More than 90 men comprise the Great Northern Union Chorus, an internationally recognized, auditioned a cappella chorus based in the Twin Cities metro area.
The Great Northern Union Chorus (GNU) was founded in 1985 by four barbershop-quartet singers. They wanted to form chorus of highly motivated men who would use the precise harmonies of barbershop singing as the foundation of its repertoire.
Doug Carnes is the director of the Great Northern Union Chorus; he joined the group in April 2015. "Although we will never turn a cheek to our wonderful barbershop-crazed fans, the beautiful thing about GNU is that we are starting to reach new audiences that have never even heard barbershop harmony before," he says.
The GNU rehearses every Thursday from 7 to 10 p.m. at the United Methodist Church of Peace in Richfield, Minn.
Listen to Classical MPR on Friday, Sept. 4, 2015, at 2 p.m., to hear the Great Northern Union Chorus as it performs on the Carousel Park stage at the Minnesota State Fair. John Birge hosts.
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