A glee club is a musical group, historically of men but also of just women or mixed voices, which traditionally specializes in the singing of short songs—glees—by trios or quartets. The first named Glee Club was founded in London, England, in 1787. Glee clubs were very popular in the UK from then until the mid 1850s but by from the 1850s onwards they were gradually superseded by choral societies.

By the mid-20th century, proper glee clubs were no longer common. However the term remained (and remains) in use, primarily for choirs found in North American and Japanese colleges and universities despite the fact that most American glee clubs are choruses in the standard sense and no longer perform glees. Glee in this context does not refer to the mood of the music or of its singers, but to a specific form of English part song popular between 1650 and 1900, the glee.

The oldest glee club in the United States is the Harvard Glee Club, founded in 1858..

Similar to 0 things you like: