Michelle Murray’s career has thus far focused primarily on the performance of lieder, French mélodie, and American art song.  Her professional career began in 1992 at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, where she opened “The Voyage of the Little Mermaid” for Disney MGM studios as one of the three original Ariels.  In 1995, she became the first American singer to be invited to perform both Japanese and American music in Minakami, Japan.  Shortly after this she met her husband, pianist David Murray, and focused her attention on the exploration and performance of art song. 

Michelle holds a double bachelor’s degree in vocal performance and choral music education from Arizona State University.  She has been featured as a soloist in many large scale choral works including, Fauré’s Requiem, Mozart’s Coronation Mass and C minor Mass, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Britten’s Ceremony of Carols, and Handel’s Messiah. 

She is especially interested in 20th and 21st century American music, performing such works as William Bolcom’s Cabaret Songs and Jake Heggie’s Eve-Song.  In November 2003 she created the role of Agnes in the world premiere of Kenneth LaFave’s opera American Gothic and has also premiered numerous new compositions, including Fungi from Yuggoth by Adam Gubman.  Upcoming performances for the 2006-2007 season include John Harbison’s Mirabai Songs and Gyorgy Ligeti’s Síppal, dobbal, nádiheged?vel: Weöres Sándor verseire, as well as a performance of William Bolcom’s complete cycle I Will Breathe a Mountain. 

David Murray’s work as a solo artist has included both solo recitals and concerto performances, including a highly praised performance of George Gershwin’s Concerto in F and the world premiere of Richard Wall’s Four Short Studies for Piano.  He began training as a pianist at the age of 9, receiving a Bachelor of Music degree from Southwest Baptist University in 1993 and a Master of Music degree from the University of Kentucky in 1995.  In 2002 he received a Doctor of Musical Arts from Arizona State University where he studied with Robert Hamilton before further training with Stewart Gordon in Los Angeles. 

David is committed to exploring lesser known piano repertoire and his concerts often juxtapose the music of more traditional composers, such as Beethoven and Haydn, with that of composers such as Fauré, C. P. E. Bach, and Moscheles.  He has been featured as a soloist on two recordings:  Kentucky Kaleidoscope and Destination MCC.

David and Michelle made their New York City debut in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in December of 2005, performing songs from their first album, Blue: The Complete Cabaret Songs of William Bolcom and Weinstein.  The husband-and-wife duo will return in 2006 to premiere songs from their second album, The Juliet Letters.  The couple currently resides in Southern California. 

The PRESTIGE AGENCY Artists Management is proud to be the exclusive Representative for MICHELLE AND DAVID. To request a complete portfolio please contact The Prestige Agency at www.prestigeagency.com