Congratulations to Durham's own Fleur de Lisa, a women's a capella group, for winning the Original Song competition at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Finals of the Harmony Sweepstakes National Competition. The winning song, "Rainy Season" was written by Fleur de Lisa member Sarah Kenan Shunk, based on a haiku by Roberta Beary. 

In a press release, one of the judge's praised the group's unique style. "Often you know where a group is going from the first note, and there are few surprises," judge Jonathon Minkoff, executive producer of the New York a capella festival SingStrong, said in the release. "I never knew where Fleur de Lisa songs were going. They kept me listening throughout. It was great to hear something fresh and original."

That originality is a hallmark of Fleur de Lisa, the only a cappella group in the area that writes and performs all original songs. The music blends choral, jazz, folk, blues, and art songs. Three of the four singers - Sylvia Freeman, Andie Piddington and Shunk - live in Durham, joined by Deb Stewart of Mebane.

Founded in 2002, the group has strong Durham ties. Sarah's father, Patrick, co-founded the Durham Savoyards, and sang with the National Opera Company and Choral Society of Durham.

Fleur de Lisa just released its second CD, The Unworn Necklace, which features songs written to a variety of poetic forms, including Japanese Death Poems, haiku by Basho and Issa, a relationship suite written to a series of haiku by Roberta Beary, and longer poems written by Jaki Shelton Green, former NC Poet Laureate Kathryn Stripling Byers and Wendell Berry. You can hear samples here.

Again, congrats to Fleur de Lisa on this fantastic honor. Have a feeling we'll be hearing more from them in the future.