Micheal has spent many years performing many different musical styles, in front of audiences as intimate as a dinner club and as large as the main stage of summer music festivals. He has performed classical guitar recitals, solo, combo and big band jazz, rock, country and “reading” work in pit orchestras.

During his performing career, Micheal has been fortunate to share the stage with many professional musicians. He has performed and/or recorded with Nashville session guitarist Anthony Rankin, acclaimed country/fingerstyle guitarist Roger Hoard (teacher to Brad Paisley), Grammy-nominated songwriter Dom Liberati, country music singer Matt VanFossen, Utah state flat picking champion Mike Furry, percussionist Jay Ware, pianist Brett Williams and organist Dr. Alton Merrell. Micheal has also frequently performs classical guitar recitals, as well as performed classical and rock.jazz guitar with the Boulder Symphony. Micheal’s former jazz quartet, C125, is made up of internationally recognized performers.

Micheal also maintains an active academic career as an international speaker, sharing his research in music theory and music education. He is currently earning his Ph.D. in Music Theory from the University of Oregon, where he teaches undergraduate courses in music theory, ear training, keyboard skills, and seminars on rock music and improvisation. Prior to his time in Eugene, Micheal completed an M.M. (music theory) from the University of Colorado at Boulder (where he also taught courses in music theory and aural skills), and three undergraduate degrees (philosophy, music education, guitar performance) from West Liberty University (West Liberty, WV). Micheal’s primary research centers on Dave Matthews Band, the focus of his forthcoming dissertation. He is also interested in Romantic- era Formenlehre, specifically sentences in Brahms’s solo piano works. 

Micheal is passionate about music education. For over twelve years, he was a sought-out private guitar instructor in the upper Ohio Valley area, operating a private studio at C.A. House Music, in St. Clairsville, Ohio. He also taught group/class guitar and music theory classes at multiple high schools in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. His unique pedagogical prioritizes academic rigor, goal-directed student-based learning, and humor.

Micheal’s private guitar studio, now fully online, has yielded the commercial and academic success of many students and reaches across the globe. Micheal currently teaches students on three continents. Many of Micheal’s private students have gone on to complete music degrees at many of our nation’s fine colleges and universities, as well as gain success as professional performers. He also maintains an active YouTube page, contributing content to help all guitar/music students understand what they need to achieve their goals. Micheal is also available for consulting work, to help professional educators create and build their own online music studios.