Says Kevin:

I appreciate everyone’s help in trying to uncover old judging documents. We’re still in search of any materials to fill in gaps. As you clean out your closets, boxes and file cabinets, let me know of any of your finds. Obviously, Harmonizer articles are available online, but any sort of letters associated with judging, anecdotes as to why changes in the rules were made, etc. are greatly appreciated. Please drop me a line if you have anything of interest!

List of what we have
1941 – Suggested Rules by Joe Stern
1946 – Official Rules
1949 – Official Rules and Category Descriptions
1954 – Chorus Rules
1964 – Full C&J Handbook
1971 – Full C&J Handbook
1972 – Full C&J Handbook
1976 – Full C&J Handbook
1983 – Full C&J Handbook
1986 – Full C&J Handbook
1987 – ARR CD
1990 – Full C&J Handbook
1992 – Full C&J Handbook
1995 – July Full C&J Handbook
1996 – Feb Full C&J Handbook
2000 – Jan Full C&J Handbook
2001 – MUS CD
2002 – Jan Full C&J Handbook
2004 – Jan Full C&J Handbook
2006-Present – All C&J Handbooks

Got materials? Contact Kevin at kkbari@charter.net  

I’m puzzled by the scores awarded to the Salem chorus.  I thought C & J was trying to enforce a cutting-down of the amount of talking in a contest set.  This set lasted approximately 25 minutes, most of which was talking.  This is supposed to be a contest, not a chapter show.  Did they actually sing a complete barbershop arrangement?  I totally lost track with all of their breaks to say a bunch of “ughs”.  Did their so-called parodies receive all of the required authorizations?  I was shocked to see them awarded 5^th place medals!  What would happen if every chorus in the contest did 25 minute sets with that much talking?  The contest with breaks and intermissions would last about 20 hours!!  Could you please explain why the judges didn’t disqualify them?

How are members to handle situations when a judge, during evals, openly admits to crossing categories?  A Presentation judge spends more time discussing singing or music … a Music judge saying there was a lack of musicality but I scored higher because of energy.
These are a few vague issues I’ve heard myself, but I still question the idea that each category can be judged independently of each other.  But the manual does claim this is the process.

Response:

Thanks, Stephanie – you ask a great question and one that is often asked.

Ultimately, we all watch exactly the same performance, just with different filters on how we view and evaluate a performance. One of the distinct changes that was made 20 years ago, when we went from the four-category to three-category system, was that we recognized that there is significant overlap in the different viewpoints – each element influences the other.
At times over the past 20 years, the pendulum has swung a lot, from being able to say anything under the claim of “common ground” to “stay in your category.” Neither was appropriate, and I believe we’ve found a balance that recognizes some natural boundaries and yet recognizes that all components come together – that we can’t talk about our own view without recognizing the influence it has from others.

In nearly every performance, a group will score better if they sing better. So, if what I work on as a Music judge doesn’t help them sing better, I’m not helping them out the most. (My challenge is how do I help them and yet teach them something about music they didn’t know before that can help them?)  And I’d say the same thing for the Presentation judge. So we’re all working on singing.

Overlap? It depends on how it is handled. We all expect that the Singing judge will talk about the mechanics of singing (breathing, posture, resonance, phonation, etc.). If a Music or Presentation judge acted as if he were a voice teacher, then that would be a potential issue. Even though many Presentation and Music judges are well-qualified to teach vocal techniques, we would expect them to approach their scoring and their evaluations from their own category’s viewpoint.

For example, a Presentation judge could recognize that part of the singing issue was lack of emotional connection; it was stilted, and perhaps that inhibited the singer from realizing the voice already inside him. The Presentation judge could get the group involved in the emotion and thereby improve the singing. A Music judge could talk about flow, and through that work get them singing better. It works in all the other directions as well, such as when a Singing judge discusses an interpretive choice (primarily the Music category’s domain) that affected a group’s singing quality and blend.

In my experiences as a Music judge, I have often asked “Who are you? What is the emotional story line?”  Unlike a Presentation judge (who will help them explore a variety of emotions), I just want their musical delivery to match the emotional story line; and sometimes, what they choose isn’t supported by the arrangement. No other category will be able to provide that feedback. So, a good judge will live in all categories as he attempts to diagnose and help the group improve, but ultimately should provide some guidance that no other category will provide.   People learn in different ways, and getting three voices giving you feedback from different perspectives on the same issue is valuable.

I guess I’ll have to re-read the manual to see if it really says that they are independent.  If there is a passage or passages, let me know!

Kevin Keller (Society C&J Chairman)

kkbari@charter.net

www.harmonize.ws/kkeller

www.citynightsquartet.com

Despite our current judging system having been in place for almost 20 years, many of you still have questions about aspects of the judging system. Rumors and myths still abound. If you know a judge or feel bold, you may have contacted a judge in the past but many of you might never ask your question.

In an effort to help further educate, C&J (Contest and Judging) is hosting an interactive blog here at barbershopHQ.com.  The process will be simple.  Submit a question to C&J Chairman Kevin Keller (kkbari@charter.net) and the selected questions will be placed on the blog, followed by an answer from a judge. After that, anyone is free to comment on the post with further questions or insights. Other judges will also join in the conversation. Hopefully all of us will learn something by discussing the issues.

We’ll run it at least through the end of the year.  If it remains popular, we’ll continue beyond that. Hope to see you contribute!

Kevin Keller

Society Contest and Judging Chairman, 2012-2013

kkbari@charter.net