Dissertations Available
For the very curious or very bored amongst you, I am making my Master's Thesis and my Doctoral Dissertation commentaries available for...
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Michael Merrill
Composer | Orchestrator | Educator
"Mike is one of the most technically accomplished composers I’ve worked with. He is a natural composer and this is reflected in every piece he creates, whether a profound oratorio or a simple arrangement."
-Prof. Phillip Cooke, University of Aberdeen
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Mike
- Jun 27, 2020
- 2 min
Never Work a Day? Really
Confucius says, “Find a job you enjoy and you’ll never work a day in your life.”[1] You know what I says to that? Bull-loney. I enjoy...
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Mike
- Jun 13, 2020
- 1 min
Patreon: A Win-Win Situation
Hey, all! For the past few months, I've been working on my Patreon page so that I can earn ongoing revenue through fans, supporters, and...
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Mike
- Jan 17, 2020
- 1 min
Friday, Jan 17, 2020
First day of composing after finishing my doctoral dissertation! Work continued on Caitlin Bell's song cycle, Love's Torments. I reached...
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Mike
- Nov 6, 2019
- 3 min
Fall Commissions
If you're looking to have a new piece written especially for you and your ensemble, this is the place to be! I'm always sitting on ideas...
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Mike
- Jul 17, 2019
- 1 min
New Commissions Announced
I am very excited to announce that I have received four new commissions for solo voice and piano to be premiered later this year. Three...
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Mike
- May 6, 2019
- 1 min
6 May, 2019
Music Written: 15" full, all melody no. 1 - Song no. 2: Hymn from Wordless Voices Listening: Caroline Shaw - Partita for 8 Voices, 1)...
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Mike
- Apr 9, 2019
- 1 min
New Commission from Voce, Inc
I am so happy to announce that today I have completed a new commission by one of America's finest chamber choirs, Voce, Inc., led by Mark...
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Mike
- Mar 28, 2019
- 3 min
Review of 'Martyrdom of the Saints'
On 7 March, 2019, my biggest work to date, The Martyrdom of the Saints, was premiered in St Machar's Cathedral. Below is the review that...
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Mike
- Feb 19, 2019
- 1 min
Back in the Game
A lot of things have happened since my last post. Here is a quick rundown: - We learned that my wife, Helen, is pregnant with our first...
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Mike
- Sep 4, 2018
- 1 min
4 Sept
Continuing on from where I left off with the Martyrdom. Due to health, I was only to get a little bit done at the end of the day, but at...
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Mike
- Sep 3, 2018
- 1 min
3 Sept - A brand new draft
In order to improve the quality of my music, I'm going to increase the quantity. Hence my new push to write more short, simple pieces....
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Mike
- Sep 1, 2018
- 1 min
1 Sept
Started a new piece today. It's gonna be a small one, maybe one minute, and meant to be sung at the end of any sort of sacred music event....
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Mike
- Aug 31, 2018
- 2 min
31 Aug, 2018
Yet another day of little composing, but at least some got done. I want to focus on the last three bars of this screenshot. They begin a...
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Mike
- Aug 30, 2018
- 1 min
30 Aug, 2018
I've been ill for the past few days, but today I was able to make a little progress. It kinda stinks not being able to work as I'd like....
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Mike
- Aug 28, 2018
- 1 min
28 Aug, 2018
I wasn't able to get a whole lot of work done due to meetings, other appointments, and health interferences. However, I did live up to my...
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Mike
- Aug 27, 2018
- 1 min
Welcome to My Diary
I believe that keeping records is important. Everywhere from tracking finances to keeping a journal or personal history. The reason we...
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Mike
- Aug 17, 2018
- 1 min
New Commission by Canyon Quartet
We are excited to announce the commission of a new work for strings by the Canyon Quartet, a string quartet based out of Salt Lake City,...
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Mike
- Sep 14, 2017
- 2 min
Everybody Lies About Composing
Recently I read the autobiography/memoirs/random musings of one of America’s (and, in my opinion, the world’s) leading actresses and...
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