About.

About Michael Hale

A consummate musician, composer Michael Hale enjoys an all-embracing and varied creative life. Born in Lamesa, Texas in 1962, Michael first studied piano at age 8, and since then has gone on to specialize in playing and writing for brass (trombone, baritone), woodwinds (saxophone), strings (string bass), keyboards and percussion (marimba, vibraphone, marching bass drum), and handbells.

Michael earned his bachelor’s degree in Management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1989, and went on to pursue musical studies at the Berklee College of Music in 2017. Then in 2019, Michael travelled to Riga, Latvia and studied composition with Eriks Esenvalds at Jazeps Vitols Latvian Academy of Music. He has also been privileged to coach individually with Samuel Adler – an experience Michael treasures.

About Michael Hale the Music Composer

Michael writes for chorus, field band, wind ensemble, orchestra, brass ensemble, fanfare trumpets, handbells, and liturgical hymns for worship. His compositions have been performed and recorded by the internationally acclaimed choir Gloriae Dei Cantores and other renowned performing ensembles of Arts Empowering Life Foundation. In 2020, he won second prize at the Vox Juventutis choral music composition competition in Vilnius, Lithuania, and the work was performed in an internationally broadcasted concert by Vox Juventutis and Vaclovas Augustinas the following year. He is available for commissions.

About Michael Hale the Music Arranger

Additionally, Michael is a passionate and highly accomplished music arranger who is recognized for his expertise in the realm of classical music arrangement, among other genres. Hale has demonstrated an exceptional ability to breathe new life into classical compositions through his meticulous arrangements. His commitment to mastering the intricacies of classical music theory and instrumentation laid the foundation for a career marked by innovation and excellence.

His arrangements reflect a profound understanding of the nuances of classical compositions, coupled with a keen artistic sensibility that transcends traditional boundaries. Michael’s ability to seamlessly blend tradition with a contemporary touch has garnered acclaim from fellow musicians, conductors, and audiences alike. He is adept at arranging music to perfectly match an ensemble or performer. He considers factors such as harmony, rhythm, melody, and instrumentation to create a well-balanced and cohesive arrangement that highlights performers strengths.

Michael’s musical life has taken him and his music around the globe: across the United States, Europe, South Africa, South Korea, and Australia. Special highlights include playing works of Gabrieli at San Marco in Venice and at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, hearing his own Christmas works sung by Gloriae Dei Cantores with the Boston Pops at Symphony Hall in Boston, playing handbells on the Volga River in Russia, and all over Europe.

About Michael Hale the Man

Beyond music, Michael’s wide-ranging artistic interests and experiences include studies in Byzantine mosaics with master mosaicist Alessandra Caprara in Ravenna, Italy, and assisting with the fabrication of the mosaics in the Church of the Transfiguration, Orleans, Massachusetts. Michael’s heart for people has taken him from academic tutoring to management positions in the service industry, to graphic design – all roles that in various ways have increased his capacity for creativity and wonder.

Michael Hale and his wife, Lexa, live at the Community of Jesus in Orleans, Massachusetts with their dog, Sadie. He is the father of two grown, married children.