Joseph Raymond Conniff was a renowned American bandleader and arranger best known for his group, The Ray Conniff Singers. Throughout the 1950s and 60s, he developed a distinctive sound by combining a small, tight-knit chorus with a traditional big band orchestra. His easy-listening style resulted in numerous gold and platinum albums, with his holiday albums becoming particularly enduring festive classics. Conniff's arrangements of popular contemporary songs brought instrumental and choral music to a massive global audience for decades.