Sweet Adelines International Fact Sheet

Size
Nearly 25,000 members worldwide; one of the world's largest singing organizations for women. More than 1,200 registered quartets and 600 choruses. Chartered chapters located in Australia, Canada, England, Germany, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Wales and most of the 50 states in the United States.

Governed by an elected board of directors; administered by a professional staff in Tulsa, Okla. The staff administers a wide range of programs and services, including:

* The Pitch Pipe, a quarterly magazine
* Digital mastering of audio and video productions
* Music publishing services, with hundreds of barbershop arrangements in print
* Distribution of compact discs and DVD's for entertainment and education
* Convention planning for meetings attended by 8-10,000 people annually
* International Sales, an educationally focused inventory of products and materials
* Education programs such as Directors Certification Program, Arrangers Program, Faculty Program and Judging Program
* Contests in quartet and chorus singing at regional and international levels
* International champions named in chorus, quartet, and young women aged 25 and under divisions at International Convention each Fall.

Motto
"Harmonize The World"

Founding
First meeting: Friday, July 13, 1945 in Tulsa, Oklahoma

Web site:
www.sweetadelineintl.org

Vision Statement
Sweet Adelines International is a worldwide organization of women singers committed to advancing the musical art form of barbershop harmony through education and performances.

Education Programs
The Young Women in Harmony program offers music educators a means of including the study and performance of barbershop harmony in school music programs. The aim is to provide materials, training and performance opportunities for young women and to foster appreciation for the American musical art form of barbershop harmony. Festivals and school presentations are organized by various regions or choruses within Sweet Adelines each year. Free educator kits are provided to music educators.

Charitable and Community Activities
Sweet Adeline choruses regularly entertain at civic events and charitable functions. Proceeds from performances are often shared with scholarship funds, health care and social services programs, and the arts and humanities.The Young Singers Foundation has been the official charity of Sweet Adelines International since 1992. The foundation's purpose is to enrich the lives of young people by supporting vocal music programs and education through its grant program.The Young Singers Foundation offers scholarships for vocal music students and grants for Young Women in Harmony and community vocal music activities.

What is barbershop harmony?
Four-part, unaccompanied, close-harmony singing, with melody in the second voice, called the "lead." Sung in the range between A below middle C, and C above middle C.Tenor is a harmony part sung consistently above the lead. Although tenor is the highest voice in barbershop harmony, it should not be confused with the soprano of conventional singing groups. The tenor should have a light, sweet, pure tone that will complement but not overpower the lead voice. Baritone covers approximately the same range as lead. The baritone harmony notes cross the lead notes; sometimes sung below and sometimes above. Bass singers should have a rich, mellow voice and be able to sing the E flat below middle C easily. Bass should not be confused with the alto of conventional groups.

Barbershop Harmony Association for Men
The Barbershop Harmony Society is the male counterpart to Sweet Adelines International. For more information about the Barbershop Harmony Society and its programs contact headquarters at 1-800-876-SING or www.barbershop.org.

 

Sweet Adelines International
9110 S. Toledo • Tulsa, Oklahoma 74137 • USA
P.O. Box 470168 • Tulsa, Oklahoma 74147-0168 • USA
918.622.1444 • 800.992.7464 (toll free) • 918.665.0894 (fax)
www.sweetadelineintl.org