Toronto Northern Lights

The Toronto Northern Lights (TNL) is a Toronto, Ontario-based men's chorus of about 75 singers drawn from the Ontario District of the Barbershop Harmony Society. They won the title of Barbershop Harmony Society International Chorus Champions in July 2013 by a margin of two points over the two-time champion Westminster Chorus.[1] The chorus had also earned the silver medal at five consecutive International Chorus Competitions (2001 to 2005), as well as bronze medals in 2000, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011.

With 34 men on stage in Kansas City in 2000, they were recognized as the smallest chorus to ever receive a medal at the International competition and have been considered instrumental in shifting the perception that a smaller chorus could not compete at the highest levels within the singing society.

TNL's expansive repertoire ranges from Barbershop to Broadway, Vocal Jazz to Doo-Wop, and from Gershwin to the Beatles.

TNL has been guest performers in Dortmund, Germany in March 2006 at the BinG! (Barbershop in Germany) convention and at the BABS (British Association of Barbershop Singers) convention in Cheltenham, England in May 2008. In August 2010, they participated in the Vocal International Music Festival in Venray, Holland hosted by the Venray Mannenkorps as part of their 100th anniversary. In September 2012 the group traveled to Beijing, China and performed in the Forbidden City Concert Hall and on the Great Wall of China. In the Spring of 2015 the chorus traveled to Derby, England, Landau, Germany, and finally Stockholm and Nykoping, Sweden, as guests on various shows and the special guest at the Society of Nordic Barbershop Singers convention in Sweden.[2]

Although Toronto is their home base, the chorus draws members from a large area, up to 200 miles, for rehearsals. Members hail from as far as Buffalo, to Ottawa, to Detroit.

The chorus attracts members from a wide range of ages, backgrounds and employment; from twenty-year-old university students, to business professionals, to men in retirement.

The chorus had released five CDs as of 2012.

The Toronto Northern Lights CD titled The Sky's The Limit was recorded at Metalworks Studios in Mississauga, Ontario.

Discography
  • The Best of Disney (2023)
       Tracks
  • "When You Wish Upon A Star"
  • "Gaston"
  • "Little Toot"
  • "Under the Sea"
  • "When I See An Elephant Fly"
  • "Pecos Bill"
  • "You've Got a Friend in Me"
  • "Minnie's Yoo-Hoo"
  • "Steamboat Bill"
  • "Johnny Fedora and Alice Blue Bonnet"
  • "Friend Like Me"
  • "Winnie the Pooh"
  • "Heigh-Ho"
  • "Heffalumps & Woozles"
  • "Casey Jr."
  • "In Summer"
  • "Woody's Roundup"
  • "Alice in Wonderland"
  • "Try a Little Something New"
  • "Paul Bunyan"
  • "Frozen Heart"
  • "Circle of Life" (with Power Play)
  • "Blue Shadows on the Trail"
  • Dare to Dream (2011)
       Tracks
  • "Come On, Get Happy"
  • "Cross the Mason-Dixon Line"
  • "I'll Get By"
  • "Bad Day"
  • "Maria"
  • "Everything's Coming Up Roses"
  • "When You Wish Upon A Star"
  • "Alexander's Ragtime Band"
  • "Brahms' Lullabye"
  • "Goodbye World, Goodbye"
  • "Over The Rainbow"
  • "Bohemian Rhapsody"
  • Songs for the Season (2007)
       Tracks
  • "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"
  • "Merry Christmas, Darling"
  • "Huron Carol"
  • "Come & See What's Hap'nin' in the Barn"
  • "What Sweeter Music"
  • "Happy Holiday / Holiday Season Medley"
  • "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"
  • "Caroling, Caroling"
  • "Low How a Rose E'er Blooming"
  • "You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch"
  • "Silent Night"
  • "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm"
  • "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
  • The Sky's the Limit! (2005)
       Tracks
  • "Alabamy Bound"
  • "Louise"
  • "The Prayer" (John Mallett soloist)
  • "Tonight"
  • "It's Impossible"
  • "King of Spain"
  • "Right from the Start"
  • "Polka Dots and Moonbeams"
  • "Who Will Buy"
  • "All the World Will Be Jealous of Me"
  • "Yes Sir, That's My Baby"
  • "Circle of Life" (with Power Play)
  • Brother Can You Spare a Dime? (2002)
       Tracks
  • "Sentimental Gentleman from Georgia"
  • "In the Still of the Night" (Kern Lewin soloist)
  • "She's Like the Swallow"
  • "This Little Light of Mine"
  • "Something"
  • "Embraceable You" (solo: Moya Horan)
  • "It Had To Be You"
  • "Lover Come Back"
  • "Anthems" / "Ode to Joy" (featured quartet: Acoustix)
  • "Daddy Sang Bass"
  • "Guys and Dolls Medley" (various soloists)
  • "Fugue for Tinhorns"
  • "Luck Be a Lady"
  • "Adelaide's Lament"
  • "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat"
  • "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out"
  • "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?"
  • Do You Hear the People Sing? (2000)
       Tracks
  • "Orange Coloured Sky"
  • "Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans"
  • "Lonesome That's All"
  • "The Longest Time"
  • "Their Hearts Were Full of Spring"
  • "Don't Break The Heart That Loves You"
  • "When You and I Were Young Maggie"
  • "South Rampart Street Parade"
  • "When Day Is Done"
  • Les Misérables Montage
"Look Down"
"At The End of The Day"
"I Dreamed a Dream"
"Castle On a Cloud"
"Master of the House"
"On My Own"
"Damn Their Warnings"
"Drink With Me"
"Bring Him Home"
"Empty Chairs at Empty Tables"
"Do You Hear the People Sing"

Awards and recognition
Year Award Contest Location and Date
1998 District Champions Ontario District Chorus Competition Toronto, Ontario
October 24, 1998
2000 Winner CBC / Radio-Canada National Radio Competition for Amateur Choirs (Cultural Traditions Category)  
2000 5th place bronze medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Kansas City, Missouri
July 8, 2000
2001 2nd place silver medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Nashville, Tennessee
July 7, 2001
2002 2nd place silver medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Portland, Oregon
July 6, 2002
2003 2nd place silver medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Montreal, Quebec
July 5, 2003
2004 2nd place silver medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Louisville, Kentucky
July 3, 2004
2005 2nd place silver medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Salt Lake City, Utah
July 9, 2005
2006 3rd place bronze medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Indianapolis, Indiana
July 7, 2006
2007 4th place bronze medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Denver, Colorado
July 6, 2007
2009 5th place bronze medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Anaheim, California
July 3, 2009
2010 3rd place bronze medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
July 8, 2010
2011 3rd place bronze medalists (tied) Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Kansas City, Missouri
July 6, 2011
2013 1st place gold medalists[3] Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Toronto, Ontario, Canada
July 5, 2013
2016 4th place bronze medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Nashville, Tennessee
July 8, 2016
2017 4th place bronze medalists Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Las Vegas, Nevada
July 7, 2017
2019 5th place bronze medalists[4] Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition Salt Lake City, Utah
July 5, 2019

References
  1. Daubs, Katie (July 5, 2013). "Toronto's barbershop a cut above in singing showdown". The Toronto Star. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  2. "A Cappella till Max!". Facebook. SNOBS. February 11, 2015. Archived from the original on 2022-02-26. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
  3. "Our champions from 1939 to today". Barbershop Harmony Society. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  4. "Official Scoring Summary — Chorus Finals: BHS 2019 International Convention: Salt Lake City, Utah" (PDF). Barbershop Harmony Society. July 5, 2019. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
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