The Gulf Coast Harmonizers (Cape Coral chapter) announced Jonathan Riviere as its director in early February 2018. Riviere is the newest and youngest chapter director in the Sunshine District and is among the youngest directors of the society's more than 700 chapters in the country.

The Florida State University alumnus has participated in the Barbershop Harmony Society and is a four-time gold medalist and current lead of the 2017 International Quartet Champions, Main Street. He is 22 years old.

"The Gulf Coast Harmonizers are on a path to improve the quality of our singing as well as gain new members," said Chuck Solomon, who handles the marketing and public relations for the Gulf Coast Harmonizers. "Our future for better singing and gaining membership is with Jonathan Riviere."

Riviere relocated to Fort Myers in July 2017 to begin a career with IT research firm Gartner Inc.

Solomon encouraged community members to come to rehearsal nights to see Riviere's new regime in action. Those sessions are Mondays at 6:30 p.m. According to his profile on the Harmonizers' website, "Rehearsals typically are a combination of hard work, a plethora of well-placed jokes, and the occasional 'Dilly Dilly!'" Solomon is a fellow "Barbershopper" for more than 20 years and began his Barbershop membership in Indiana. He is also a member of the Paradise Coastmen Barbershop Chorus located in Naples.

Riviere's priorities for 2018 focus on recruiting enthusiastic men looking for a stress-free environment to work on their personal singing. He urges interested singers to "Please stop by!"

The group is preparing for its annual show on March 24 and 25. The event takes place at Cypress Lake Presbyterian Church in Fort Myers. The well-known quartet Main Street is this year's guest. The group won the International Championship last July for quartets. The Harmonizers are holding three shows to benefit the Cypress Lake Presbyterian Church in relief of damages caused by Hurricane Irma. Additionally, the group is holding a golf tournament in April to benefit the Golisano Children’s Hospital speech therapy department.

The Gulf Coast Harmonizers were founded 26 years ago under the name of Cape Chorale and we were homed in Cape Coral. In 2016, the organization moved to be more centrally located into Fort Myers. They operate out of Cypress Lake Presbyterian Church.

"Our memorable moments come from every performance that we are engaged with," Solomon said. "Whether it is for Veterans Day, country clubs, churches, parks, birthday parties or when just a quartet is invited to sing. We love to interface with our audiences right after a performance. One of the most rewarding is when we send out our quartets do perform Singing Valentines for people who hire us."

Next weekend, the group will compete against many other Barbershop chorus’ in the Sunshine District. The highest scorers at the event, which takes place in Orlando, will be invited to an International competition next July.

"Our goal is to improve with our new director and our only expectation for next weekend is to sing as good a we can," Solomon said. "One year from now, we should be really on top of our game as far as contest judges view us."

For more information and events, visit gulfcoastharmonizers.org.