Biography
Michael Lenssen is a multi-instrumentalist, teacher, producer and composer based in Denver. Michael performs on the cornet, keyboards, and the EWI (Electronic Wind Instrument), playing a diverse range of genres; from jazz to classical, psychedelic rock to modern dance music. He has a degree in Jazz & Commercial Music from the University of Miami, studying with Brian Lynch and John Daversa.
Michael began teaching ski lessons at Eldora when he was 15 and spent time as a swim coach before moving into teaching and performing music full-time. He studied the violin as a child and incorporates his early Suzuki ear-training into his teachings. He currently teaches Music Production at Justice High School in Lafayette.
Michael was the trumpet electronics consultant on the Grammy-winning Maria Schneider album, “Data Lords”. He currently co-leads a project with Denver legend Greg Gisbert (Frank Sinatra, Buddy Rich) and performs with his own project “Mickey Lenny” all over Colorado. He has performed with Ric Wilson, Benny Golson, Emmet Cohen, Isaac Teel, Michael Piolet, and arranged/performed with Evanoff, Clay Street Unit and Tenth Mountain Division. Michael was a long-time member of the band Amoramora, playing festivals around the country and selling out the Fox Theatre in Boulder.
Watch or read an interview about Michael’s background and teaching philosophy.