...a way to improve your harmony singing is to listen to some duets (Simon & Garfunkel, or the album of gospel duets by Ricky Scaggs and Tony Rice, or anything you like), pick a song you're familiar with, and just match the harmony line. Do that A LOT. Mark Cohen Good idea, Mark, and I'll work on it. I'm listening to quite a few singers now- but I'm just not getting it. If they sang songs I already know,songs that are suited to my voice, maybe it would help, I don't know. 'The Harmony Singers' with Peggy Seeger is one helpful one. Great harmonies. But there's really not one song on the album I have that I would learn even though they are fun to sing along with.

JohnnyinOKC, Barbershop is not a bad idea. But I'm trying to stay away from the soprano/alto/tenor/baritone/bass by-the-note harmonies. Some people sing such terrific harmony and yet it isn't predictable or stiff.

Frankham, I like everything you said! I'm already planning to use some of your suggestions before I even proceed on the harmony workshop idea.

Personally, I like 2 part harmonies. So many more opportunities for expression, whether from straight 1st & 3rd like Phil & Don to more creative warblings Cluin Three part harmony singing just the chords isn't a bad place to start! As we get more proficient and more sure of ourselves, maybe we'll get more adventurous.

It would really help to have a partner to work with over time. You can pick the songs to work on & play around with the sounds. Burke Thankfully, I do have a person who is as interested in this as I (and lives just down the street!) The two of us have been working at it. I have a couple of recordings of Sacred Harp singing, but I have to learn the songs before I'll work on their arrangements.

Trevor, I picture you pedaling away across the face of the moon... That would be the most direct way to get here from Shropshire, no doubt. Do stay in touch and post any ideas and suggestions that may occur to you in how to present the learning process.

Mark, I keep thinking that I'll get to Seattle one of these times for some of those festivals but I never have. The main reason is that they're put on in the summertime and all summer long I'm busy with this house museum and our drop-in tourists. By the way, we too say that Seattle is 'practically in our back yard' but in reality, Seattle is more than 900 air miles away from Juneau. It's just that it's the closest one!

Marje, the beginning group would be people I am already friendly with and sing with and pretty much know their level of expertise and what they want to learn. Later, who knows, maybe we'll start advertising and get more groups started. Juneau is already a very musical town; I can't imagine a more wonderful development than that the 'man on the street' should break into harmony!

I'm going to start thinking of what we students can pay the instructors. In Juneau, we do a lot of reciprocal house sitting and things of that nature- maybe in addition to not a lot of money we can make it worth their while. (The proposed instructors are also friends, good musicians that we already go to hear in concert and feel fortunate to have them come to our song circles.)