What is Barbershop Harmony and How Did it All Begin?
Barbershop harmony is a style of unaccompanied vocal music characterized by consonant four-part chords for every melody note in a primarily homorhythmic (the same word sounds at the same time) texture. The melody is consistently sung by the lead (second tenor). The (first) tenor harmonizes above the melody, the bass sings the lowest harmonizing notes, and the baritone completes the chord. Barbershop harmony is rooted in African-American traditions of the late 1800s in the South.
