New Tradition Chorus
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The New Tradition Chorus is a men's barbershop chorus based in Northbrook, IL, in the Chicago area. Founded in 1982, they have competed at the International Chorus Contest of the Barbershop Harmony Society 16 times, winning a medal on every attempt. They have won seven bronze medals, a record eight consecutive silver medals (1993-2000), and were the International Chorus Champion in 2001.
[edit] Membership
Membership in the New Tradition chorus offers enjoyment and benefits. Of course, the outstanding attraction of being a New Tradition member is the opportunity it affords to meet weekly with a group of congenial men who love to sing four-part harmony. During meetings they devote most of our time to singing. The Chorus's musical leadership includes expert musicians who know barbershop music from the basics to the most complicated concepts of music theory and artistic interpretation. They work hard to maintain and improve that quality. The rewards for that hard work can be substantial. Singing quality barbershop is not just fun, it can provide some memorable musical experiences. They strive to maintain a high standard of musical quality by emphasizing improvement in individual skills. Learning music is made easier through learning tapes made specially for each voice part, for every song in the repertoire.
[edit] Director
Jay Giallombardo was used to "performing" long before he got hooked on barbershop. His father, Joe, was the first NCAA All-Around Gymnastics champion in 1938, and also 1939 and 1940 as an undergraduate at the University of Illinois. Joe still holds the NCAA record for the most gold medals (3 all-around and 4 event medals). The Giallombardo children (Jay and his 3 older sisters) were involved in competitive gymnastics as well, and Jay was the Chicago metro trampoline champ in 7th and 8th grades.
However, he caught the barbershop bug at the ripe young age of 15 when he happened to see the 1965 SPEBSQSA film short which featured the Four Renegades, the '64 International Quartet champs, at the local Wilmette IL movie theater. Shortly after, he saw on a poster that that very quartet was to appear on the Wilmette Bowl Show; after seeing the Renegades, he was hooked on barbershop! Soon after, he went to his first rehearsal at the North Shore (Illinois District) chapter. Legend goes (it's really a true story) that upon his next visit to the chapter the following week, he was teaching tags to all the chapter "vets"!
New Trier High School, at that time, also had a boys' barbershop club as a part of their musical curriculum, and that's where the nucleus of Grandma's Boys was formed. In the fall of 1968, they were encouraged by Bob (Moose) Haeger to register with the Society and compete in the upcoming Illinois District contest in Quincy, which they subsequently won (their average age was 17). After a lot of part shifting (the original foursome were made up of 3 bass/baritones and a rugby halfback!), Grandma's Boys went on to win the International Championship in 1979 with Jay singing baritone.
Concurrently during his involvement with Grandma's Boys, he achieved his Bachelor of Music Education from Boston University in 1972, and his Master of Music Composition from Northwestern University in 1974. During that time, he also studied with Hugo Norden, a noted counter point authority, and with Leonard Bernstein and John Oliver in conducting at the Tanglewood Institute. He taught secondary music education at several area high schools before giving it up to do barbershopping full time.
Jay has also served as musical director of the New Tradition Chorus in Northbrook from its inception in 1982 until present, with a short 2 year hiatus during 1990/91. His prior directorships were the Arlingtones and North Shore chapters of SPEBSQSA., the Melodeers of Sweet Adelines International, and the Village Vocal Chords of Harmony Inc. He directed the Melodeers to a 3rd Place Bronze at the Sweet Adelines International Contest in 1976, and he directed the Village Vocal Chords to a 1st Place Gold Medal at the Harmony Incorporated International in 1980 and 1982. He also sang bass in Chicago Chord of Trade, a 3-time International Quartet Medalist Quartet of SPEBSQSA, and with Excalibur, placing in the International Top 10 Finalists. Jay coaches many quartets and choruses across the U.S., Canada and Sweden. Some of his coaching credits include Melo-Edge, 1983 International Quartet Champion; Jubilation, 1985 International Quartet Champion; Chiefs of Staff, 1988 International Quartet Champion; Audio Express, two-time International Medalist Quartet; Chicago Fire, 1995 International Quartet Champion; and Weekend Edition, 1996 International Quartet Champion.
He has also served as musical engineer on many of their recordings, as well as Grandma's Boys three recordings and Chicago Chord of Trade's Fanfare for the Uncommon Man. Many of his musical arrangements have been used on the International stage, and several have been published under the Society label. Jay is also a Certified Music Category Judge for SPEBSQSA.
He is an independent personal computer applications consultant serving corporations and businesses in the Chicago metro area under the company name of Creative Computer Solutions. Jay also owns and operates Stepstone, Inc. which is a real estate investment company specializing in rental property.
He also owns and operates, with his wife Helen, a music company, Gold-Silver-Bronze Medal Music, Inc. which, amongst other things, handles the publishing operations for Jay's original songs and arrangements folio of over 400 titles. Jay has done several arrangements for "Orchestra and Barbershop Chorus", notably a Patriotic Medley (quite suitable for 4th of July celebrations), and several Christmas Medleys of familiar (PD) songs. These pieces have been performed by the New Tradition Chorus and various symphony orchestras including Lake Forest and Glenview Symphony Orchestras, the San Diego Symphony, and most recently, the Reno Symphony.
Jay was elected in September of 1995 as a writer member of ASCAP, and did the music arrangements for the fall promo ads for NBC Television Network. He and his family reside in Glenview, IL. His wife, Helen, not only serves as Music Dir. for the Maple School annual musical, she also sings baritone with the Melodeers Chorus, many-time Sweet Adelines International Chorus Champion. After an 8 yr. hiatus, she is back singing tenor in a quartet, Jukebox, 2005 Sweet Adelines Regional Champion and International Semi-Finalists. They have 3 children, Barbara, Joey, and Anna, who are musicians and competitive gymnasts as well.
