The Barbershop Harmony Society is the world leader in close-harmony a cappella singing, with approximately 14,000 members across North America. Founded in 1938 as the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, the Society welcomes all people of all ages to sing in more than 1200 quartets and nearly 700 choruses that range in size from a dozen to 150 singers. Allied organizations in more than a dozen countries bring the total number of active barbershop singers to more than 70,000 worldwide. Through active programs in music education, publishing, performance and outreach, the Society preserves and extends the reach of a uniquely American close harmony musical art form whose roots lie in African-American communities of the South in the late 1800s. Today, the Society now expends nearly $1 million annually in support of community and school programs that bring the fellowship, fulfillment and excitement of vocal music to a new generation of singers.