Michael Murray

Michael Murray’s music has been described as “well-crafted” and “easy to listen to in the best possible way.” His compositions cover a wide variety of styles and media, but his gift for lyricism is particularly well suited to acoustic music featuring the human voice. Much of his work involves setting the words of classic poets to new music for singers accompanied by various instrumental combinations.

In addition to composing concert music, he has written music for film, theater productions, dance, and visual arts installations. His music appears on the Navona and Ansonica record labels and is published by Ars Nova Press. He lives in Springfield MO, where he is Professor of Music at Missouri State University. Murray earned a B.M. in composition from the Catholic University of America and his M.M. and D.M.A. in composition from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music

Albums

Passages

Release Date: May 27, 2022
Catalog Number: NV6427
21st Century
Chamber
Orchestral
Orchestra
Piano
Voice
Composer Michael Murray’s album PASSAGES brings the words of iconic 19th and 20th century poets to life through stirring music for solo soprano and instruments. Murray has selected poetry from the likes of Robert Louis Stevenson, William Butler Yeats, William Wordsworth, John Keats, and Walt Whitman, with poems detailing childhood adventure, hope, and tragedy. Celebrated soprano Genevieve Fulks performs throughout; most of the music heard on the album was written specifically with her voice in mind. Murray’s music has been lauded for its meticulously crafted yet ultimately approachable style. Through familiar themes and time-honored poetry, Murray invites listeners to engage with, and even be challenged by, this collection of thoughtful compositions.

Michael Murray: Percipience

Release Date: April 14, 2015
Catalog Number: NV5994
21st Century
Chamber
Vocal Music
Voice
The history of setting literary text in music is a considerable one, from Schubert's Lieder to Benjamin Britten's Serenade to art songs of the 21st century. Composer Michael Murray presents four song cycles on PERCIPIENCE, all of which emphasize the deep connection between poetry and music as varying means of expression that can reveal different facets of the same idea.

Spellbound

Release Date: May 1, 2013
Catalog Number: NV5911
21st Century
Orchestral
Large Ensemble
Orchestra
From mythic origin stories, to the Elizabethan stage, to the modern cinema, the human experience is bound in storytelling that has the power to captivate minds and inspire creativity. Like a good story, the composers featured on SPELLBOUND transport the listener across landscapes only limited by the imagination. These new works for orchestra behave as narrative arches, allowing tension and emotion to build and release to a euphoric conclusion or a haunting realization.

Explore other albums featuring Michael Murray

Coro Del Mundo

Coro Del Mundo

Ansonica Records
Abrazo: The Havana Sessions

Abrazo: The Havana Sessions

Ansonica Records