Michael Brothers

Director of Jazz Studies, Percussion, and Drumline

Music Annex A166
(985) 549-3825
Michael.Brothers@southeastern.edu 
Percussion Studio

Mr. Michael Brothers is Director of Jazz and Percussion Studies at Southeastern Louisiana University. He teaches Applied Percussion to undergraduate and graduate percussion majors, and courses in Percussion Methods, Percussion Pedagogy, Jazz History, and Jazz Pedagogy. He is Director of the University Jazz Ensemble, the University Percussion Ensemble and the Spirit of the Southland Drumline.

A native of Oakland, California, his forty-plus year career as a drummer and percussionist spans a wide range of musical experience including performances with big bands, symphony orchestras, recording sessions and Broadway, including over 6,600 performances of the record-breaking Music Box Company tour of the Broadway musical The Phantom of the Opera, the longest continually running Broadway tour in history.

Prior to his tenure at Phantom, he was the drummer or percussionist on several first national tours including City of Angels, Bye Bye Birdie (with Tommy Tune and Ann Reinking), Starlight Express, The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber in Concert (with Sarah Brightman), Les Misérables and Me and My Girl.

His extensive credits include performances with some of the world’s legendary entertainers such as Victor Borge, Peter Cetera, Dee Daniels, Christine Ebersole, Mitzi Gaynor, Marvin Hamlisch, Rupert Holmes, Robert Klein, Rachel Bay Jones, Gladys Knight, Liberace, Steve Lippia, The Marvalettes, Maureen McGovern, Anthony Newley, Patti Page, Chita Rivera, Dinah Shore, John Lloyd Young, and Mary Wells.

His first album Reunion with the Michael Brothers Quartet was released to critical acclaim and airplay on over 270 stations throughout the United States, Australia, Canada, France and The Netherlands including the syndicated radio programs Jazz After Hours and Jazz Happening Now on Public Radio International and Jazz with Greg Bridges on Jazz Network/WFMT Radio Network. Reunion reached #26 on the CMJ New Music Report Jazz Top 40 and #49 on the JazzWeek Top 50 and received 59th GRAMMY Awards® First Ballot consideration in several categories including Jazz Instrumental Album; Engineered Album, Non-Classical; Record Of The Year and Album Of The Year.

His second album Three Times Two with pianist Andy Nevala and bassists Jeff Carswell and Chris Kozak also received critical acclaim and airplay on over 400 stations throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the syndicated radio programs Jazz After Hours on Public Radio International and the WFMT Jazz Satellite Network. Three Times Two was the #1 Jazz CD on WZBT 91.1 FM Gettysburg, PA, spent 7 consecutive weeks in the top ten on KDNK 88.1 FM Carbondale, CO and received 61st GRAMMY Awards® First Ballot consideration in several categories including Jazz Instrumental Album; Improvised Jazz Solo; Instrumental Composition; Engineered Album, Non-Classical; Record Of The Year and Album Of The Year.

His third album, House Sessions Vol. 1, with pianist Andy Nevala and bassist Tim Aucoin is scheduled for release in 2024. Other album credits include guitarist Phill Fest Café Fonfon (on the JazzWeek Top 60 for 16 consecutive weeks); pianist Michael Pagán Is Waiting for You; Production Coordinator for Matt Lemmler’s New Orleans Jazz Revival Band UBUNTU and Executive Producer for Paul Yonemura Reunion Trios and Kindred Spirits.

Michael is the owner of Girod Records®, a Voting Member of The Recording Academy (GRAMMY® Awards) and Vic Firth artist. During the summer he serves as percussion clinician for Music at the Summit and drum set clinician for Jazz at the Summit in Breckenridge, CO. He is an active member of AFM Local 802 (New York, NY), CBDNA, JEN, LAJE (President 2022-2025), LMEA, NAfME, PAS and holds degrees in Percussion Performance from Northwestern University in Evanston, IL (MM) and Loyola University New Orleans (BM).