Music

Michael Patterson

Michael PattersonDr. Patterson is a graduate of Simpson College in Piano Performance and in Music Education. He later received his Masters Degree in Piano Performance from the University of Iowa. He holds the Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Oklahoma.

For seven years, Dr. Patterson was a music educator in the public schools. He was a graduate assistant at the University of Oklahoma, where he taught fundamentals of Music Education and private piano lessons. He also taught Music Education to Music Education majors and non-majors, accompanied and supervised student teachers at Fort Hays University in Fort Hays, Kansas. He frequently served as an adjudicator in Northwest Kansas state and regional piano contests and clinics.

Dr. Patterson has been an instructor and accompanist for the Simpson College Orpheus Festival for 23 years, has worked for 33 seasons with the Des Moines Metro Opera in various capacities, and has served for 19 years as instructor for the Simpson College Elderhostel. Dr. Patterson, currently a Professor of Music Education at Simpson College, teaches elementary music education classes, ear training and sight singing, music survey, symphonic and chamber literature, piano lessons, piano literature and supervises elementary student teachers. He founded and administrates the Music Education Workshop series at Simpson, which for 15 years has featured nationally recognized clinicians in workshops each semester.

Dr. Patterson has composed numerous songs for solo voice and piano, choral works and in 2002 completed a commissioned opera, The Tale of Peter Rabbit, which toured with Opera Iowa during the 2003 - 2004 season. Following a competition sponsored by ICDA and the Iowa Choral Directors, Patterson composed a commissioned work for treble voices entitled The Wind. Dr. Patterson has recently completed A Dream Fulfilled: The Saga of George Washington Carver which will tour in 2009 - 2010 with Opera Iowa. his 1 hour work was comissioned by the Des Moines Metro Opera and the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs.

Last Updated: 5/14/09