As a child in the mid-1960s, Donna Tyree remembers her mother and the enclave of women singing a cappella barbershop tunes in her parents’ house.

The women would bring their kids, park them in a room off to the side, and then sing their hearts out, checking in on the kids during smoke breaks.

Those ladies were the first members of the Colorado Springs Chorus, now known as Velvet Hills Chorus, that was started by Tyree’s mom and dad, Pat and Pete Tyree, the latter of which was a champion barbershop singer in the 1950s.

“I grew up with it and remember being dragged to rehearsals and shows,” Donna said. “I remember a lot going on in within our house. A lot of people coming over. Parties where people picked up different parts, what they call the old polecat songs — what you think of as barb

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