Send your love with a song
A Cappella Niagara continues to deliver Valentine’s Day harmony
Looking for a last minute Valentine’s Day gift for your significant other?
How about four tuxedo-clad men serenading them with few songs of love?
For the past 20 years, members of A Cappella Niagara have fanned out across the region to deliver singing valentines in four-part harmony.
“We’ve been in garages, tattoo parlours, factories, offices, schools and we have sang for crossing guards,” said member Bill Laing.
The majority of recipients have no idea a crooning quartet is coming.
“It’s happiness and tears,” member Phil Sheehan said of the reactions they receive.
“It’s a lot of fun,” agreed fellow member John Donald.
The unsuspecting recipients receive a box of chocolates, a silk rose and two love songs.
Funds raised from the annual event support A Cappella Niagara and also benefit several charities including Harmonized for
Speech, Sing Canada Harmony and Niagara Children’s Centre.
Laing and his brother Bob founded A Cappella Niagara in 1998.
“We just love barbershop,” Laing said. “I can remember singing in a quartet with my sisters while we were doing dishes.”
A Cappella Niagara is a chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society, which was formed in the late 1930s to keep the tradition of barbershop quartets alive.
There are 22 members in the local chorus and new members are always welcome. The group meets Tuesdays at 7 p.m. at Fonthill United Church. For more information, visit www.niagarasingers.com.
To book a singing valentine for Wednesday or Thursday, call 905-359-8117 or 905-468-3566.