35th Annual

The Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival is the premier American showcase for vocal harmony music. The annual national competition draws from hundreds of vocal groups from around the country with regional competitions in eight cities. The winning group from each festival is flown to perform in front of celebrity judges and a sold out house of enthusiastic a cappella fans at the National Finals.

2019 NATIONAL FINALS

Saturday May 18th, 2019 - 8pm

MARIN CENTER

10 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael, CA 94901

Box Office: 415-473-6800

Tickets On Sale online Monday April 1st @ 9am

Hosted by

Hosted by 2018 National Champions

Business Casual

Business Casual is an a cappella band based out of the San Francisco Bay Area. Combining elements of pop, jazz, and other genres, this young all-vocal group puts a fresh spin on vintage chart toppers and today's hits. Winners of the National Harmony Sweepstakes a cappella competition in 2018, Business Casual has performed at weddings, corporate events, and live public shows throughout the Bay Area since 2012.

2019 Schedule of Events

Boston

Drive

Drive is the culmination of four musical journeys, and also just the beginning. Formed in 2016, each of its founding members spent years loving, listening to, and performing a wide variety of vocal music. Sharing a common background of stellar intonation, lyric expression, and expanded, ensemble sound found in barbershop harmony, they knew these fundamentals could allow a group to jump head-first into any piece that excited or moved its singers, regardless of style or genre.

Members: Josh Beswick, Jordan Kugler, Dan Allison, Ray Johnson

Pacific Northwest

The Baudboys

Back around 1990, a couple of the founding members of the coed Microtones decided that they wanted to form a men's a cappella group at Microsoft so that they could sing the charts from their college groups. The original quartet consisted John Rae-Grant, bass and musical director, Bill Pope, baritone, Bob Gunderson, 2nd tenor, and David Olsen, 1st tenor. True to their profession, the group's chosen name, The Baudboys, referred to the method by which modem speeds were rated. The group performed only a few times in its first years of existence, doing lunch time gigs on the Microsoft campus.

As members left Microsoft over the years, they would also leave the Baudboys, prompting natural turnover in the membership. During the 1990's, the group expanded it's membership, aiming to have two full quartets within the group. Since that time, the group has remained at 7-9 members, but the expanded membership has allowed the group to sing more complex arrangements than the 4-part charts that the founders envisioned.

Members: Jonathan Schwartz, Mike Thomsen, Owen Braun, Graham Sheldon, Martin Puryear, Elliot Lewis, Mark Adolph, Paul Eng

Bay Area

Halfway to Midnight

Halfway to Midnight is a co-ed band of musical misfits who, having missed the thrill of the a cappella world and desiring an outlet to strengthen our individual instruments, serendipitously found each other in the midst of the great big beautiful Bay Area and begun gathering weekly to share in the blend of our voices together. Our life stories are as varied as our voices yet we find common ground in our love of instrument-free music-making and we truly hope you like what you hear.

Members: Vivek Saraswat, Gonzalo Alonso, Michael Barrientos, Elana Zizmor, Alicia Flor, Scott Adler, Shanna Bengtson

Chicago

Polarity

Polarity, Waverly High School's premiere a cappella ensemble, is excited to return to the Harmony Sweepstakes family! Recently formed, Polarity meets after school once a week to provide a quality a cappella experience to Waverly High School's students. This highly competitive group performs in the community, at school events, private parties, and local competitions. Coming from all paths of the high school, Polarity instantly "clicked."

Members: Camrin Craig, Fabiola Corwin, Mattie Elliott, Kayleah Shiland, Andrew Pfeifer, Jack Pfeifer, Noah Clifton

Los Angeles

Gotta Sing!

We are (4) veterans of the barbershop art form. As members of the Santa Monica Chapter of Sweet Adelines we serve the chorus in numerous roles: Laura is the Director, Tove is the Associate Director and membership Chairperson, Jennifer is the Education Chair and Anna Pia is the Visual/Choreography Chair. To sing is not an option we Gotta Sing!

Members: Laura Pallas Singer, Jennifer Febre, Tove Hoch, Anna Pia Hubacher

New York

RESOLVE

RESOLVE is a new vocal jazz quartet based out of Central Florida. With a style similar to the likes of Manhattan Transfer and the New York Voices, these four young vocalists bring a flair, confidence and charisma to the stage that will have you engaged from the first note they sing!

Members: Christopher Keough, Ashley Rosa, Elodie Germain, Joshua Waddy

Mid-Atlantic

Forecast

Forecast is a men's a cappella quartet singing together since 2014. Mike, Tyler, Travis, and Kevin travel from North Carolina to Virginia to put their 4 voices together. Their unique "feel-good" repertoire of songs spanns from traditional early American vocal standards in the barbershop style all the way to four-part harmony versions of contemporary hits by Michael Buble, Big Bad VooDoo Daddy, and the Jive Aces! Competitive success for the quartet includes Southern Division Champions of the Mid-Atlantic District in 2016, Second Place M-AD District Finalist in 2017, and Quarterfinalists at the international Barbershop Harmony Society contests in 2017 and 2018.

Members: Mike Fitch, Tyler Rackley, Kevin Jones, Travis Murray

2019 Judges TBA

Complete list of 2019 participants

The David Lichtman Award for Best Original Arrangement

Accommodation and venue info for out of town attendees

National Finals Recordings

Interested in Competing?

We are always seeking groups who would like to compete in our events.

Groups of any style are welcome, but you must have between 3 and 12 members. We have a rule book which explains many of the details of the event, which you can see by clicking here. All groups must audition in order to compete. Generally this is done by sending a current tape and photo, although live auditions are sometimes arranged. The purpose of the audition is to make sure the group is appropriate for the Festival and to help the Director determine the performance order. If a group has competed previously, the audition process may be waived.

How to enter

Our Hall of Fame - The Harmony Sweepstakes National Champions

The Harmony Sweepstakes National Audience Favorites

Previous Year's Results - 2018 - 2017 - 2016 - 2015 - 2014 - 2013 - 2012 - 2011 - 2010 - 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006
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Marin Center

The Frank Lloyd Wright designed Marin County Civic Center is a national-and state-designated historic landmark. Wright's 770th commission, the Civic Center is the last and one of the most important works by this internationally acclaimed architect who has been described as "one of the most creative architectural geniuses of all time" and "the most original architect the United States has ever produced." The Marin Center is an outstanding venue for entertainment, meetings, and special events. The 55-acre campus includes a park and a 14-acre lagoon.Directions -Yelp reviews -Photos

Boston - Chicago - Los Angeles - New York - Pacific North West - San Francisco - Washington DC

2019 Schedule:

Bay Area - Saturday March 30th	Boston - Saturday, March 9th
Chicago - Saturday March 30th	Los Angeles - Saturday April 13th
Mid-Atlantic - Saturday March 30th	New York - Saturday March 30th
Pacific Northwest - Saturday, March 9th

National Finals - Saturday May 18th, 2019

In The Media



All Things Considered:	Marin hosts battle of the vocal chords	Bare Naked Voices
A Cappella Singers Go Mouth-O A Mouth-O	Vocal cords resonate with young and old	A cappella finals have North Bay humming