Finest Hour (quartet)

Finest Hour
Background information
Genres Barbershop
Years active 2014–present
Website www.facebook.com/FinestHourQuartet/
Members James Williams – tenor
Eddie Williams – lead
Nick Williams – baritone
Jonathan Pipe – bass
Past members Phil Cuthbert – bass

Finest Hour is the 2016 British barbershop quartet champion, having won in Harrogate in May 2016 with a record-high score of 82.9 per cent in the UK quartet competition.[1][2] They consist of three brothers: James Williams (tenor), Eddie Williams (lead), Nick Williams (baritone) and Jonathan Pipe (bass). Pipe replaced Phil Cuthbert as the bass in July 2017. The quartet went to Las Vegas for international competition in 2017, and has qualified again to represent the British Association of Barbershop Singers (BABS) at 2018's international competition in Orlando.

Quartet members

  • Tenor: James Williams
  • Lead: Eddie Williams
  • Baritone: Nick Williams
  • Bass: Jonathan Pipe

Contest placement

BABS National

2015 2016
3rd[3] 1st[2]

BHS International

2017
28th[4]

History

The three Williams brothers have sung together from a young age, and had sung with their father, Nigel Williams, as a quartet named "Homespun". Homespun competed at the BABS Conventions for many years, placing third in 2013.[5][6] They were a crowd favourite but over time Nigel decided to step down. In 2014, Phil Cuthbert, a long-time family friend, stepped in to help form their new quartet, "Finest Hour". They went on to win the gold medal in Harrogate in May 2016 with a record-high score.[2][7]

The quartet qualified for the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) International Convention in Las Vegas in 2017 for the first time representing the British Association of Barbershop Singers (BABS) and placed 28th out of 55 quartets across the world who reached that level of competition.[4] After this contest, Cuthbert decided to step down and was replaced by Jonathan Pipe, a fellow singer at the time with The Grand Central Chorus in Nottingham.

At the May 2017 BABS national convention in Bournemouth, Finest Hour scored 81.8 per cent, the highest by a quartet that weekend, and qualified to compete at the July 2018 BHS International Convention in Orlando, Florida.[8][9]

Recordings

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "An introduction to: Barbershop – it is all about that perfect chord". Making Music. 6 January 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017. Finest Hour, a quartet from Chesterfield and Preston, won the Gold Medal in the 2016 national competition of the British Association of Barbershop Singers
  2. 1 2 3 "2016 Scoresheet" (PDF). BABS Guild of Judges. 29 May 2016. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  3. ↑ "2015 Scoresheet" (PDF). BABS Guild of Judges. 24 May 2015. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  4. 1 2 "Official Scoring Summary, BHS, International Convention, Quartet Quarter-Finals, Las Vegas, Nevada" (PDF). Barbershop Harmony Society. 5 July 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  5. ↑ "2013 Quartet Final" (PDF). BABS Guild of Judges. 5 May 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
  6. ↑ Williams, James (17 May 2013). "HomeSpun Quartet SemiFinals BABS 2013". YouTube. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
  7. ↑ James, Ian (September 2016). "The Chairman Signs In" (PDF). Harmony Express. p. 3. Finest Hour has given BABS its first ever straight ‘A’ quartet champions with a stunning 82.9% overall.
  8. ↑ "2017 Quartet Final" (PDF). BABS Guild of Judges. 28 May 2017. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  9. ↑ "Grand Central Chorus at the 43rd BABS Annual Convention Bournemouth 26–29 May 2017". Grand Central Chorus. 30 May 2017. Retrieved 11 August 2017. 'Finest Hour' successfully achieved a qualifying score (81.8 – the highest quartet score of the weekend)...
Preceded by
Tagline		 BABS National Quartet Champions
2016 		Succeeded by
Portobello Road
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