Michael C. Wheeler
Michael Wheeler holds a Master of Fine Arts in Music Composition from Vermont College of Fine Arts and a Master of Arts in World Music Studies from the University of Sheffield U.K. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (with Honors designation) in Music History from Charter Oak State College as well as a Master Certificate in Music Theory, Harmony and Ear Training from Berklee College of Music (graduated 3.97 GPA). During his undergraduate education Michael was awarded both a music department vocal scholarship as well as the prestigious Bill Cosby Celebrity scholarship for Berklee’s extension program. He is also currently enrolled in the Gurmat Sangeet Outreach program from Raj Academy U.K. as a student of Dilruba, for the preservation and promotion of Sikh music. Mr. Wheeler is also a member of many professional organizations including; Music Teacher’s National Association (MTNA), American Society for Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and National Association of Composers USA (NACUSA).
As a performer, Mr. Wheeler has appeared in over 20 independently and commercially released albums in addition to having logged hundreds of studio hours. He has also appeared in well over 300 stage performances as a singer (musical theater), pianist (classical and jazz) or keyboardist (dance music).
As a composer, Michael’s works are published through the German internet publisher Copy-Us (under his pen name “Misha Kolesoski”) and has written scores for commercial as well as amateur film. Also a composer of concert music Michael has written pieces for electronics and Baroque instruments, the Talujon Percussion Ensemble, and a piece for Harp-Trio plus Dilruba. In May of 2009 his “Adagio for Erhu and Chamber Ensemble” was premiered at Edinburgh University in Scotland, featuring the Erhu virtuoso Peng Yeuquang. He is also a regular contributor to HowCast Media videos and has music featured in the motion picture “Dirty Step Upstage.” Mr. Wheeler is also very well versed in PC related music software such as Sonar, Reason, Kontakt, Sony, Vocaloid and Finale programs. As an author on musical subjects, Mr. Wheeler maintains two blogsites; Tools for Learning Music, and Pondering Music from a Global Perspective. He also hosts a YouTube channel which details diverse information such as instrument purchasing, methods for self-study and advice for college music students.
From 2004 to 2011 Mr. Wheeler was instructor and curriculum coordinator at Arizona Music Academy in Tempe AZ. Now Michael is a resident of Roseburg, OR working as an assistant professor of music and film arts at Umpqua Community College instructing Indian Music, Music Technology, Music Appreciation, Music History, American/World Cinema, and Music Fundamentals.