At the heart of Rainier Chorale are the dedicated artists who guide, support, and inspire our singers. Meet the principals whose leadership and musicianship help bring our music to life.
Ron Bayer, Artistic Director
Dr. Stephen Olsen, Principal Accompanist
Called “Superb” by the Boston Globe, pianist and educator Dr. Stephen Olsen commands a wide range of repertoire, from the standard classical repertoire to avant garde music of our time.
Dr. Olsen has performed concerts with world class musicians in some of the most prestigious concert halls in America, including Carnegie Hall and Bruno Walter Auditorium in Lincoln Center, and Paine Hall and Jordan Hall in Boston. Dr. Olsen has performed numerous solo recitals throughout America, including at Seattle University, Renee Weiler Concert Hall in New York City, and Harvard University’s Paine Hall. Dr. Olsen has also appeared as soloist with orchestra in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (Beethoven 4th piano concerto) and with the Western Washington University Orchestra (Bartok 3rd piano concerto). As a collaborative pianist he has performed with soprano Wonjung Kim, flutist Sooyun Kim, clarinetist Michael Norsworthy, and violinist Eiko Kano.
As a performer of contemporary music, Dr. Olsen has collaborated with some of the most esteemed composers of our time, including Helmut Lachenmann, John Luther Adams, Jonathan Harvey, Frederick Rzewski and Michael Finnissy (who wrote and dedicated a new piano piece to him). Dr. Olsen has appeared with dozens of new music ensembles across America, including regular performances with the Fromm Foundation Players at Harvard University, the Calitthumpian Consort, and The Seattle Modern Orchestra.
Dr. Olsen holds a Masters in piano performance and Graduate Diploma in Piano Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music, and a Doctorate of Musical Arts in piano performance from Stony Brook University in New York. While studying at Stony Brook University, Dr. Olsen had the great honor of receiving regular coachings from the Emerson Quartet. He studied piano with Stephen Drury, German Diez, Jeffrey Gilliam, Christina Dahl, and Margaret Brink.
Dr. Olsen is also a highly regarded teacher and adjudicator. He has given master classes in the US (including at Seattle University, New England Conservatory, and Stony Brook University), and in Asia (including in Bangkok, and Ho Chi Minh City, and at universities in Xiamen, China and Hanoi, Vietnam). For many years Dr. Olsen was on the piano faculty of the historic Greenwich House Music School in New York City. He also served for 9 years as asistant to director Jerome Rose at the International Keyboard Institute and Festival in New York City, which brings together piano students and teachers from all over the world every summer. He has served as a judge in piano competitions in America, Singapore, China, Taiwan and Vietnam.
James Goodman, Organist
James Goodman is a graduate of Pacific Lutheran University where he received a Bachelor of Music degree. He continued extensive studies in organ performance and accompaniment at Pacific Lutheran University under the direction of Dr. Calvin Knapp. Jim pursued further graduate studies in keyboard performance at the University of Colorado. He holds a teaching certificate from the University of Washington and has taught in Seattle Public Schools and in Alaska. Jim has served as organist for various churches in the greater Seattle-Tacoma area. Jim has been an accompanist with the Rainier Chorale since 1993. Jim devotes much of his time to creating original compositions and when not actively engaged in music, he and his wife spend weekends at their beach home at Ocean Shores.