About Us
Singers of Summerville is a choral group based in beautiful Summerville, South Carolina, made up of thirty to fifty musicians from the greater Charleston area.
About our group
Singers of Summerville presents 2-3 performances per year and is available for community events or special performances. Our members, ages 18-80, are a diverse group – teachers, musicians, medical professionals, attorneys, business leaders, retirees, and students – all sharing a passion for choral singing.
We are a non-profit organization, funded in part by the South Carolina Arts Commission, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts. Our primary sources of financial support come from concert ticket sales, member dues, patrons, donors, sponsors, and grants.
Entrance into the choir is obtained through competitive audition. Our rehearsals are held on Monday evenings from 7:00pm to 9:00pm.
Emily Bohl,
Artictic Director &
Conductor, 2025
Emily Reeves Bohl is the Director of Choral Activities at Berkeley Center for the Arts at Goose Creek High School. Choirs under her direction have consistently received superior ratings in adjudicated settings and have recently performed at the annual conferences of both SCACDA (2023) and SCMEA (2024). In addition to her duties as Director of Choral Activities, Emily serves as Music Director for theatrical productions at BCA. She additionally enjoys serving as the Fine Arts Department Head, Tri-M Music Honor Society Chapter Advisor, and on the GCH Leadership Team and Fine Arts Steering Committee.
Emily serves on the SCMEA Choral Division All-State Committee, and as the SCACDA Chairperson for Treble Repertoire and Resources and Conference Performing Choirs. She has served as a clinician in varied settings, most recently directing the SCMEA Midlands SSA Clinic and Dorchester School District 2 Middle School Honor Choir. Active as a presenter, especially in the area of the Kodály concept and its applications to Choral Pedagogy, she has most recently presented at the annual conferences of the SC American Choral Directors Association and SC Music Educators Association. Emily received the Bacon-Erdei Scholarship for study at the Kodály Institute in Kecskemét, Hungary in 2022, and was selected as a Conducting Fellow for the Atlanta Summer Conducting Institute in 2024. Emily has previously served as Adjunct Professor at The College of Charleston, where she taught courses in the Master of Arts in Teaching program.
In October 2024, Emily was presented with the Emerging Scholar Award by SC ACDA for outstanding contributions to choral music in South Carolina in under ten years of service, and she was recently selected as the recipient of the 2025 SCMEA Outstanding Young Music Educator Award. Emily holds the the Bachelor of Arts in Choral Music Education from Charleston Southern University, the Master of Education in Administration from The University of Oklahoma, and the Master of Music in Kodály Pedagogy from Holy Names University, where she was recipient of the Logan Fellowship in Education.
Outside the classroom and away from the podium, Emily maintains an active performing schedule throughout South Carolina. She can be heard regularly as staff soprano at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, and with ensembles such as The King’s Counterpoint, Vox Regis, and Cantores Charleston. As a chorister, she has sung with academic and professional ensembles across the United States and abroad in England, Spain, and Hungary. Previous engagements include the soprano solos in Requiem (Fauré), Gloria (Vivaldi), Messiah (Handel), Gloria (Rutter), Magnificat (Bach), and the Oklahoma premiere of Mass no. 1 (Tyberg) with Windsong Chamber Choir.
Michael Lopez
Collaborative Pianist,
Spring 2025
Michael López, Collaborative Pianist, is a native of Charleston, SC and is currently in his twelfth year as Associate Director of Music at Bethany United Methodist Church in Summerville. He serves in both traditional services each Sunday, sings first tenor in the Men’s Ensemble, and is conductor for the nationally recognized Chancel Bells of Bethany UMC.
Mr. López is highly sought as an accompanist and collaborative pianist, working with companies such as MidAmerica Productions and the Charleston Symphony Orchestra. He has traveled throughout the United States, Venezuela, and Greece accompanying for operas, musical theater productions, and major choral and symphonic works. In addition to his work as a collaborative pianist, Mr. López is the current Associate Conductor for Charleston Stage Company, the oldest professional theatre company in South Carolina. He is thrilled to be performing again with Singers of Summerville.
Ryan Pagels,
Past Artistic Director
& Conductor, 2024
Ryan Pagels is a highly sought after conductor, composer, and pianist, and is currently serving as the Director of Music at the Unitarian Church of Charleston. Before moving to Charleston, Ryan was the Director of Music at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Interim and then Assistant Artistic Director for the Cumberland Choral Arts, and Collaborative Pianist at Methodist University in Fayetteville, NC. Before Fayetteville, Ryan resided in Florida where he served as the Artistic Director and Conductor for the Marion Civic Chorale, Director of Music at Countryside Presbyterian Church. He also served as Chorusmaster for the Ocala Symphony Orchestra and worked as a vocal coach at Stetson University for the voice studios and the Opera program.
In 2010, Ryan made his Carnegie Hall debut, collaborated on recitals with faculty from Julliard, and was the pianist for the opening ceremonies of the World Equestrian Games. In 2011, he made his international debut, concertizing in Italy as part of the Orfeo Music Festival. Ryan has also worked and concertized with a wide variety of musicians, including Audra McDonald, Marvin Hamlisch, Arlo Guthrie, and Wynonna Judd. In 2023, Ryan returned to Carnegie Hall to premiere the “Twilight Mass,” by Ola Gjelio, and has also premiered works by Eric Whitacre and John Tichelli.
Dr. Valerie Bullock,
Past Artistic Director &
Conductor Emeritus,
2006-2020
Dr. Valerie Bullock is Professor Emeritus at Charleston Southern University, having retired June 30, 2016. At CSU she was Chair of the Horton School of Music, Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities, where she conducted the University Concert Singers and Bel Canto as well as coordinating choral music education. She received her Doctorate in Choral Music education from Florida State University and Master’s and Bachelor degrees from the University of South Carolina.
In addition to conducting the Singers of Summerville, she also served as the full-time Director of Music Ministries at Bethany United Methodist Church in Summerville from September 2016 until her retirement in September 2020. Dr. Bullock conducted the Bethany Chancel Choir, Chamber Singers, Men’s Ensemble, and Women’s Ensemble as well as overseeing the entire music program.
Dr. Bullock remains active as a consultant and adjudicator in the SC American Choral Directors Association and in 2022 was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award.
David A. Richardson,
Past Artistic Director
& Conductor,
2020 - 2023
David A. Richardson is a respected choral conductor, educator, singer, and keyboardist in the Charleston Tri-County area. The 2023-2024 school year will mark Mr. Richardson’s fifteenth year in Dorchester School District Two as Director of Choral Activities at Summerville High School. He taught in the Berkeley County School District as a band director prior to his tenure in DD2. Before becoming Director of Choral Activities at Summerville High School, he was director of Choral Activities at Rollings Middle School of the Arts and Fort Dorchester High School. His choirs at both Rollings and Fort Dorchester earned consistent superior ratings at festivals and adjudicated events and festivals. Mr. Richardson’s passion for choral music education reaches beyond the public school classroom as Adjunct Professor of Music Education at the College of Charleston, where he teaches courses in Elementary Music Methods, Secondary Music Methods, and Choral Literature.
Paul H. Fletcher,
Founding Director,
and conductor
2003 - 2006
Paul H. Fletcher founded and then directed the Singers of Summerville for three years. He currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia where he is Director of Music Ministries at Mt. Zion United Methodist Church.
While in the Summerville area, Paul was a vocal Artist in Residence at Charleston Southern University (CSU) where, in addition to maintaining an active voice studio, he taught a course in music appreciation and directed the university’s men’s chorus, the Singing Buccaneers.
Prior to coming to CSU, he served seven years as the Director of Music Ministries at Bethany United Methodist Church in Summerville, where he directed and oversaw a music program of twelve ensembles. In addition to South Carolina, he has served in churches and colleges in Alabama, Texas, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.