THE BRISTOL CHORALE
Of Massachusetts
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.
Jackie Solberg
Treasurer
Sandy Mann
Chorale Librarian
Sandy was a member of the Williams Chorale for 16 years with a slight break due to work commitments. She is now retired from her career with the Department of Correction and looking forward to singing with the Bristol Chorale of MA.
She lives in North Attleboro with her husband, Skip and has been singing since she was a child with her mother and father. During her school and church years, she was always in a choir singing Soprano. She is the embodiment of the saying, “When you sing, you pray twice.”
Sandy volunteered to be our Chorale Librarian, as she has a history of helping in that area with several of the choirs she has been with. Her passion is singing, not only because it’s fun, but also therapeutic to the soul.