The El Paso Border Chorders shall promote fun, fellowship and excellent singing in the barbershop style.

Our Goals

As we participate in this wonderful endeavor we call "Barbershopping," we will strive to promote quartet singing, having fun, participate in competition, continuously improve in our singing and performing and encourage singing among the youth and our community.

Our History

In the spring of 1947, a group of El Paso men concerned with the American art form of a cappella four-part harmony singing, decided to form a chapter of the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America (S.P.E.B.S.Q.S.A.), which had been founded in Tulsa, Oklahoma, nine years earlier.

With hard work and energetic recruiting, they were able to reach the 20-man minimum needed for a chapter. On August 11, 1947, sponsored by the Carlsbad, New Mexico chapter, the El Paso chapter officially came into existence. Membership grew rapidly. Several chapter members were also Kiwanians, and they put that club's prestige and influence to good use.

Two important events marked the Border Chorder's fourth year. In early 1951, Dr. John Heiden became the chorus director. His talent and energy would steer the singers into a first rate choral group until his retirement in 1960. The second event was the chapter's first annual show held in April. During the Society's early years, the emphasis was on quartet singing and as a result, a Parade of Quartets was born. There followed a gradual transition to theme shows with far more chorus involvement, but always including one or more big name quartets. In addition to local quartets, groups from Arizona, California, New Mexico and elsewhere in Texas were invited to appear. To date, many International Champion Quartets have made appearances on the El Paso chapter shows.

In 1953, the chapter made its first appearance on the national scene when a local quartet, The Desertaires, qualified to sing in that year's International Contest held in Detroit. In 1962 and again in 1964, the Border Chorders won the Southwestern District contest to qualify them to compete at the International contest. They placed third in 1962 and in 1964, became International Champions.

In its first 60 years, the chorus has had only 11 directors, gifted, dedicated men who have consistently emphasized quality singing. This insistence on singing skills is manifested at every rehearsal where basic voice training is given. Basic voice skills are the foundation of good barbershop singing, as they are in every other genre of voiced music. Barbershop Society contest judging is heavily weighted toward quality and precision.