False teeth? In 2023, RSW's Lost & Found Office collected 3,600 items at the Fort Myers airport

Fort Myers, Tampa quartet Duly Noted wins at U.K. barbershop singing competition

Charles Runnells
The News-Press
Duly Noted won first place July 27 at Sweet Adelines International’s 2019 Rising Star Quartet Contest. The barbershop quartet's members live in Fort Myers and the Tampa area.

A barbershop quartet with Fort Myers ties has harmonized its way to the top of an international singing competition in England.

Duly Noted took first place July 27 at the 2019 Rising Star Quartet Contest, a competition held by singing organization Sweet Adelines International. They beat seven other quartets from the United States and the United Kingdom at the Manchester event, including several from Florida.

“We were completely shocked!” said lead singer Madison Slamka of Fort Myers. “The other competitors were absolutely amazing, so no one could have guessed the winners.

"This was an incredible moment for all four of us, and we will never forget it!”

The other singers in Duly Noted live in the Tampa area, but three members also perform with award-winning Fort Myers barbershop chorus Spirit of the Gulf.

The Rising Star Quartet Contest features all-female quartets with members ages 25 and younger. The competition was established in 1999 to recognize young female quartets and advance the musical art form of barbershop singing. 

More: Theater season in Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Naples: Your guide to 'Hamilton' and more in 2019-20

More: Live music in SWFL: Punta Gorda Woodstock, Artimus Pyle and more

Duly Noted performed two numbers in four-part barbershop harmony: “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and a medley of “I Can’t Give You Anything but Love” and “L-O-V-E”. They won $2,000 and plan to use the money to pay for travel expenses, Slamka says.

The quartet's members are lead singer Slamka, 21; tenor Raegan Stauffer, 19; baritone Kaley Anna Raabe, 20; and bass Emily Hitt, 24.  Learn more about Duly Noted at facebook.com/Duly-Noted-1279896405485222 or on Instagram @duly_noted4.

Connect with this reporter: Charles Runnells (Facebook), @charlesrunnells (Twitter), @crunnells1 (Instagram)