HOA ups singing score at fall CSD contest
| Type of post: | Chorus news item |
| Sub-type: | No sub-type |
| Posted By: | John Braden |
| Status: | Current |
| Date Posted: | Thu, Nov 6 2025 |
The Heart of America Barbershop Chorus increased its singing and performance scores in chorus competition at the Central States District Fall Convention, Oct. 11, 2025, in Lawrence.
HOA waded into an 18-chorus contest dominated by past International and district champs. Past champ Ambassadors of Harmony of St. Charles, Mo., won the district contest. AOH also qualified for International competition in July in St. Louis, as did Central Standard Chorus of Metro Kansas City, Visions of Harmony of St. Charles, The Recruits of St. Charles, Smorgaschorus of South Central Kansas, and Vox Infinitus of Des Moines Metro.
HOA Director Carter Combs focused on HOA's 5-point improvement in its Singing score, logging 66.5 percent, and a respectable improvement of 2.7 points in Performance to 67.7 percent. The chorus also logged a 2.5-point drop in Musicality to 64.5 percent.
"For the last several weeks, the entire Music Team felt we were singing better, but we had no idea how much better until we saw the scores," Combs said. "It's wonderful to see our hard work reflected in the results."
Heart of America was oh-so-close to bringing home a trophy, learning that size matters. There were 27 men on the risers due to a small number who couldn't make the contest, relegating the chorus to size Plateau II. If HOA had fielded 30, it would have won the Plateau III championship because nobody else was in that size category.
Dressed in "hobo" garb, the chorus performed easy beat "King of the Road" and ballad "That Tumbledown Shack in Athlone." In evaluation, chorus members were impressed by Musicality Judge Jay Dougherty's instruction in ways to improve the singers' artistry.
The whopping list of 37 competing quartets included four from Heart of America: Singing and Having Fun (Chris Walker, Tom Hadley, Don Fuson and Alex Tate), Swing Shift (Carter Combs, John Braden, Paul Camarata and Eric Weber), Four on the Floor (Roberto Petrella, Danny Anderson, Jeff Stone and Steve Keisker) and Mo-Kan-Do (Tony O'Brien, Carl Turlin, Michael Heath and Ted Simon).
Past CSD Quartet champ Fleet Street (Lincoln, Neb.; St. Louis and Cincinnati) qualified to compete at International in July at St. Louis. The new Central States District Quartet champions are the youngsters of Gateway (St. Charles), including bass Johnny Padigos, a Johnson County Community College buddy of former HOAer Charlie Hill who Charlie brought to HOA for his first exposure to Barbershop.
One HOA member came home with a medal. Baritone Paul Camarata participated in the Harmony Platoon, in which individual registrants from across the district learn five songs ahead of time, are placed in a pickup quartet and sing in their own contest. Paul was in the first-place quartet, winning a "diamond ring." Actually, it was a "dime on ring" strung on a neck ribbon. A win is a win is a win!
Ozark Overtones chorus of Springfield, which featured a traveling squad of HOA members, won the CSD Seniors Chorus championship and was most-improved Plateau IV chorus. The chorus qualified to compete in the International Seniors Chorus contest at MidWinter Convention in January in Pasadena, Calif.
Among the raft of awards presented at the convention was one honoring the late John Stucker, veteran HOA bass and former contest administrator. The John Stu
cker Small Chorus Encouragement Award -- for a chorus who has never competed or who has not competed for five years -- went to Springfield Metro Chorus.
HOA and its quartets faced a crowded CSD Fall contest due to the shifting of CSD Spring Convention contests -- International Quartet qualifying, Small Chorus contest and Seniors contests -- to the Fall Convention, which already featured regular large chorus and quartet contests. The addition of women's and mixed quartets and choruses to competition also upped convention participation to more than 700 people, 37 quartets and 18 choruses, and Harmony Platoon participants.
HOA waded into an 18-chorus contest dominated by past International and district champs. Past champ Ambassadors of Harmony of St. Charles, Mo., won the district contest. AOH also qualified for International competition in July in St. Louis, as did Central Standard Chorus of Metro Kansas City, Visions of Harmony of St. Charles, The Recruits of St. Charles, Smorgaschorus of South Central Kansas, and Vox Infinitus of Des Moines Metro.
HOA Director Carter Combs focused on HOA's 5-point improvement in its Singing score, logging 66.5 percent, and a respectable improvement of 2.7 points in Performance to 67.7 percent. The chorus also logged a 2.5-point drop in Musicality to 64.5 percent.
"For the last several weeks, the entire Music Team felt we were singing better, but we had no idea how much better until we saw the scores," Combs said. "It's wonderful to see our hard work reflected in the results."
Heart of America was oh-so-close to bringing home a trophy, learning that size matters. There were 27 men on the risers due to a small number who couldn't make the contest, relegating the chorus to size Plateau II. If HOA had fielded 30, it would have won the Plateau III championship because nobody else was in that size category.
Dressed in "hobo" garb, the chorus performed easy beat "King of the Road" and ballad "That Tumbledown Shack in Athlone." In evaluation, chorus members were impressed by Musicality Judge Jay Dougherty's instruction in ways to improve the singers' artistry.
The whopping list of 37 competing quartets included four from Heart of America: Singing and Having Fun (Chris Walker, Tom Hadley, Don Fuson and Alex Tate), Swing Shift (Carter Combs, John Braden, Paul Camarata and Eric Weber), Four on the Floor (Roberto Petrella, Danny Anderson, Jeff Stone and Steve Keisker) and Mo-Kan-Do (Tony O'Brien, Carl Turlin, Michael Heath and Ted Simon).
Past CSD Quartet champ Fleet Street (Lincoln, Neb.; St. Louis and Cincinnati) qualified to compete at International in July at St. Louis. The new Central States District Quartet champions are the youngsters of Gateway (St. Charles), including bass Johnny Padigos, a Johnson County Community College buddy of former HOAer Charlie Hill who Charlie brought to HOA for his first exposure to Barbershop.
One HOA member came home with a medal. Baritone Paul Camarata participated in the Harmony Platoon, in which individual registrants from across the district learn five songs ahead of time, are placed in a pickup quartet and sing in their own contest. Paul was in the first-place quartet, winning a "diamond ring." Actually, it was a "dime on ring" strung on a neck ribbon. A win is a win is a win!Ozark Overtones chorus of Springfield, which featured a traveling squad of HOA members, won the CSD Seniors Chorus championship and was most-improved Plateau IV chorus. The chorus qualified to compete in the International Seniors Chorus contest at MidWinter Convention in January in Pasadena, Calif.
Among the raft of awards presented at the convention was one honoring the late John Stucker, veteran HOA bass and former contest administrator. The John Stu
cker Small Chorus Encouragement Award -- for a chorus who has never competed or who has not competed for five years -- went to Springfield Metro Chorus.HOA and its quartets faced a crowded CSD Fall contest due to the shifting of CSD Spring Convention contests -- International Quartet qualifying, Small Chorus contest and Seniors contests -- to the Fall Convention, which already featured regular large chorus and quartet contests. The addition of women's and mixed quartets and choruses to competition also upped convention participation to more than 700 people, 37 quartets and 18 choruses, and Harmony Platoon participants.
