Every Monday night for the past nine years, barbershop harmony has filled the airwaves in Haliburton thanks to Barry Willhelm. Listeners tuning in to Canoe FM between 8 and 9 PM can kick off their week with “Voices in Harmony”, his weekly radio broadcast that treats listeners to groups like the Elmer Iseler Singers, Pentatonix, Cadence, and of course, barbershop quartets and choruses.
Barry’s barbershop career began in 1973 with the Scarborough Dukes of Harmony, with whom he would win a gold medal during their 1977 win in Philadelphia. From there, he went on to direct the Markham and Mississauga chapters before moving to Haliburton in 2006. Shortly afterwards, he was asked to do a voice test for the local radio station and soon began hosting the station’s morning show on Mondays and Tuesdays. In 2008, Barry submitted a proposal for a “Voices in Harmony” program to the station, which would feature trios, quartets, and choruses. The proposal was approved and the rest is history, These days, Barry gets his content from records, which he converts to CDs to be able to play at the station. Other content comes pre-digitized, straight from YouTube to the airwaves.
Though only singing barbershop occasionally these days with the Muskoka Music Men, Barry shares the world of barbershop with new listeners every week, thanks to a love of the artform and a successful pitch. Here’s to another nine years!