Welcome to The Toppers! We are thrilled that you are considering stopping by!!!  As a guest, you are always welcome to stop by all rehearsals to listen and engage with our chorus. Guests interested in singing with the Toppers are ALSO encouraged to show up and stand with us on the risers. We hope this section of our website answers many of your questions about what you can expect, but please don’t hesitate to just come on in and we'll be sure you are welcomed and encouraged!

We believe that music, live music, has a powerful way of bringing people together. Singing in a group has been proven to extend life expectancy. In addition to connecting to people through music, we are proud to assist musical programs in the schools of our community wherever we can with scholarships, purchasing of music, and volunteering our time. It is through our mission that we hope to do our part in keeping the whole world singing,

The Toppers have been around since 1956. We are a non-profit 501-C3 chapter in the Barbershop Harmony Society. We are located in what is proudly known as the Evergreen District (EVG) which includes Washington, Idaho, Oregon, B.C, and Alaska. As of Feb. 5th 2024 we decided to further strengthen our mission and are now inviting All Voices to join us in our mission and our music.

The musical pieces and the style in which we sing as a group are not easy, but we have many ways of learning to sing with us. Many of the songs we sing are recognizable – like Wonderful World, Country Roads, or All You Need is Love, and some other songs you may never have heard of.  The songs we sing are selected by a team and we change what we sing throughout the year, depending on the season, and what we have coming up in future performances.

We are led by our Topper Leadership. They work tirelessly to bring us exciting music, provide coaching, direction, and support to become a better vocal ensemble, provide membership clear communication, and are always working on ways to bring our mission to life.

Turner Stiers & Josh Honrud  |  Musical Directors

Tom Martin |  President

The rest of our leadership team is focused on various other aspects of the chapter such as: Treasurer, Secretary, Section leader, Marketing VP, Music VP, Chorus Manager, Librarian, and more. Volunteerism is a cornerstone to the success of any non-profit organization, and we welcome all support!

What to expect...

Your first few weeks are going to be exciting and might feel overwhelming. Here is what you can expect. As always, we would love to hear your questions regarding The Toppers!

Week 1, 2, & 3

· Make sure to leave all your information at the welcome table so we can contact you and give you access to all our learning materials.

· You will be paired with a singing buddy, singing the same vocal part as you for the night.

· You will receive a Musical Guest Book to use for the rehearsal. Return at the end of the night.

· Access to Groupanizer and LEARNING TRACKS

  • This is The Topper’s web platform where we have all the sheet music, learning tracks, rehearsal recordings, board meeting minutes etc.

· Post Rehearsal - At the end of the night, we would love to have you join us at Buffalo Wild Wings in the Bellis Fair Mall for an afterglow where we eat food and casually sing some more.

Week 4

· Same as the prior weeks.

· Our Membership VP will meet with you sometime during the night and go over the dues structure, guidelines for membership, our Mission Statement and volunteering options to fulfill the Mission.

· If after your meeting with the Membership VP everything feels good to you, we will schedule an audition with our Music Leadership VP for some time the following week.

The Audition

· You will do some singing together with members of the MLT in a small group.

· This is our chance to discuss and engage with you on how we would like our relationship to continue.

Membership!!!

· Upon a successful audition, and by choosing to join our ranks you are becoming a member of the Barbershop Harmony Society.

· Our Chapter Secretary will make sure that your onboarding process is as easy as possible.

· Membership of our group, as with many others, does come with some financial obligation.  Due information is available at rehearsals.

 

Hope to see you on the risers soon!!!

 

#itsgreattobeatopper