Acappella chorus Tuxedo Junction hopes to end its reign of being Britain’s best small barbershop chorus by getting bigger.
The Midlands-based group scooped the small chorus trophy at a national annual competition, run by the British Association of Barbershop Singers (BABS), in May.
The chorus, which occupies the barbershop equivalent of the Premier League, is now encouraging men to look up their nearest chorus and get involved in the highly addictive hobby.
Tuxedo Junction’s Musical Director Simon Lubkowski said: “British barbershop has entered an exciting phase. A step-change in quality has seen choruses and quartets smash records. We’re now getting more and more attention on the international stage.
“There are around 60 choruses in Britain and we want to use our success to help raise the profile of our art form and encourage guys to pop along to a rehearsal and find out more.”
Barbershop is a style of unaccompanied (a cappella) vocal music based on four-part chords sung by lead, baritone, tenor and bass singers.
The widespread use of ‘teach tracks’ in barbershop means participants don’t need to be able to read music to get involved.
Simon, who is a full-time music teacher based in Leicestershire, also tasted success at the 2018 barbershop competition when his quartet, The Locksmiths, were crowned British champions and received a score of 80.9% and a ‘wildcard’ qualification spot for the 2019 international competition.
Rob Evatt, Tuxedo Junction Chairperson, said: “We are a small, friendly bunch of blokes with a shared passion for singing. We have a unique style and sing both traditional barbershop and contemporary a cappella music.
“We’ve excelled at being small but size matters if you want to be the best. It’s why we are on a recruitment drive. Under Simon’s direction, we plan to expand our numbers and our sound and compete with Barbershop’s top choruses.”
