Sweet Adelines International 75th Jubilee Commemorative Album

Behind every great barbershop song is a great arranger. In the early days of Sweet Adelines, the arrangements sung were typically transposed versions of arrangements that had been written for men’s voices.

We need more Sweet Adeline arrangers. Maybe you are one. Give it a whirl — they (Renee Limburg Craig and Nancy Bergman) will tell you if you should go back to mending socks. —Jean Van den Berg, The Pitch Pipe , January 1960

SPOTLIGHT: ARRANGERS

Fortunately, arranging music won over darning socks, and within a year or two, Sweet Adelines, Inc. published its first folio of women’s barbershop music. As Sweet Adelines grew as an organization, and its members became more skilled in the barbershop craft, arrangers developed impressive catalogs of their own, with songs specifically arranged for women’s vocal ranges. Many of those early arrangers continued to be prolific arrangers, coaches, music educators, chorus directors, and quartet singers for decades, and some are still active. Joining their ranks were other talented arrangers, who continued to bring the barbershop style well into the 21st century. Master Arranger, champion quartet lead, and champion chorus director Renee Craig was the recipient of the first President’s Lifetime Achievement Award (then called the Lifetime Member Award), presented to her in 1999. If there was an arrangers’ seminar to be taught, both at the regional and international levels, chances were good Renee was somehow involved, either in teaching it herself or in providing mentorship to other teachers. Master Arranger and champion quartet tenor Joni Bescos wrote the Arrangers Manual, which many beginners depended on to learn how to arrange in the barbershop style. She was also responsible for developing the first Judging Category Description Book with the help of Sylvia Alsbury, Nancy Bergman, and Renee Craig. Joni’s work laid the foundation for the development of many future arrangers and judges. Joni was the second recipient of the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award. A trophy in her name is the one presented each year to the newly crowned champion quartet.

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