A native of Tennessee, Michael Parks holds a BM from Mercer University and a MM from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He has composed or arranged over 300 published and recorded works for church and college choirs with hundreds more finding their way into recital halls and onto concert stages across the country. His music has been performed by the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra under Erich Kunzel, the Macon Symphony Orchestra, and scores of community and international chamber ensembles. In the last decade the demand for his arrangements has grown dramatically among high school show choirs across the Midwest. From 1996-2012, he was an annual recipient of the ASCAP Composition Award.
Educationally, Mr. Parks has served as an adjudicator and clinician for the Georgia State Literary Meets Music Division and the Ohio All State Choir selection committee. Always an innovator, he created the Academic Honors Option course for upper-level choir students in the Northwest Local School District, Cincinnati, OH, and developed a curricular music program for special needs students. As an adjunct at the College of Mount St. Joseph, Mr. Parks taught conducting, orchestration, and directed the College Chorale. Currently, alongside his wife, Randie, he teaches Music History, Music Theory, and directs three curricular choirs at Colerain High School where he was the 2013 Educator of the Year. He and Randie, with their daughter Kylie, also direct the nationally acclaimed CHS "Show Cards".
On the fun side, Mr. Parks enjoys dogs & Jeeps, and is a member of MENSA.
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Michael Parks