about

Mike Pendowski’s career has encompassed a wide variety of musical styles and venues. He has composed, arranged, and produced award-winning music for TV and radio commercials. over twenty albums; scored for off-Broadway productions, film projects, Industrials, animated features, and video games, including John Madden Football, NCAA football, and the Walking Dead App; created competition-winning arrangements for competitive marching shows; and original fight songs for Robert Morris College and Deep Run High School.

Michael is a prominent composer in the educational field—publishing dozens of compositions for the full spectrum of ensembles available in today’s schools and universities. His jazz compositions are at the forefront of the field. In 2003, he was commissioned by the Illinois Music Educators Association to write the Allstate Jazz composition for the State of Illinois, and in 2009 conducted the Pennsylvania Allstate Jazz Ensemble. He has appeared as a conductor, performer and presenter at the Midwest Band and Orchestral Clinic and the Alabama Music Educators Convention.

Dr. Pendowski has worked extensively as a freelance performer, appearing with Michael Feinstein, Natalie Cole, Johnny Mathis, Aretha Franklin, Carol Lawrence, George Shearing, Ray Charles, Lionel Hampton, the Four Freshmen, and The Jazz Orchestra of America.

In addition to these professional activities, he has served on its board of governors for N.A.R.A.S and is a member of the AFM. He currently serves on the board for the Auburn Knights Orchestra.

Michael Pendowski is currently the Director of the Jazz Ensemble and Assistant Professor of Saxophone at Auburn University. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music with a DMA in Jazz and Contemporary Media, and Northwestern University with Masters in Conducting and Bachelors in Music Education. 

Films Contributed to

Dead Presidents

Groundhog Day

The restoration of Orson Welles' Othello

Our Father

Arrangements performed by

Northwestern University

University of Delaware

Southwest Missouri State

University of Colorado

Compositions

performed in

United States

Europe

South America 

Asia

Previously Taught at

Eastman School of Music

VanderCook College of Music

Northwestern University

DePaul University

Harper Community College,

Wheaton-Warrenville High School 

performed with

Michael Feinstein

Natalie Cole

Johnny Mathis

Aretha Franklin

Carol Lawrence

George Shearing

Ray Charles

the Four Freshmen

Awards Received

American Library Award—"Michelangelo”

American Library Award—“Rembrandt”

Golden Lion—State Farm “Their World”

Original Video Game music for

John Madden Football EAC 

NCAA Football and Basketball EAC 

The Walking Dead App; Topps.

Music

Upcoming Album: Hot Sonate

Hot Sonate is the first classical album released by Dr. Pendowski. It features Dr. Pendowski on Alto Saxophone and Dr. Jeremy Samolesky on piano. The CD is a collection of classical literature that is heavily influenced by jazz and jazz pieces arranged in a classical idiom. The CD features works by Kapustin, Schulhoff, Willams, and Dorsey. It was recorded at Chicago Recording Company in Chicago, engineered by Dennis Tousana of Absolute Audio, and assisted by Jonathan Lackey.  It will be available on Albany Records in September, 2020.

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