If There's Anybody Here (from Out Of Town) (arr. David Briner): SSAATTBB Choral Octavo

Warmth and nostalgia blend with surprising harmonic richness. The arrangement honors barbershop's close-voiced, ringing chord quality while allowing the emotional core of the original song to emerge through cleaner, more contemporary choral scoring than traditional quartet arrangements.

Choirs comfortable with eight-part writing and interested in exploring American popular song repertoire through a barbershop lens. This works equally well for secular concert choirs, community choruses with adult singers, and college ensembles seeking stylistically authentic popular music.

• Balance the lead line (second tenor) prominently through the chorus sections; this is your melody and should sing through even when surrounded by rich harmony.
• Treat the barbershop seventh chords as stable landing points rather than tensions that need resolution. Let them ring and resonate before moving to the next harmonic area.
• Lock the basses and baritones together first as your harmonic foundation, then layer the upper voices. A solid bottom four voices makes the full octave choir blend seamlessly.
• Mark phrase endings with slight breath space rather than full stops; this keeps the narrative momentum of the lyric alive across longer sections.

Pair this with other American popular standards in a concert celebrating mid-century songwriting, or use it as a standalone feature that showcases your choir's ability to handle eight-part voicing with style. The accessible length and engaging text make it viable as a show closer or as part of a lighter pops program.

• Reading eight-part choral scores with independent lines across all voices
• Recognizing and executing barbershop harmony conventions (close-voiced seventh chords, specific harmonic cadences)
• Balancing individual line integrity with ensemble blend in dense texture
• Sustaining phrase direction across longer melodic lines in upper and middle voices
• Interpreting lyrics with period-appropriate stylistic awareness