Mike Angell (he/him/his) directs the Performing Arts program. Raised in Chicago, he received his musical training as a composer at the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music (BM) and The University of Michigan (MM, DMA). His compositions have been presented at many concert venues and music festivals throughout the U.S. They have also received various recording, publications, and awards.
Mike spent fourteen years as a faculty member in the Music Department of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he taught composition, computer music, music theory, ear training, and was founder/director of the Computer Music Ensemble. He has organized and facilitated countless classical music concerts on behalf of various organizations.
A tireless organizer on behalf of music and the performing arts, he was co-founder and initial president of the Birmingham Art Music Alliance (BAMA), on whose board of directors he continues to serve. He has also been on the boards of the Birmingham Artburst Series, the Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States (SEAMUS), and El Sistema USA. He is currently on the board of the National Instrumentalist Mentoring + Advancement Network (NIMAN).
Mike firmly believes that the arts and culture can and must play a vital role in contemporary American society. Its creation and and enjoyment should be accessible to all persons, and called upon to play a prominent role in every neighborhood of every town.