** CORRECTION: a previous version of this post went out listing the Tenor singers instead of the Bass and Baritone singers. The Communications team is very sorry for the error and confusion.
by Richard Gray
Over the past month, we have been featuring brief bios of the wonderful volunteer singers in our talented choir so you can get to know them better. Today, for our final post in the series, we’d like to introduce you to our Bass and Baritone section.
In a choir, the voices are divided into sections based on vocal range (how high or low someone sings). Bass and Baritones are the lowest voice parts and provide the foundation of the harmony.
For each of the four sections, music can often be split 1st or 2nd. The 1st part usually sings the higher and maybe more prominent line, while the 2nd part sings notes slightly lower that support the harmony. This creates a more rich and full sound.
Ken Cordell sings first bass in our choir and has been with us for a year. He was born and raised in Michigan but lived the past 32 years in Louisville KY, before moving to Minnesota last summer. He lives with his partner, Dustin, and their two K-9 daughters Stella & Joy. He works as an office manager for a group of immigration attorneys. He’s also a licensed realtor in Kentucky & Indiana and working to obtain his Minnesota license. He’s a potter and ceramics artist. Ken and Dustin love exploring new restaurants, cooking, gardening, and a fire in the firepit. Guilty pleasures include video games, mostly because Ken stays up way too late to finish them.
Ed Stieve sings first bass. He is married to Otto, who is his muse for music and life in general. He hails from southwest Michigan. Although he’s retired, he still works here and there to stay busy. His guilty pleasures include coffee ice cream and he is passionate about cooking, reading, music, and daily walks.
Mark Maronde sings second bass and has been a member of St, John’s for a year THIS time. In a previous life he belonged to St. John’s for 12 years where both of his children were part of the children’s programming. He’s originally from Minneapolis and is a retired software program manager. He built his own website to showcase his compositions and arrangements, and he still composes once and a while. Whiskey is his guilty pleasure.
This is Tim Olsen’s third year singing second bass in our choir. His partner is Ryan Musgrove. They have three dogs: George, Gracie, and Oliver. He is an underwriter at Securian Financial. Tim loves spending his spare time on gardening, home improvement, art fairs, biking, and trips to the North Shore. He is originally from St. Paul, and his guilty pleasures are centered around binge watching favorite tv shows like Game of Thrones or The Gilded Age.
This is Dan Handschy’s second year of singing second bass in the choir. He is married, with two grown daughters who are both married and live in the Twin Cities. He is a retired Episcopal priest. He enjoys bike riding and tries to ride at least three times a week. Originally from Arvada, Colorado, his guilty pleasures include ice cream.
Paul Strasen is a new member to the baritone section. He joined in November. He and his wife Judy just moved to Minneapolis in May of ‘25 to be closer to their daughter Sarah and her family, which includes their two grandchildren. He lives in the Tanglewood neighborhood in Minneapolis in a 100-year-old house. He’s retired from his law practice; his last position was general counsel of a software technology company called Housecell Pro. Nowadays you can find Paul taking humanities classes at the University of Chicago online and French at Allianz Française. He loves collecting books. As he’s originally from Chicago, he’s an avid Cubs fan.