So, what is this event anyway?

This event will be fun for people who love singing, or want to try a cappella harmony, in the "barbershop" style! During this event, you will learn to sing short segments of songs by ear. We will learn the music together, and sing them as a chorus. After each song, we will have a "tap-out quartet" where folks can try singing what we learned as a quartet in front of the group! That part is completely optional (but it’s fun)! We will learn and sing through as many arrangements as we can.

What music will we be singing?

Will will sing short segments of songs made famous by performers on the JoCo Cruise, arranged in the traditional  "barbershop" style. We may sing sections of songs by Jonathan Coulton, Da Vinci’s Notebook, Paul & Storm, Daphne Always, and They Might Be Giants, among others. These arrangements are 20-45 seconds long and will be taught by ear, though sheet music and learning tracks are available. These arrangements are largely written in the traditional barbershop style, in 4-part a cappella harmony. These short barbershop arrangements are colloquially referred to as barbershop tags.

What voice part should I sing?

You could try all of them, a few of them, or just the part you are most comfortable with. Most of these arrangements are tight harmony, but a few have spread chords. The tenor part is traditionally sung by lower-voiced folks in falsetto - it is closest in range to counter-tenor in choral music. Generally, tenor is the highest, lead and baritone are in the middle, and bass is the lowest. In this style, the lead part has the melody, whereas the baritone part has the counter-melody. All barbershop music, regardless of voice ranges, uses this terminology for voice parts, as they describe the function rather than the range.

How can I be best prepared for this event?

We will be learning the music on the fly during the event. Bring your brain, your ears, and your voice!

If you are more comfortable preparing in advance, you can find all the music and learning media at the link below.

Included here are PDFs of the sheet music and corresponding MP3 audio. These learning tracks all start with a tone that indicates the key. The part-only tracks have one part sung at a time, while the part-left tracks have one part panned fully left, and the other 3 parts panned fully right.

JoCoCruise 2025 Tag List 

Below are the tags we will likely be singing during this event, though we may sing additional tags across the two sessions. You can view the tags on this site, or click below to view all learning media in Google Drive. If we get to more, then we will!

1. Wake Up - Jonathan Coulton - arr. Krysta Petrie

2. Save Me - Aimee Mann - arr. Krysta Petrie

3. Why Does The Sun Shine - They Might Be Giants - arr. Krysta Petrie

4. Nugget Man - Paul & Storm - arr. Krysta Petrie

5. Nobody Loves You Like Me - Jonathan Coulton - arr. Krysta Petrie

6. Don't Let's Start - They Might Be Giants - arr. Krysta Petrie

7. Birdhouse In Your Soul - They Might Be Giants - arr. Krysta Petrie

8. Doctor Worm (abridged) - They Might Be Giants - arr. Krysta Petrie

9. Voices Carry - 'Til Tuesday (Aimee Mann) - arr. Krysta Petrie

10. Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life For Me) - Disney - arr. Krysta Petrie