Schmitt Brothers was a
Barbershop quartet
A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment (a cappella). The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...
from
Two Rivers,
Wisconsin
Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
that won the 1951
SPEBSQSA
The Barbershop Harmony Society, legally and historically named the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. (SPEBSQSA), is the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbersho ...
international competition. The quartet consisted of four brothers: Joe, Paul, Francis and Jim Schmitt. They participated in 110 performances during their championship year, including appearances on the
Ed Sullivan
Edward Vincent Sullivan (September 28, 1901 – October 13, 1974) was an American television host, impresario, sports and entertainment reporter, and syndicated columnist for the ''New York Daily News'' and the Chicago Tribune New York News ...
and
Arthur Godfrey
Arthur Morton Godfrey (August 31, 1903 – March 16, 1983) was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer. At the peak of his success, in the early to mid-1950s, Godfrey was heard on radio and seen on television up to six days ...
television programs.
After becoming active as teachers in district and international schools, the brothers received a reward for outstanding service to school music at the Wisconsin Music Educators Association Conference in 1980. The Schmitt Brothers Quartet performed together for 34 years, traveling more than three million miles and appearing in nearly 3,000 shows.
Notes
Barbershop quartets
People from Two Rivers, Wisconsin
Barbershop Harmony Society
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