regular basis, and it was then that the Portsmouth and District Barbershop Harmony Club formed. Portsmouth was one of the first clubs to sign up with BABS. Since then the membership has expanded and evolved to the group it is today, changed its rehearsal venue once or twice, and created its own performance name of Solent City Chorus. The chorus first competed nationally in 1981, and has since qualified and competed at each annual convention. In preparation for those competitions, Solent City also competes at other events, such as the Portsmouth Music Festival, and the Bournemouth Music Festival, and performs at all sorts of other events, including a number of charity shows and private events. Rehearsals are dedicated to the chorus as a whole, however the club supports all quartet activities within the club. Being in a quartet is perhaps the pinnacle of Barbershop singing. Each member must know their own vocal part, including all the words, notes, dynamics and nuances, and there is nowhere to hide if you forget what to do! In 1993, the quartet Island Engagement from within Solent City were the UK champion quartet, in 1997 High Fidelity were the silver medallists, and more recently TVQ were bronze medallists. At heart though we remain a social gathering, a group of men who gather to sing as their hobby. We have fun, we have social events, and we do local events to help local events and charities. We have strong ties to all the local choruses, both male and female, and with the National Barbershop Youth Chorus, and after every rehearsal the guys meet for a drink at the Golden Lion public house in Bedhampton. Rehearsals are currently held between 19:30 and 22:15 at Christ Church Parish Hall on London Road in Widley, PO7 5AT, and you are more than welcome to come along and join in! |
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