CONGRATULATIONS to EACH of our New District Champions!

2019 FALL DISTRICT Convention & Contests

Friday-Saturday-Sunday • October 25-26-27, 2019

• Venue:  Westbrook Performing Arts Center • Westbrook Middle School • 471 Stroudwater Street • Westbrook, Maine 04092

• HQ Hotel:  Holiday Inn Express & Suites South Portland • 303 Sable Oaks Drive, South Portland, Maine 04106 (sold out - see below)

• Hosted by: Portland, ME chapter - "Downeasters" Chorus • Host Chair: ~

• Questions? (Name/email-link) Hotel: DVP-Events: Bob Bradley / Contests & Judging: Alan Lamson / Marketing & PR: Steve Salamin
  

The Portland Chapter “Downeasters” Chorus men and friends and the City of Portland, Maine, and specifically the Westbrook (ME) Performing Arts Center will once again host hundreds of barbershop singers from around the northeast for the annual fall convention of the Northeastern District of the Barbershop Harmony Society.

More than just a weekend of singing four-part a cappella barbershop harmony, it is a weekend of serious competition for quartets and choruses from across New England, Western NY and Maritime Canada under the watchful eyes and ears of a panel of judges from across North America. Qualifying choruses from the weekend will advance to the Barbershop Harmony Society International Chorus Competition next July in Los Angeles, CA. Qualifying seniors quartets from the weekend will advance to the Barbershop Harmony Society Seniors Quartet Competition in January 2020 in Jacksonville, FL. Top scoring eligible men's, women's, mixed, and novice quartets win their respective Northeastern District titles for 2019. Select images or buttons for links to more information and details about the weekend.

The Fall 2019 CONTESTS are:

The Westbrook Performing Arts Center (WPAC) is a state of the art 1,000 seat theater and event center just minutes from downtown Portland, Maine.

2 Alternate Hotels:

• Portland Sheraton at Sable Oaks

200 Sable Oaks Drive • South Portland, Maine 04106 (directly across the street from Holiday Inn)

• BHS/NED Negotiated Room rate is $133/night plus 9% ME lodging tax.

• Code/Event Name: Barbershop Harmony Society

• Reservation Cut-Off date: 2nd Extension: Friday, OCT. 4

For Reservations, phone: (207) 871-8000 • (no online reservation link provided)

• Embassy Suites by Hilton Portland Maine (EXTENDED)

1050 Westbrook Street, Portland, Maine 04102

• BHS/NED Negotiated Room rate $116/night plus 9% ME lodging tax.

• Includes breakfast.

• Code/Event Name: Barbershop Harmony Society

• Reservation Cut-Off date - EXTENDED: Now to Tuesday, October 8.

For Reservations, phone: (207) 775-2200 • {RESERVATION LINK}

Other Hotels in the area:

• Fairfield Inn by Marriott — 2 Cummings Road, Scarborough ME  04074 / 207-883-0300

• Double Tree by Hilton — 363 Maine Mall Road, Portland ME 04106 / 207-775-6161

• Days in by Wyndham — 461 Maine Mall Road, South Portland ME 04002 / 207-772-3450

• Hilton Garden Inn — 145 Jetport Blvd., Portland ME 04002 / 207-828-1117

It's back! We’re doin’ it again!

Choose YOUR Favorite Quartets…

…at the Friday Night Semi-Finals!

It's an opportunity for YOU - as a member of our talented and knowledgeable audience - to be involved in selecting YOUR “Audience Favorites” during the Quartet Semi-Finals on Friday night.

Ballots and golf pencils will be available as everyone enter the auditorium.  The idea is … keep track of ’your favorites’ in the 5 categories (below) throughout the evening.  Transfer your final selections to a Ballot (one per attendee – honor system) before exiting the auditorium and place your ballot in one of the collection boxes provided.  The ballots will be counted and the announcement of the “Audience Favorites” will be made at the end of the chorus contest on Saturday afternoon. Fun!

Choose Your Favorite: Lead • Song Tag • Bass • Clothing/Costume • “older” quartet!

Are you planning on attending the 2019 Fall District Convention - but NOT competing? Or maybe you're a later-performing member of a competing chorus? Or a quartet member? Would you like to appear on the contest stage and perform under an enthusiastic, experienced and talented director? If you answer yes to any of these questions, then we have a great opportunity for you! Why not come and sing with what could be the largest chorus in the NED Chorus Contest, the new "NED EVERYONE IN HARMONY CHORUS."

Participation is open to anyone and everyone available - whether you’re singing in another chorus or not - and requires you attend a single rehearsal Saturday morning before the contest begins (probably) at around 8:30 AM and then perform on the contest stage first off as the "Mic-Tester" chorus at 9:25 AM.

The DIRECTOR of the “NED Everyone In Harmony Chorus” is …

• DON ROSE (Our special weekend guest, the BHS Director of Music Education!)

The 2 songs: • Hello Mary Lou -and- • From the First Hello… (both BPC II)

SING with us! We'd LOVE to have YOU join us and begin the day, right!  It's fast and easy!

This is your chance to sing with a large chorus and to provide a great service to the district by serving as the mic tester chorus for the District Chorus Contest. Wouldn’t it be great to put 100+ men and women, under the direction of an NED great director? That’s right, open to all including female BHS members, Harmony, Inc. and Sweet Adelines members, too. We all sing well together! Let's celebrate! It promises to be one the highlights of the weekend!

Update v.5 – Wed. 10/15 - 1430h

Friday PM - October 25 - QUARTET Semi-Finals (single session) —

ALL TIMES for/at the Westbrook Performing Arts Center, Westbrook, Maine --- unless otherwise noted (e.g. HIE = Holiday Inn Express South Portland)

• [1:00 PM: NED Seniors Chorus rehearsal @ HIE (to 3:30 PM)]

• 4:00 PM: Registration Desk OPENS to all. Every Competitor MUST check-in by 7:30 PM. (to 8:00 PM) (Open to the Public - seating tickets available)

• 6:00 PM: Auditorium Doors Open for General Admission (30 min. prior to contest start)

• 6:30 PM: District QUARTET SEMI-FINALS ———————

• *10:00 PM: Announcements/Awards

• *10:45 PM—12:05 AM: Quartet Evaluations for non-Top 10 (@ HIE)

* Please NOTE: these stated START times subject to vary - based on the actual END time of the previous line item/event.

Saturday, October 26 - CHORUS Finals (split sessions) —

• 7:00 AM: Registration Desk OPENS (until 2:00 PM) (Open to the Public - seating tickets available)

• 8:30 AM: "NED Everyone In Harmony Chorus" - Mic-Testing Chorus MEETS, WARM-UP, Room 118, then 1st on-stage.

• 8:55 AM: Auditorium Doors Open for General Admission (30 min. prior to contest start)

• 9:25 AM: District CHORUS FINALS ——————

• *12:20 PM ----------------- L U N C H - B R E A K --------------------------

• 1:20 PM: District V-L-Q FINALS ——————

• 1:45 PM: District MIXED CHORUS Festival ——————

• *2:05 PM: Special House of Delegates Meeting (short; single agenda item)

• *2:50 PM: Presentations - Announcements - Awards

• *3:20 PM—5:20 PM: Chorus/VLQ Evaluations

• *5:20 PM ------------------ D I N N E R - B R E A K ------------------------

  
  * Please NOTE: these (*) stated START times subject to vary - based on the actual END time of the previous line item/event

Saturday (Night), October 26 - QUARTET Finals / Seniors Chorus —

• 6:00 PM: Registration Desk Open (to 9:00 PM) (Open to the Public - seating tickets available)

• 7:00 PM: Auditorium Doors Open for General Admission (30 min. prior to NEDAC event start)

• 7:30 PM: NEDAC Show

• 8:30 PM: District Seniors Chorus

• 8:50 PM: District QUARTET FINALS ———————

• *10:35 PM: Presentations - Announcements - Awards - Finalé

• *11:30 PM—12:50 AM: Quartet Evaluations (@ HIE)

* Please NOTE: these stated START times subject to vary - based on the actual END time of the previous line item/event.

Sunday, October 27 —

•   9:00 AM — 12 noon: NED Board of Directors Meeting (location, tba)

• 9:00 AM (tbd): Chorus Director reviews (by prior arrangement; see Dan Falcone)