Secretary Michael

Secretary Michael is a St. Louis peace activist with a large catalog of compositions [1]. Among his major works: "Secular Hymnal" (SATB and Solo Editions, each containing 144 secular hymns) [2], "Choral Dialectics" (a series of rational arguments, battled-out chorally) [3], "Joe Puma - Wild Choir Music" (secular shape-note hymns) [4], "Twimfina" (a large musical for singers and piano) [5], "Aren't We the Lucky Ones" (a story about a commune of science students [6] on which the "Twimfina" musical is based) .

BIO: A graduate of the UMKC Conservatory of Music, Secretary Michael has been an elementary school teacher (teaching Science and Music in both public and private schools), a private piano teacher, and the founder of "Junkyard School" (in which he created and lead youth classes such as: Zappo Electricity Club [adventures in electricity], Totally Lost Hiking Club [botanical hikes], Termites [woodworking class], Junkpickers [taking apart old appliances], Flying Figbars [paper airplane making]). He also served as choir director (for the City of Oakland California), a maker of weather charts (Metropolitan Weather Charts), and a longtime St. Louis concert piano tuner/technician (Academy Piano Service).

Today Secretary Michael leads the St. Louis Peace Choir [7] and continues his work creating choral songs of peace and egalitarianism.