Bridge Town Sound - a Portland Men's Chorus
Our Leaders
Director John Burri has been involved with Barbershop music over half his life as a singer, quartet member, assistant director and front line director. He became the front line Director of Bridge Town Sound in 2002 and has been at the helm ever since.
This gifted and multi-talented Director is a delight to sing under as he coaxes out of us the best possible sound, the most ringing chords, and the most artistic music his Chorus is capable of rendering. He does it with grace, enthusiasm and humor, but also with a clear vision of what he wants and expects from the ensemble and from each member of it. His favorite saying enshrines his passion: “Perfection is the goal but excellence will be tolerated!”
John has attended a variety of Society courses for Directors and several District wide Master Director Workshops to hone his already considerable skills. He recently completed the rigorous requirements for certification as a Judge in the Music category and is in increasing demand as a Chorus and Quartet coach. John and his lovely and supportive wife Judy live in Vancouver Washington.
Assistant Director Darwin Scheel is also the lead section leader. He is a long-time director of the Columbia River Chorus and a multiple-time District quartet champion. He's also one of the best vocal instructors around and excels at teaching tags to groups of singers (and teaching how to teach tags).
Bass Section Leader Jeff Buckles has been the lead section leader for several years. When a need arose recently in the bass section, he offered to step into the gap.
Baritone Section Leader Paul Lewis is the longest-serving of our current section leaders.
Tenor Section Leader Tim McDonough is relatively new on the scene, but he does a great job with the tenor section.
Chorus Manager Todd Dignan takes care of the logistics of our performances.
Ken Galloway and Mike Ott are President and Executive VP of the Evergreen District.
The 2011 Chapter Board
President Doug Watson presides over the chapter Board.
Program VP Dick Handley moderates our chapter meetings. He drives from Bandon every week to sing with us.
Marketing VP Hayden Price handles the promotion for our public performances.
Music and Performance VP Harry Buerer oversees the musical administration of the chapter.
Chapter Development VP Jeff Welsh oversees the membership process.
Secretary Brian Levy is also our chorus librarian. He makes sure the records are in order, as well as handling music distribution.
Treasurer Steve Wright makes sure that the books balance and people get paid.
Uniform Coordinator Andre Marechal also handles makeup, quartet scheduling and a bunch of other things.