Barbershop Harmony Society

10/12/2026

Hello, you beautiful barbershop community, you. Fall Conventions are in full swing, with tons of barbershop action unfolding over the past three weekends, and we wanted to take a moment to celebrate our newest District champion quartets.

Please join us in congratulating Better Together Quartet, Fountain City Four, Mood Indigo Quartet , Nocturne Quartet, Roulette - HI Quartet, Sync Or Swim Quartet, Timeless Quartet, Top Shelf, and Valkyries Quartet on winning their respective District championships. Nice job, friends.

And congratulations to ALL the quartets and choruses who sang and competed, and thank you to all the volunteers and attendees who made each District convention a huge success.

And we're only about halfway done. This weekend will be huge with five conventions coming up: the Johnny Appleseed District of the Barbershop Harmony Society/Cardinal District joint Fall Convention, Land O' Lakes District, Ontario District - Barbershop Harmony Society, Pioneer District Barbershoppers, and Sunshine District, with the following weekend wrapping up all fall District conventions with Barbershop Harmony Society - Northeastern District (NED) in Montreal. Good luck to all competitors.

A lot of these quartets and choruses will be coming to the 2027 International Convention in Minneapolis, and we'll have more information on all qualifying quartets and choruses as the fall dust settles and we start getting everyone lined up in all the competitor slots, with many quartets competing to qualify in the upcoming 2027 spring conventions, so stay tuned for more info as Minneapolis approaches.

Will you be with us in Minneapolis? Early bird pricing has never been cheaper, so head over to barbershop.org/international and save your spot now.

10/08/2026

Throwback Thursday! The legendary Rural Route 4 took home the gold medal at the 1986 International Convention in Salt Lake City where they performed this iconic ballad "Tie Me to Your Apron Strings Again" in the semifinals. They would win all three rounds in an extremely competitive field of quartets that included Interstate Rivals, Chiefs of Staff, and 139th Street, just to name a few.

Their down-home folksy appeal as farm boys from Kansas City wasn't just a stage act, it was genuinely who they were. Their on-stage brand and aesthetic actually reflected their backgrounds and informed their often-comedic performance choices that made them charming, likable, and fun.

And they exuded authenticity. This ballad has stood the test of time and continues to stand out as an example of how to perform with utmost heart and sincerity. This performance is one of the many classic timeless memories that have happened at an International Convention.

Are you ready to make more memories with us in Minneapolis next summer? It's time to start planning now and take advantage of the early bird savings. Who knows what the next "Apron Strings" song will be, but you'll wanna be with us in Minneapolis to find out.

Rural Route 4 was Don Kahl, Cal Yoder, Jim Bagby, and Willard Yoder.

10/07/2026

Your Minneapolis Moment Awaits

Everyone loves to save money. Everyone loves to watch history happen. Why not do both?

Register for International by December 15 and save $120 off the full registration price. It's the best deal you'll find for the biggest week in barbershop, and it helps us plan for an even better convention.

Remember Anaheim, when Ambassadors of Harmony wowed the world with "Seventy-Six Trombones"? Nashville, when Ringmasters blew the doors off the Schermerhorn with their "Notre Dame Medley"? St. Louis, when GQ made history? The people in those rooms will never forget it. Minneapolis is going to have its own goosebump moments, and you should be there for them.

Don't let FOMO win. The webcast is fun, but nothing beats feeling the energy live, with the moment happening right in front of you.

https://www.barbershop.org/events/minneapolis/register

10/02/2026

Flashback Friday Minneapolis Edition: In 1985, the Interstate Rivals Quartet (with original baritone Geoff Mucha) debuted this incredibly innovative (for 1985) ballad "Pal of My Cradle Days" in the Finals and took the audience's breath away. The New Tradition would win the gold medal after all three rounds that evening, but the Rivals actually scored the highest in the Finals that night, winning that round. They would go on to win the gold medal two years later in Hartford with their baritone Paul Gilman.

Enjoy this performance of this groundbreaking ballad, and stick around afterwards for a fun look back at a special memory from that year by bass Jay Hawkins.

It's been almost 42 years since we've been to Minneapolis, and we hope you're making plans right now to join us summer 2027 for the Biggest Barbershop Party of the Year and celebrate GQ's win, crown a new champ, sing some tags, spend a week with beautiful barbershop family and friends, and so much more. It's going to be incredible. Grab your seat NOW at barbershop.org/international and take advantage of the huge early bird savings.

The Rivals in 1985 was Kipp Buckner, Joe Connelly, Geoff Mucha, and Jay Hawkins.

10/02/2026

Happy (actual) Friday everyone, have we got some fantastic news for you: our friends AND yours, popular Mid-Atlantic District Barbershop quartets Smoke Ring and Secret Best Friends are both booked for Virginia Beach! This is very exciting, as both quartets have agreed that if we can sell out Midwinter, *they will exchange quartet repertoires and attire for the duration of their sets.

Register today, folks! Let's make some magic happen. Head over to barbershop.org/midwinter and be sure you lock in your seat for one of the most exciting Midwinters we've lined up to date.

(*neither quartet has agreed to this. Yet.)

10/01/2026

Flashback Friday! This is a reel about curtains. In 1994, Standing Room Only (S! R! O!... S! R! O!) took the stage only to be interrupted by an infrastructure mishap. Also, this summer in St. Louis, we had a slight mishap of our own during the Semifinals.

So we made a video about it and set it to music. We hope you like this video about barbershop venue curtains.

09/30/2026

Minneapolis 2027 Registration IS NOW OPEN!

NEW THIS YEAR: The Earlier You Register, the More You Save!

This year, the BHS rewards early planners with our lowest registration prices in a decade.

Register by December 15, 2026, to lock in the best rate.

BHS Member Full Registration
$269 through December 15 — EARLY BIRD
$299 through February 15
$329 through April 15
$359 through June 15
$389 after June 15

Non-BHS members add $20 to each full registration price.

Weekend and youth registration starts at $199 and increases by $30 at each registration deadline. Children ages 12 and under are always free but must be registered with a paid adult. Competitors must purchase a full registration.

ALSO NEW: VIP and Premium registrations are the only registration options that include reserved seating. All other registration levels will feature general admission seating, with open seating available behind the reserved VIP and Premium sections.

09/29/2026

From classic shows like Carousel and The Music Man to recent smashes like Waitress and Wicked to productions that didn't last long like Paint Your Wagon and Right This Way... barbershop choruses and quartets have been finding, arranging and singing incredible Broadway tunes for decades.

On this, Broadway Musicals Day, we celebrate with a brand new YouTube playlist called "Where Broadway meets Barbershop!"

Enjoy the show.

This playlist features some of the best Broadway songs as performed by barbershop quartets and choruses.

09/25/2026

Registration for International 2027 in Minneapolis opens next Wednesday, September 30, at 10:00 a.m. CT.

NEW THIS YEAR: The Earlier You Register, the More You Save!

This year, the BHS rewards early planners with our lowest registration prices in a decade. Register by December 15, 2026, to lock in the best rate.

BHS Member Full Registration
$269 through December 15 — EARLY BIRD
$299 through February 15
$329 through April 15
$359 through June 15
$389 after June 15

Non-BHS members add $20 to each full registration price.

Weekend and youth registration starts at $199 and increases by $30 at each registration deadline. Children ages 12 and under are always free but must be registered with a paid adult. Competitors must purchase a full registration.

ALSO NEW: VIP and Premium registrations are the only registration options that include reserved seating. All other registration levels will feature general admission seating, with open seating available behind the reserved VIP and Premium sections.

The message is simple: register early, save the most, and start making your plans now!

09/23/2026

We had so much fun with the recent Sunday Night Social Appreciation Post "The Early Years", we thought we'd try it with 2024 champs Three and a Half Men and take a glance back through the archives at some of the earliest barbershop appearances by each of the singers. If we count baritone Tony De Rosa's earliest international appearance in 1985, this gold medal was 39 years in the making, give or take.

Every quartetter starts somewhere, and interestingly, Three and a Half Men was actually bass Chris Keough's first time on the contest stage with a barbershop quartet, but it was by no means his first time in a vocal group. We included a nice 2019 clip of his jazz vocal group Resolve singing his arrangement of Misty.

What group would you like us to feature next?