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Think of a wonderful thought

Dear Reader,

Have you heard a barbershop quartet before? The most common thought about barbershop is an image of 4 guys in striped vests, most of the time in the musical The Music Man. 

Yeah, these guys are pretty cool. There are many quartets around the country that keep this line of music going. You can listen to Storm Front, Ringmasters or Vocal Spectrum. They travel around and keep the whole world singing. Yesterday was their day: National Barbershop Quartet Day! I also sing in a quartet. We call ourselves Ever Higher. I think that name comes from Nick's incessant need to sing high tenor parts. Anyway, the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) was founded on April 11, 1938. This is now national barbershop day. 



In honor of Barbershop, I want to write all about the chapter of that society based out of Provo, Utah. The group is Mountain West Voices, also has part to do with the Brigham Young University Barbershop Club. The university club was founded in 2011 and the chapter in BHS followed a couple years afterward. The club started with less than 10 guys singing tags in a stairwell on Sunday nights.

Mountain West Voices is a unique choir. Not only is it a barbershop chorus, but its members are all undergraduate and graduate students at Brigham Young University. It is an un-auditioned chorus of 25-30 members that rehearses year-round and not just during the fall/winter semesters. That is unique because all the work that goes into the chapter of the society is voluntary. In addition to all these interesting characteristics, there is one trait that stands out most: all the singers are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

This last trait is hard to identify when it comes time to compete in festivals and perform at conventions. Mountain West Voices takes the chance to share their beliefs in a very special way. In most convention contests, each ensemble is allowed three pieces, two of which have to follow the guidelines and regulations of the Barbershop Harmony Society. The third piece, however, can be chosen from anywhere and does not have to be in line with contest rules. This third piece is called a “non-contestable” number. Mountain West Voices has taken this third piece for the past three years and used it to sing a religious number. In this way, they can sing their testimony in front of thousands and share the message of the Gospel wherever they go.


Stephen Dugdale is the current director of Mountain West Voices. 

For more information on Barbershop, you can visit www.barbershop.org or Mountain West Voices' Facebook page. Keep your eye out for barbershop happenings around you! 
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