Michael Sprowles
Music History
Michael David Sprowles, composer and conductor is a native of
Louisville, Kentucky. He began musical training on piano at the age of
six, and later, during the primary and secondary school years,
concentrated on the clarinet. His experience with wind instruments
includes two years on the tenor saxophone. Graduating from duPont
Manual High School in 1978, he played bass clarinet in the concert band
and orchestra, and tenor saxophone in the marching band earning the
William D. Revelli Distinguished Musician Award in 1978. He performed
in various small ensembles from 1978-1987 as keyboardist and vocalist.
In 1980-1988, he also worked as a studio composer/arranger/musician at
various studios in Louisville. His undergraduate degree in music theory
and composition was earned in 1999 and a graduate degree in music
history and literature was completed in 2004. He received both degrees
from the University of Louisville.
His principal instructor in composition and orchestration was Marc Satterwhite, with additional composition instruction from Steve Rouse and Fred Speck. He studied choral arranging with Paul Brink. Choral conducting study during the undergraduate years with Henry Buckwalter was followed by further study during his graduate work with Kent D. Hatteberg. He was awarded the Warren Babb Award for Music Composition and the Nelson Keyes Scholarship for Music Composition during his undergraduate study, and the Gerhard Herz Fellowship in Music History during his graduate study.
His compositions have been performed by various choral groups and chamber ensembles in the church and university areas. His orchestral compositions have been performed by the Louisville Youth Orchestra and the University of Louisville Symphony Orchestra.
His first experience in choral conducting was as a Music Assistant at Southside Baptist Church in Louisville. He has led choral programs at Arcade Baptist Church and Cooper Memorial United Methodist Church. He led the effort to begin a Contemporary Worship service at St. Matthews United Methodist Church and was Contemporary Worship Leader for two years.
He currently holds positions as Director of Music Ministry at St. Brigid Catholic Church and Music History Instructor at the University of Louisville.
