COMPOSER, SONGWRITER, PERFORMER

Mike Bell is a scholar and author by day but a composer and performer by night.

Michael Bell is a composer, songwriter, and performer in both classical and grassroots traditions, often combining the two. His composition has an engaging and melodic sound and includes dozens of works for chamber ensembles, symphony, choir, mandolin orchestra, and solo piano. 

He recently completed his first symphony, Regeneration: A Pentalogy, which is currently being choreographed by Kanopy Dance and premiered by the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, through a three-year long collaboration they call ConFluence.

In 2010, Michael co-founded the award-winning quintet Graminy, whose four albums bring grassroots and classical music together in a style the group calls “class-grass.”

Michael is also a songwriter, focusing on social and environmental themes. He loves to write instrumentals that contribute to contradance, bluegrass, and Klezmer traditions, and has composed over a hundred reels, jigs, waltzes, airs, horas, and doinas.

Michael performs widely on mandolin, guitar, and banjo, as well as a vocalist. Among his bands are Tsuzamen, Elm Duo, Noise of the BoysGraminy, and Fiddlasaurus Rex. He played for many years with the Barn Owl Band, with whom he recorded three albums.

Michael is also an author and scholar. See his separate site on his books, articles, and teaching HERE.

RENASCENCE

A ballet set to the music of Michael Bell's symphony REGENERATION - A Pentalogy

Renascence is a 45-minute ballet set to the music of Michael Bell’s symphony, Regeneration: A Pentalogy.  Michael has been collaborating with Kanopy Dance Company  and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra over a three year period to produce this work. The grand live premiere will be on February 27, 2026 in the Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, WI. For Earth Day, 2025, Kanopy presented 3 of the 5 movements of Renascence. Below is a link to their performance of Movement III: Effervescence, set to Movement III of Regeneration. For the video of Movement I: Presence, click HERE, and the for the video of Movement II: Awakening, click HERE.

Music

Loving of the Land

Graminy and the Blue Dog Consort perform Michael's anthem for the environment

Sweet Pandamonium

Jason Kutz plays Michael Bell! A pre-release from a forthcoming album of Michael's piano preludes

Shalom, Salaam

A song for peace that came to Michael in a dream. Performed by Tsuzamen

Live at the Brink

Graminy's live album, released in 2019.

Dance of the Plants

Graminy's 3rd album, released in 2016.

Germinations

Graminy's 2nd album, released in 2013, as part of the "D-Composition" project with the Wormfarm Institute

Bands

Tsuzamen

Elm Duo

Graminy

Noise of the Boys