Male Barbershop Chorus

Based in Fairview Heights, IL

In 1946, we began as 20 members of a Moose Lodge glee club, six of whom were already barbershoppers. We organized as a barbershop chorus in August 1948, and were officially chartered as the Belleville Bell Notes from Belleville, Illinois, by the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quarter Singing in America (SPEBSQSA), now the Barbershop Harmony Society. Our initial group of 35 members held its first annual show May 21, 1950, and began a long history of community activity.

In 2004, we changed our name to the Southwestern Illinois Sounds of Harmony Barbershop Chorus, indicative of the region we represent. Although we remain chartered in Belleville, Illinois, we rehearse in Fairview Heights and our members come from all over the St. Louis Metro East area and from as far away as 80 miles. Four-part barbershop harmony is the core of what we sing, but our repertory includes many contemporary songs. Today, our total membership stands at 34 and approximately 24 people make up our singing chorus.

Over the years, our chorus and quartets have performed for benefits, chambers of commerce, churches, hospital groups, nursing homes, a shopping mall, teachers' associations, and numerous other community events and organizations. We participate in many street fairs and parades in communities throughout Southwestern Illinois and support a variety of charities in our region.

Founded - 1946.   A Cappella.  

Contact Sounds of Harmony