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Mission Statement

To us, woodshedding refers to the discovery and refinement of aural (by ear) four-part harmony in a distinct barbershop style. The purpose of the Radical Approach to Woodshedding (RAW) project is to increase access to the fundamental skill of woodshedding within the international barbershop music community by providing high-quality resources for successful practice. We call our method “radical” because we feel it is a departure from the traditional approaches to woodshedding, in that we strive to blend a broad understanding of American barbershop music history with an inclusive beginner’s aural pedagogy. After all, aural vocal harmony is older than barbershop itself, and ought to be accessible to nearly everyone.

The collaborators behind RAW aim to make woodshedding a cornerstone of barbershop education. This project is the collective effort of a growing number of barbershoppers: performers, arrangers, educators, directors, learning track creators, theorists, and historians alike. We are united in the belief that woodshedding is both an accessible skill and a missing pillar in the culture around barbershop harmony.


Contributors to the RAW project are making a sustained effort to:

  1. Better recognize the early African-American roots of barbershop harmony’s development, and the deliberate exclusion of improvised music made by Black musicians across the 19th and 20th centuries from the commonly-told barbershop history,
  2. Encourage enjoyable woodshedding experiences within our local, regional, and international barbershop communities,
  3. Create and distribute FREE high-quality resources for woodshedding practice, and
  4. Revitalize and innovate upon the barbershop aural folk tradition.

Call to Action

This project relies on the volunteer time, talent, and treasures of singers like you. If you believe you have a skillset that would be useful, we would love for you to let us know. If you can help us, please contact us through the Google Form below.