We had an amazing time in the USA, representing Australia at the International Quartet Contest.
Although Anaheim, a south-eastern district of Los Angeles near Disneyland was our destination, we first flew to Denver to meet up with long time friend and coach Eddie Martinez for a few days of final coaching and preparation. Eddie had also arranged for us to sing on the Sound of the Rockies (4th placed International chorus) show. What a thrill that was, and what a thrill to walk into the dressing room to meet the guys from Storm Front (3rd placed International quartet) being coached by two of the stars of barbershop, Rick la Rosa and Chad Guyton.
We spent three wonderful days in the Rocky Mountains with Eddie, staying in a cabin, eating, sleeping and singing barbershop all day. What a treat! That final coaching put the final polish on our performance and we can’t thank Eddie enough for giving up some of his vacation time to spend with us.
Then we flew to LA and into the excitement that is an International Convention. Our first foray into Harmony Marketplace resulted in us singing a song for Mike Slamka (Lead of Crossroads the 2009 International quartet champions), and meeting lots of old friends. After pushing our credit cards to the limit stocking up on t-shirts and all the latest recordings of the top groups, we ventured into the hotel lobby for an evening of singing tags and catching up with people.
Our first official performance was to sing “Advance Australia Fair” at the start of the competition sessions at 11am on Wednesday 1 July. That went well and gave us a good feel for the stage and sound setup.
Our competition time was 9pm on Wednesday evening, so we were able to watch the first session of quartet competition, where we realised (as if we didn’t know already) that the competition was going to be pretty fierce. We were very pleased with our performance in the contest. It was great to receive numerous “shout-outs” during the webcast interview, and we want to thank everyone who watched. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. We performed as well as we had hoped, and scored 75.7%, just 0.3% below our target of 76%. That’s the highest score ever by an AAMBS quartet at International, so we are justifiably proud of that!
Our other official performance was at the World Harmony Jamboree dinner show on Thursday. That went well too, and there were many acts from around the world, which was a smorgasbord of talent for the audience. We gave the audience some Aussie flavour with “I Am Australian” and our medley of “Waltzing Matilda” and “I Still Call Australia Home”.
Highlights of the Convention would have to be Crossroads quartet performance of Lucky Old Sun, which ended up with everyone crying and screaming for more, and the performances of the Vocal Majority and the Ambassadors of Harmony in the chorus contest. The VM broke the world record for the highest score ever in an International chorus contest, only for it to be broken an hour later by the Ambassadors. What a thrill! Their performance brought the house down, and it was so exciting to be there and part of that historic event.
After a full 4 days (and nights) of International Convention activities, we were absolutely spent, but wonderfully glad that we had had the opportunity to be part of it all. Other events included the AIC show, the Harmony Foundation Show and the Collegiate quartet contest.
Affiliates did extremely well this year, with a quartet from Sweden (Ringmasters) winning a 4th place medal, and the Musical Island Boys from New Zealand finishing 10th. It’s the first time EVER that an affiliate has finished in the top 10 (and there were two this year), and the first time EVER an affiliate group has won an International medal in open competition. The youth choruses from Sweden (7th) and New Zealand (10th), also did extremely well.
There are so many people to thank for making it possible for Alliance to go to International. We hope we don’t miss anyone out! First of all, AAMBS, who nominated us and gave us a $4,000 subsidy. Then there was our chapter, Vocal Evolution, who supported us with a number of fundraising events. Thanks to all of the acts who performed on our fund-raising concert in April, Nexus, BlackJaQ, VE, Johnny Young Talent School, Ambrosia String Quartet, and MC Mike Donnelly. Our wonderful friends from Hills Harmony, who have supported us over the years and put on a fund-raising concert for us in Sydney. Our families who have always allowed us the time to devote to perfecting our barbershop skills. All of our supporters from the Men In Harmony and West Coast Chordsmen choruses in Perth, and to all members of Western Region. To the Eastern Region for inviting us to be part of your weekend workshop in February, another great opportunity for us to hone and share our skills with fellow barbershoppers.
If you ever get a chance to go to an International Convention, even just as a spectator, we suggest you grab it with both hands. You will never regret it.
