The Keene Chorale was founded in the Spring 1979 by a handful of choristers and has now grown to an eighty-voice choir. We are a community chorus composed of singers from many walks of life from Keene and area towns. The range and quality of sound have become broader and more confident with each passing season. Our concerts are the result of a love of singing and hard work. Seven of our founding members are still active members and sing with the Chorale today.

For the past twenty-nine years, the Keene Chorale has been delighting its audiences by performing the best of choral music for the enjoyment of those who sing and those who listen. The Chorale's first program was a great indication of what was to come: Benjamin Britten's contemporary setting of Rejoice in the Lamb, an eloquently religious poem by eighteenth-century poet, Christopher Smart, and Mozart's Vesperae Solemnes de Confessore -- two moving and memorable selections seldom heard in Keene.

Programs have ranged from Palestrina to Poulenc and Schubert to Stravinsky with stops along the way to visit Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Copland, and MacDowell. In December 1999, the Chorale had the opportunity to record some wonderful music as part of the documentary Here Am I, Send Me: The Journey of Jonathan Daniels, which has aired on the Odyssey channel and PBS. The Chorale performed Another Night at the Opera in April 2001 featuring excerpts from Carmen and selections by Wagner, Donizetti, and Borodin. This concert was performed with full orchestra and mezzo-soprano and tenor soloists.

In April 1999, the Keene Chorale performed Handel's Messiah in its entirety as part of its 20^th Anniversary Celebration. The April 2002 concert featured a tribute to Giuseppe Verdi which included selections from Nabucco, Il trovatore and Aida, as well as The Testament of Freedom by Randall Thompson.

On February 20, 2002, The Chorale, along with the Greater Keene Pops Choir and Chamber Singers of Keene, performed a PATRIOTIC Concert. Over $3,000 was raised with the money being donated to the Keene Fire Department to assist in purchasing a special air bag rescue system. The three singing groups performed some great American numbers including The National Anthem and The Battle Hymn of the Republic.

In April 2004, the Keene Chorale celebrated its 25^th Anniversary with an outstanding performance of Felix Mendelssohn's Elijah. United in singing this piece were more than 80 members, including several new members as well as those who have performed with the Chorale for 5, 10, 15, 20 and, yes, 25 years of singing. This concert marked the 20^th anniversary of conducting the Chorale by Charles Heffernan. At the conclusion of the performance, Charles laid down his baton so that he could enjoy more time with his family and spend more time with composing choral music. The Chorale has begun a new era with Jane Hanson wielding the baton.

	Jane Hanson, on her third year as the director of the Keene Chorale, hails from Western Massachusetts. Ms. Hanson received a Bachelors degree in Voice from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from the Cincinnati College - Conservatory of Music. From 1999 to 2001, she served on the faculty of the Department of Music and Dance at UMass, Amherst. In 2001, she founded The Proficient Musician, a professional development company that provides exceptional skill-based learning opportunities to music educators and performers. In addition to her flourishing voice studios at the Northampton Community Music Center and the Williston Northampton School, Ms. Hanson also serves as music director of  The Pioneer Arts Center of Easthampton (P.A.C.E.).  Recent projects include serving as music director and conductor for a production of a opera The Captivation of Eunice Williams at The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. and as chorus master and assistant conductor for the Commonwealth Opera (of Western Massachusetts) production of La Boheme. Ms. Hanson studied voice with the world-renowned (late) Dr. Oren Brown for over a decade, and has been a featured mezzo-soprano soloist with the Commonwealth Opera, The Keene Chorale,  The Tuesday Morning Music Club of Springfield, the Cincinnati College - Conservatory International Composition and Grandin Festivals, the Chamber Music Series at  Wistariahurst Museum and through her own concert series.  Ms. Hanson made her premiere with the Keene Chorale December 2004, and she hopes to continue the tradition of musical excellence established by Charles, and to provide an exceptional choral music experience to members of the Keene community.
Picture coming soon!	Vladimir Odinokikh began playing the piano at the age of four and received his training at some of Russia's finest music institutes, including the Tchaikovsky Conservatory and Gnessin Institute of Moscow. Competitions and festivals included the First Rachmaninoff International Piano Competition, the Russia National Competition (Prize), Chamber Music Competition of Soviet Compozers (First Prize), International Ponce-Scriabin Festival, First Bach Festival in Peru, and the Isadora Duncan Festival in England. His reputation as a soloist and chamber musician developed as he performed with leading Soviet artists and presitgious organizations such as the Rosconcert, and the Moscow Philharmonic. Vladimir has performed in the concert halls of Europe, South America, and the United States and with symphony orchestras in Russia and Mexico. He has also recorded extensively for radio and television in the USSR, Mexico, and the United States. He has received international acclaim and numerous awards for both his solo and collaborative performances, and his interpretation of works by world-famous composer Alfred Schnittke was greatly admiried by the composer. Vladimir has taught at the Ippolitov-Ivanov College of Music in Moscow, was professor at the Alicia Urreta Center for the Arts in Mexico City, and professor and Artist-in-Residence at the Conservatorio de las Rosas, in Moreolios, Mexico, the Keene Institute of Music and Related Arts, and the Brattleboro Music Center. In addition to maintaining a private piano studio, he is the Organist/Accompanist at the Keene Unitarian Universalist Church.