Steve Tramack is a 41-year member of the Barbershop Harmony Society, who proves the adage that barbershopping runs in the blood. Great-grandfather Frank Barker started a chapter in 1946; his father, Dave, was a 40+ year member, and his son Joshua, wife Renee, and daughters Christina and Samantha are all BHS members, and involved in quartetting, chorus directing, judging, teaching and coaching.

Steve is actively involved in several facets of barbershopping, including:

• 10-time International chorus director
• 5-time International quartet competitor
• Certified Music judge (2010), and current BHS Musicality Category Specialist
• Over 300 commissioned arrangements, ranging from International champions (BHS, Harmony Inc, SAI) to chapter quartets and choruses
• Lead editor and contributor to the 4-volume “Arranging Barbershop” series, published by Hal Leonard and the Barbershop Harmony Society
• Active coach of male, female and mixed ensembles worldwide
• 19-year Harmony University faculty member and chair of the Arranging Track

During the day, Steve works for Hewlett Packard Enterprise as a Senior Director of Engineering.

Paul Wigley graduated from the University of Minnesota in Music Education and re-ceived his Master’s degree in Music Education from the University of Northern Iowa in1997.

Paul recently retired from teaching choral music, advanced placement music theory, and class guitar at Lakeville (MN) North High School. His Lakeville HS vocal jazz ensemble received numerous regional honors. Under the direction of Mr. Wigley, the ensemble received numerous regional honors. Under the direction of Mr. Wigley, the Lakeville North High School Chorale toured extensively in Europe, with tours including Wales, England, Italy, Austria, Spain, Germany, Czech Republic, and France. He previously taught for the Algona (IA) Community School district, which was the recipient of the Iowa Exemplary Music Program Award in November of 1998.

He has delivered lectures on vocal jazz, and barbershop harmony, to many colleges and choral directors’ associations throughout the United States.

Paul judged the International Barbershop Harmony Society quartet and chorus contests in 1991, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2008, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2023. He has also taught at Barbershop Harmony Society Directors Colleges in New York, Maryland, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Missouri, Washington and California, and served on the National Youth Outreach Committee.

Paul has been clinician for barbershop Youth in Harmony festivals in Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin, and he recently retired as the director of the Minneapolis Commodores, who qualified for the International barbershop chorus contest in 2007 and 2009.

Paul has been selected to the Hall of Fame in both the Central States and the Land O’ Lakes districts. He was Category Specialist in the Music category of the Barbershop Harmony Society judging system from 2013-2016.

His family includes his wife, Becky, who is a retired teacher from the Lakeville school district, and daughter, Sarah, who is currently an associate professor of voice, and Musical Theatre department head at the University of Illinois in Champaign/Urbana.

Mike Louque

Mike Louque has been a BHS member since 1987, and a certified judge since 2007 including multiple appointments to the Presentation and Performance boards of review.

As a quartet performer, Mike is a district champion with multiple appearances as an international semi-finalist, and he has also won international chorus gold and silver medals with the Alexandria Harmonizers. He is a co-founder and founding president of both Central Standard in Kansas City, and Fog City Singers in San Francisco and has been a primary coach for both groups in international medalist and top-10 appearances. He has since been an advisor to the launches of other groups that have quickly made appearances at BHS international competition.

In his “free” time, Mike produces music that has been played in clubs, festivals, and radio stations around the world.

Although certified in Performance, Mike is a generalist as a coach and is comfortable working with groups on a wide variety of skills in performance, musicianship, and singing. He has a particular passion for helping groups to be more entertaining by maximizing the impact of the story, music, and arrangement aspects of the songs they sing. He has judged BHS International multiple times and has taught in schools throughout the barbershop world including BHS Harmony University.

Mike is traveling to SING! ’25 with Bob, his husband of 32 years. They live in Kansas City, but try to see the rest of the world as often as possible.

Stef Schmidt (she/her)

Stef is a certified BinG! Coach and the first European BHS Performance Judge. She is a quartet singer and chorus director.

Outside of barbershop, she has acted and directed theater groups, as well as danced and choreographed jazz dance. Stef has a deep passion for all aspects of human communication and brings to her coaching sessions a full tool box of natural communication techniques, focusing on how ensembles can apply them for a more engaging performance. Being very left-brained (the risk of being a mathematician, a nerd and German), Stef loves working with singers who are NOT natural performers, helping them to find ways to bring the song to life authentically – without feeling weird. The most compelling performances are those where the performers have an important message to share.

Stef’s goal is to help performers uncover their own important message in their song so that they can bring their most authentic self to their performance.

Norbert Hammes

After 15 years singing in the choral world Norbert discovered Barbershop music in 1987. He was a founding member of the First Cologne Barbershop Choir, EKBC.

Out of numerous quartet initiatives he was fortunate to earn two gold medals within the BinG! quartet contest with Viertakt (1993) and TONIKUM (2014).

In 2005 he started conducting and since 2010 he directs the women’s chorus Barbershop Blend from Geldern and since 2011, the Heavy Medal Chorus.

Norbert is a founding member of the German Barbershop Association BinG!Barbershop in Germany! and served as board member from 2002 – 2016 and 2023 – current.

In the recent past he was active in 2 programs:

1. BinG! Coaching Certification Program
2. BHS Candidate in the judging program for the singing category.

Since Summer 2023 he’s a certified BHS judge in the singing category.

Renee Tramack

Renee has been singing barbershop since 1982 as a member of Harmony, Inc. She has earned two international championships as a quartet bass and has directed her chorus to two international championships.

She first became a singing judge in Harmony, Inc in 2011 and was Category Specialist from 2017 through January 2024. She joined BHS in 2012 and certified in 2023 as a BHS Singing judge. She has had the honor to serve on Faculty of Harmony University and Harmony College Northeast.

She loves working with groups and individuals to help them find their most free and resonant voice and loves to help people discover the vocal emotion behind the lyrics of a song.