The Men in BAC
In this column we spotlight the talents, contributions, and background of the men in the Manhattan Chapter of The Barbershop Harmony Society and the Big Apple Chorus. This month we feature one of the chorus's most stalwart contributors; a man who has deeply influenced the Big Apple's work ethic and its unique, colorful and passionate Esprit de Corps.
Dan George (Bass) is, in so many ways the quintessential Manhattan, BAC-man, only more so. That's why he's so extraordinary!
Like so many of the men in the Chorus, Dan was not formally trained as a singer. He did, however, sing and in his High School (Xavier High, N.Y.C.) and College (St. Peter's, N.J.) glee clubs. About the latter chorus-- in his typically modest and self deprecating way-- he says, " They took me in...not because I was so good…I was just so persistent they had to make me an honorable member".
After college he went onto the Navy where, in Officer's Candidate School in Newport RI, he belonged to a Naval choral group. He served in the armed forces for four years-- including a stint as a Junior Officer on the aircraft carrier Intrepid. Like that stalwart ship Dan eventually returned to New York's safe harbor to drop anchor and make Staten Island his home.
After the Navy, Dan's music hobbies took a backseat to life's other priorities, except for occasional neighborhood gatherings where he could be found with his guitar and Ukulele. Dan is first and foremost a family man. He married his childhood friend Mary Delmonico and joined the family business as a funeral director.
At one of those Staten Island gatherings, in the late 60's, a neighbor's friend recommended that Dan visit the King's Chorus-- the Brooklyn Chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society. That's when the Barbershop bug bit him , and bit him hard!
The musical style and the fraternity were irresistible to him and he joined the Brooklyn Chapter as a Baritone. From there his naturally enthusiastic personality and commitment to the chapter lead him to serve in nearly every official administrative position the chapter had, including, President.
His passion and his business leadership skills were then further put to use by the Society's regional administrative support team. In the early '70s he became a Mid-Atlantic District Area Counselor and ultimately served as the District Vice President. As District Vice President he had the distinction, among others, of overcoming the impossible obstacles of staging the District Prelims in Manhattan-- a daunting challenge and staggering accomplishment, to say the least!
As is often unavoidable, Life and Hobby conflicted and Dan took time off to tend to family and business. Four growing daughters kept Dan and Mary busy, but Dan never let his Society membership wain. By the early '80s his daughters had begun to grow into their own, allowing Dan's musical beckonings to again win him over.
In the winter of 1983 a harmonious rumbling could be heard from across the Hudson about the rebirth and reformation of a once august (but defunct) Manhattan Chapter. By early spring a new chapter was formally re-chartered by S.P.E.B.S.Q.S.A. and the Big Apple Chorus was born amid the garish lights of the Great White Way.
Later that spring Dan was prompted by those distant rumblings and his daughter Serena (a Sweet Adeline herself) to see the new Manhattan Chapter in one of their first shows. He recalls, " I was blown away by them. The singing was unlike anything I'd ever heard before". That summer the Chorus won the Division contest and --while on their way to becoming District Champs and International contenders-- Dan joined the B.A.C. (as a Bass) and has since remained an actively involved member.
Since joining the B.A.C. Dan has served our Chapter admirably as Music V.P., Membership V.P., and President twice! He currently is the Chorus' newsletter writer and the Chorus Manager. He is responsible for negotiating chorus performance contacts and shepherding the chorus through it's various annual performance appearances and competitions. Recently he also resumed his service to the District as a Chapter Counselor and as a Member-At-Large on the District's Board of Directors. All this from one of the most unassuming regular Joes to stand on our risers!
About the chorus he says, "I derive a tremendous amount of strength from the guys that sing around me and I feel I'm so much better a singer because of that. "
When he's not savoring Barbershop, Dan (whose musical tastes he says are eclectic) is currently hooked on the Blues. Tellingly, he sees the appeal of the Blues as being similar to Barbershop's, in its down to earth unpretentiousness.
Of all Dan's many talents and contributions to the chorus, however, it is most fitting that he is perhaps best recognized from our many shows as "the voice of the chorus." A gifted rhetorician, and our chief Master of Ceremonies, a passionate and quintessential team player he opines: "For me it's family first and I count Big Apple as my family… and" (he adds in his inimitably paternal and true New York style)"…if you cross the Big Apple you're going to have to deal with me."
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| Steve Adams | Dan George | Gabe Butler | Glynn Fluitt | Jim and Michael Steiner |
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| Scott Brannon | Gary Ford | Brad Verebay | Vinny Haynes | Frank Hendricks | The Patricias |
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| Bob Kovach | Joe Husstege | Gordon Harrison | Roger Payne | Dick White |
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| John Gouveia | Pat Kelly |