We are the Marietta Georgia Chapter in the Dixie District of SPEBSQSA, Inc. The name comes from a famous local landmark around here...but that's another story.

The Big Chicken Chorus (pictures and contest results) has entertained audiences throughout the southeast and has performed in San Francisco, Louisville, Miami, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Salt Lake City, Calgary (Canada), Indianapolis, Atlanta, Anaheim, Kansas City and Nashville.  The Chorus has also performed in Harrogate, England, as the guest chorus for the British Association's national convention (May, 1998).

The chapter and chorus were formed in 1986 and have adopted an enthusiastic program that includes music education, participation in Society competitions, youth outreach, and service to community. In addition, the chorus takes great pleasure in presenting two Spring Shows and three Christmas Shows.

We were the Dixie District Champions for 11 consecutive years (from 1989 to 1999). In 1999, the District rules were modified in order to give other excellent Dixie choruses the chance to claim the "Best Chorus in the District" prize. We have competed in every SPEBSQSA International Chorus Competition since 1990, and have ranked as high as #3 internationally (1999).

The BIG CHICKEN CHORUS (BCC) of Marietta, GA, a chapter within SPEBSQSA (Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America), received its charter to operate on April 23, 1986. Several members of the Atlanta Peachtree Chapter saw the need for barbershopping to expand in the Atlanta metro area and proposed formation of a new chapter(s) in an outlying area of the city. The Peachtree Chorus enjoyed several years of international competition, earning a Fourth (4th) Place Medallist ranking in 1969, but it was evident that the chapter had reached its competitive goals, so this small group of Society members started the process of founding a chapter in northeast Atlanta.

As a charter member of the growing Stone Mountain Chapter for four years, Bill Schreiner felt it was time for further expansion. He had several conversations with ex-members of other chapters, who agreed that the time was right for a new chapter on the northwest side of Atlanta. A meeting was held at the Holiday Inn on I-285 and Powers Ferry Road on July 12, 1985. It was attended by a steering committee of four Society members. They agreed to support further growth in the Atlanta area. The first few meetings were held in the home of Bob McDaniel and additional dedicated singers began attending the meetings over the next few months. The license to start building the chapter was signed, and nine months later the charter was issued.

Prior to receiving a license to operate and at the suggestion of its founder, Bill Schreiner, the chorus adopted its name after the well- known 80-foot tall "Big Chicken" (a restaurant and very popular landmark in Marietta, at the crossroads of US Highway 41 and Roswell Road). Bill asked his son, a graphic arts student at the University of Georgia, if he might have any ideas about what the chapter logo should look like. In one hour, Billy presented his dad (and the chapter) with the now-famous BCC logo: the Big Chicken with barberpole stripes.

It was evident that the chapter needed a spark. Its membership had leveled at a steady 20 or so, and although the members were having fun, they were looking forward to better growth and a charter from the Society. One evening, Thom Hine, who had directed choruses in the Michigan area, attended one of our weekly rehearsals and announced that he was in the process of relocating to the Atlanta area. He had already visited the other two chapters in the area. Thom was convinced that we were doing a lot of things right, but that we needed more members. Our current director, Dave Philo, agreed to step down as director and take another position. The chapter officers offered Thom the directorship, and promised him a chorus of 40 singers within one year.

The rest is history! The Stone Mountain Chapter sponsored us through the chartering process.

The first Society appearance of the Big Chicken Chorus was in the fall of 1986, at the Dixie District (AL, GA, MS, NC, SC & TN) Contest in Winston-Salem, NC. The performance labeled the BCC as a fun bunch of guys who were great entertainers. By the spring of 1987, the Chorus had grown to 37 members and to 48 members by the fall contest. The Chorus continued its steady growth, and finished fourth in the 1988 Dixie District Competition. That was to be the last District Competition that the BCC would finish any lower than 1st place.

A short time later, director Thom Hine informed the membership that his employer was transferring him to its headquarters in Chicago. The search for his replacement was a very short exercise, since Thom's son, Clay Hine, was our assistant director, and had already established himself as one of the finest young barbershop musicians and chorus directors within our 34,000 member Society.

Under Clay's superbly capable direction, the Big Chicken Chorus has grown to its present singing membership of over 120 dedicated men, and has won the right to represent the Dixie District in the annual SPEBSQSA International Chorus Contest for the past eleven (11) consecutive years, the longest- running winning record in the Society. From the Atlantic to the Pacific, the BCC has grown, improved and "scratched" its way up the contest ladder to attain the status of "medallist", and in 1999, we placed 3rd in International Competition (Anaheim, CA). Since our chapter chartering, seven (7) of the Dixie District's Quartet Champions and one (1) International Champion have been associated with the Marietta, GA Chapter.

Ever wonder what it would be like to be standing on the risers as the curtain is raised before a crowd of 13,000 people, who spontaneously applaud, whistle, stomp their feet and give you a "standing O" before you even sing one note? Just ask any member of the Big Chicken Chorus: they'll be happy to tell you just how it feels.

The Big Chicken Chorus has gained recognition from all corners of the Society, and from our most appreciative audiences at the Fabulous Fox Theatre, the Atlanta Civic Center, the Georgia Fine Arts Center, Symphony Hall, the Georgia Dome, the Georgia Pacific "Art in the Heart" series, the "Cobb County Jubilee Arts Alliance" series, the Robert Ferst Center at Georgia Tech, the Rialto Theatre, and all over the Southeast. The BCC has also performed for the Georgia Music Educators Association and for the IBM World Series Seminar in Atlanta.