As a twenty-first century musician and educator, my responsibility is to contextualize the music of the past and present for my audience and students. All great art is created by humans who live interesting and complicated lives not so different from our own. I aim to make older music feel as fresh as something written yesterday, and I want to remove the distance that many feel towards “classical” music.
Michael Jorgensen
Associate Professor
Department Chair
Strings
610-758-4592
mij213@lehigh.edu
Zoellner 352
Education:
BM, Eastman School of Music
MM, Guildhall School of Music and Drama
DM, Florida State University
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Focus Areas
Additional Interests
- Solo Violin Performance
- String Quartets
- Contemporary Music Performance
- Theatre
Personal Statement
Biography
Described as an exceptional musician by Lorin Maazel, violinist Michael Jorgensen is the violin professor and chair of the Music Department at Lehigh University and director of the Violin Workshop at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute.
His most recent project is The Saint-Georges Project, a combination of a recital, a “Ted Talk,” and a one-man-play about the life of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges. This multidisciplinary work combines music from Black composers across generations, personal storytelling, and multimedia to paint a picture of life for Black artists throughout history.
Michael has performed as a soloist with organizations including the String Orchestra of Brooklyn, the Unsung Collective, and the Colour of Music Festival. He is a featured artist on Paul Osterfield’s Sound and Fury disc released by Navona Records. A dedicated recitalist and chamber musician, he has given performances at the London School of Contemporary Dance and the Taft Museum of Art Chamber Music Series, and was a member of the Eppes String Quartet and founder of the Frequency String Quartet. Michael has served as concertmaster for groups including the national tour of Porgy and Bess and Maazel’s Castleton Festival Orchestra, and has performed with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, and Alarm Will Sound. He has also performed with legendary musicians such as Stevie Wonder, Donna Summer, Trey Anastasio, and recorded songs for the posthumous Michael Jackson album Xscape.
He holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and Florida State University.
Research & Creative Work
The Saint-Georges Project
Performed Richter Four Seasons Recomposed with the Unsung Collective
Performed at Carnegie Hall as part of the Colour of Music Octet
Performed with Stevie Wonder at Madison Square Gardens in New York City
Performed Pärt Tabula rasa with the String Orchestra of Brooklyn
Bach Partita No. 2 in D Minor for Solo Violin, BWV 1004 recording
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The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
As part of his theatrical work The Saint-Georges Project, Jorgensen performs three violin sonatas by Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges and two new compositions written for him and the project.
The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
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The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
At the emotional climax of his theatrical work The Saint-Georges Project, Jorgensen improvises along with live video images of himself.
The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
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The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
Drawing on his theatre background, Jorgensen is tasked with violin playing, historical education, and acting in his work The Saint-Georges Project.
The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
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The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
As part of his theatrical work The Saint-Georges Project, Jorgensen shares details of both his life and the life of Classical Era composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges.
The Saint-Georges Project (2024)
Richter Four Seasons
Conducted by Dr. Tyrone Clinton, The Unsung Collective performs in St. Philip's Episcopal Church, Harlem NY
Violin soloist Michael Jorgensen
Richter Four Seasons
Bach Partita
In November 2020, violinist Michael Jorgensen recorded Bach's monumental Partita No. 2 in D Minor for Solo Violin to celebrate the 300th anniversary of its composition and to document this performance after multiple in-person concerts were canceled due to the COVID pandemic.
Bach Partita
Debussy Violin Sonata
Recorded Live from Lehigh University's Zoellner Arts Center on April 7, 2019
Michael Jorgensen, violin
Steve Beck, piano
Debussy Violin Sonata
Sound and Fury Album
Paul Osterfield (*1973) : Kandinsky Images (2009) - Michael Jorgensen, violin – Caleb Harris, piano
Wassily Kandinsky (1879-1940)
Sound and Fury Album