THE BRISTOL CHORALE
Of Massachusetts
The Bristol Chorale and Chamber Orchestra of Massachusetts, directed by Maestro Earl Raney, present a Christmas Concert titled "The Very Best Time Of Year." We invite the community to join us in celebrating songs of the season with family and friends on Sunday, December 8, 2024 at the Immanuel Lutheran Church, 647 North Main Street, Attleboro, MA.
"The Very Best Time Of Year"
MEET THE BOARD
Earl Raney
Director
Music Director and Conductor Earl Raney has given over 2500 performances in 46 states, with appearances at venues including the Kennedy Center, Weill Recital Hall, and Carnegie Hall. Internationally, he has concertized in Austria, Bermuda, Canada, England, France, Germany, Italy, Jamaica, Poland, Scotland, Switzerland, US Virgin Islands, and the Far East. Balancing a dual career as conductor and trumpeter, he is well known as the Artistic Director and Solo Trumpeter of the award-winning Epic Brass Quintet. In addition to his chamber music career, Earl has performed with several New England area orchestras and as principal trumpet of the Taipei Festival Orchestra in Taiwan, R.O.C. Deeply committed to music education, Raney has served as Director of the Thayer Performing Arts Center and Community Music School in South Lancaster, MA and as faculty member at New England Conservatory's Preparatory School. He is an Professor of Music in Performance at Wheaton College where he serves as conductor of the Southeastern Massachusetts Wind Symphony and currently is director of the Grace Chapel Choir & Orchestra in Lexington, MA. Most recently, Earl conducted the Boston University Symphony Orchestra and the Icelandic National Festival Band in Reykjanesbaer. Raney is a roster artist for the Massachusetts Cultural Council and New England Foundation for the Arts.
Stephen J. Fallon
Founder
Stephen J. Fallon, originally, a co-founder of The Williams Chorale, and now founder of The Bristol Chorale, is an energetic man of action who saw a need for such a choral organization. He, along with his good friend Peter J. Williams, organized the initial meeting and The Williams Chorale was born. Now, with the closing of The Williams Choral, Stephen has founded The Bristol Chorale, under the same precedence.
Liisa Niemi
President
Liisa Niemi has sung with the chorale for more than 10 years and has served a number of leadership positions. She enjoys the singing, performing and socializing with the chorale as a welcome break from her demanding job in high tech. In addition to singing, Liisa is an accomplished artist, ballroom dancer and musician. She and her husband live in Mansfield, MA.
Ed Clavette
Secretary
Edmund Clavette has been a member of The Williams Chorale since September 2014. He has been a musician since 6th grade, playing the trumpet through High School and into adult education community band for a while. Around 1983 he and his wife, June, joined the choir in the First Congregational Church UCC of North Attleborough (Oldtown Church) and around 2002 June joined the Williams Chorale. She was the person who eventually led Ed to audition and join the chorale. Ed sings in the bass section and truly enjoys the fellowship and guidance to explore new music. Ed is a life long resident of North Attleboro.
Liz Taylor
Treasurer
Liz has been singing with the group since 2019 by way of her father Stephen who also sings in the chorale. When Liz isn’t singing or working, she enjoys spending her time with her husband and two young sons.
Joe Landry
Librarian
Joe became a member of the Bristol Chorale of MA in September of 2023.
Beginning this year, he took on the duties of Librarian when Sandy Mann
retired from the position.
Joe has been singing in choirs and choruses for over forty years. Some of the choruses that he has sung with include the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, Masterworks Chorale, Williams Chorale and Providence Singers. In addition to being a current member of the Bristol Chorale of MA, he is also a current member of the Rhode Island Civic Chorale & amp; Orchestra in Providence, the New World Chorale in Wellesley, the St. Mary Parish Choir in Franklin and the Transfiguration of The Lord Parish Choir in North Attleboro. He has performed in such places as Symphony Hall in Boston, Tanglewood and Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium in Providence. Recently, he sang at Carnegie Hall in New York with John Rutter conducting his Requiem, Magnificat and Te Deum. He has sung with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops Orchestra, the RI Philharmonic Orchestra, the Claflin Hill Symphony Orchestra and others. He has sung under the direction of such notable conductors as Sir Roger Norrington, Sir Colin Davis, Sir Andrew Davis, John Williams and Keith Lockhart to name just a few. And he is especially proud to be able to sing under the direction of Earl Raney!
Joe looks forward to performing his duties as the Librarian as well as singing with the chorale for many years to come.
Rebecca Smith
Web Master
Rebecca started singing with the Bristol Chorale, and took over as the Chorale’s Web Master, in 2023. She has an associate's degree in Animation and Motion Graphics and a certificate in Graphic Design, and Web Design. In her free time she enjoys gardening, baking, and crafting.