Barbershop Guitar Tricks

Barbershop Guitar Tricks

The term "barbershop" (sometimes used interchangeably with "board brush" or "countertennis") derives from the fact that early barbershop sounds were characterized by a heavy "hammering" or "snapping" sound. Barbershops typically comprised one shop, often located inside a large neighborhood center, and its services were sought after by upscale citizens, who wished to stylize their hair and face. Throughout America and Europe, barbershop became an established community, with salons, spas, and other establishments that offered similar services. It slowly evolved into a more polished version of what we know today as a barbershop.

Barbershop vocal technique, as defined during the barbershop renaissance era, is an American variant of a cappella singing, or unaccompanied vocal composition, characterized primarily by articulated four-part polyphonic chords for each melody note, with the exception of a few chord tones which are supported by two adjacent notes. Barbershop vocal technique was popularized during the 1870s by African-American musicians who combined their own native language (in most cases, African English) with western music. They adopted many of the barbershop sound patterns which had been developed in European classical music, and which resulted in a unique sound which has since become widely accepted in the United States and elsewhere. The resulting songs - often called "funk" - bore little resemblance to original barbershop singing.

Traditionally, a barbershop singer sang a melodic part, often a repetitive phrase, which was repeated by all others in a section of the barbershop band. This repetition was sometimes accompanied by lyrical harmonies sung by another member of the barbershop group; the lyrics subsequently changed to emulate the " blues " in the course of time. The barbershop singer would sing the first measure of the song, the chorus, the bridge, and the verse, then everyone would repeat the melody (usually the same melody), bringing it to a close.

In modern times, most of the barbershop style is performed in one to two-voice groups, with the vocals coming from either the left or right side of the group. Occasionally, however, one singer will add harmonies by striking the low strings with the thumb and fingers while another sings the melody line with the assistance of her hands. The result is usually some kind of polyphonic, polyrhythmic (all pitch in one voice) sound, which owes its origin to the dominance of the dominant seventh chords in early barbershop music. Popular examples include "Mystic Love", "Basset Hound", "Basset Shirt" and "White Christmas". A less well known example of this is "Blue Moon Blues".

"Overtones" are a different kind of signature in barbershop, which occur when one voice is played at the same time as an overtone from another voice. For example, when a singer strikes the low A over the high E in barbershop, there is no indication that there is another higher note being played, just the A being played over the E. This gives the illusion that there are more notes being played than actually there are. Overtones are especially useful when there are two or more adjacent notes being played simultaneously. An E being played over a D, for example, creates a sense of tension in the listeners' chest as they await the resolution of the conflict. When the E is then lowered it again emphasizes the resolved conflict.

Other barbershop chord types include the regular barberpole cat, which is played over a C major chord; the flat barberpole cat, which uses the regular barberpole cat shape to play over any major chord; and the circular barberpole cat, which can be used to play any major chord. These chord types are commonly referred to as a "circular bar", since the circle surrounding the circle is what distinguishes them from barbershop chords. While there are some exceptions to this generalization, most circle barbershop chords are not blues in any way. (A circle can certainly sound very " bluesy" if that is what you want.) Regardless of which particular barberpole chord is played, however, each chord that is played will result in a different sound, which is exactly what makes barbershop so unique and interesting!