Michael Straus is a new music saxophonist currently based in Amsterdam. Hailed for his "sax brilliance" (The Hook), he is responsible for the premieres of nearly thirty works ranging from large chamber pieces to solo compositions incorporating multi-channel audio and film projection. He regularly collaborates with composers, visual artists, turntablist, conductors, dancers and other instrumentalist around the world. Through these collaborations, he has been featured recitalist at music festivals internationally with performances at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's 8 Days in June Festvial, International Computer Music Conference, North American Saxophone Alliance, High Zero Festival of Experimental Improvised Music and Festival Internazionale del Sassofono in Faenza, Italy. Always trying to push the boundaries of modern day performance, Michael recently presented five shows of newly commissioned works in five different cities on five consecutive days.
In 2006 Michael founded What are you looking at?, a multimedia performance project aimed at the creation of new works for saxophone, electronics and video. The first in a series of multiple commissions resulted in a sudden change in the consistency of snow by Oberlin faculty member Peter V. Swendsen. Michael has performed this piece over twenty times in bars, clubs, art galleries and concert halls throughout the United States and Canada. His studio recording of this work has been screened at film festivals and conferences in Norway, Australia and Boston. Other works in this project include new collaborations with composers Matthew Burtner, Vitor Rua, Per Bloland, Ted Coffey, Gregory Cornelius, J. Anthony Allen and video artists Scott Draves, Mike Houston and Arie Stavchansky.
He is currently saxophonist with Sonic Circus, a hybrid chamber music trio with bassoonist Dana Jessen and turntablist DJ Dubble8. Recent engagements with Sonic Circus include shows at Chicago's Heaven Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.'s Artomatic Festival, East Lansing's (SCENE) Metrospace, Boston's Lilypad and Ann Arbor's Canterbury House Concert Series. In April of 2007 the trio presented a workshop on contemporary chamber music and the composer/performer relationship with students from New Hampshire’s Franklin Pierce College.
Michael's acoustic chamber music efforts lie in the American saxophone quartet quux. With fellow members Dale Underwood, Sheri Oyan and Ed Fraedrich, quux recently performed at the International Navy Band Symposium and served as ensemble in residence at Northwestern State University. During the summer of 2009, quux will present the premieres of two new saxophone quartets by David Heuser and Lei Liang on an East Coast tour culminating in a performance at New York City's St. Peter's Church.
Highlights from the 2007 – 2008 concert season included solo performances at Stanford University, Dartmouth College, the University of California – Irvine, Charlottesville’s Technosonics Festival VII, Toronto’s ARRAY Studios and Ottawa’s Club SAW. Michael also performed at John Zorn’s New York City club The Stone and Brooklyn’s Monkeytown with the newly minted Matthew Burtner & Friends. In February of 2008 he served as guest artist at Oberlin College performing a solo show and presenting a lecture/workshop with students from the TIMARA program. Rounding out the season, Michael made his San Francisco debut at the Climate Theater in late April, splitting the bill with innovative glitch-pop band 45isdistance.
Michael is an Enrico Di Giovanni Scholarship Recipient and winner of several other accolades including two Helen Gold and Derryl Haymon Scholarships and a Peabody Career Development Grant. His recordings can be heard on SEAMUS, New Tertian and The Walter's Art Museum record labels.
As a recent winner of the J. William Fulbright Fellowship, Michael is spending 2008 – 2009 living in Amsterdam studying with the Dutch saxophonist Ties Mellema. He holds Master's degrees in saxophone performance and computer music from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor's degree in saxophone performance from Louisiana State University. His teachers have included Ed Fraedrich, Gary Louie, Griffin Campbell, Brian McWhorter and McGregor Boyle.