SPEBSQSA is short for
Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of BarberShop Quartet Singing in America. Yes, it is a very long
name. You aren't supposed to pronounce SPEBSQSA as a
single word. Rather, spell it out
every time you say it.
SPEBSQSA is the
largest all-male
singing
organization in the world. It consists of over 800
choruses and over 1800
registered
barbershop quartets in the
USA and
Canada. Eight
affiliated organizations include another 3300 male singers to the barbershopping group.
(The eight
affiliated
organizations are: Australian Association of Men's Barbershop Singers, British Association of Barbershop Singers, Barbershop in Germany, Dutch Association of Barbershop Singers, Irish Association of Barbershop Singers, New Zealand Association of Barbershop Singers, Society of Nordic Barbershop Singers, and Southern Part of Africa Tonsorial Singers)
The female affiliated barbershop organizations consist of the Sweet Adelines International and Harmony, Inc.. SPEBSQSA and all their
affiliated
organizations bring the number of
registered
barbershopers to over 70,000 persons worldwide.