Focusing on
piano and composition, Mike Lang received a Bachelor of Music degree
at the University of Michigan. Shortly after, wining awards at the
Notre
Dame Intercollegiate
Jazz Festival, his trio performed at The Village Vanguard in New
York. Other notable teachers included Arnold Schoenberg students
Leonard Stein (piano) and George Tremblay (composition).
Returning
to Los Angeles, he studied with Pearl Kaufman and Lalo Schifrin, and
commenced a freelance recording career in records, motion pictures
and television, becoming conversant with every possible music idiom
and form, including jazz, classical, pop and R&B. This versatility
enabled him to build a career as an accompanist for an encyclopaedic
body of artists including Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Ella
Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Vince Gill, InSync, Milt
Jackson, Lee Konitz, Diana Krall, John Lennon, Arturo Sandoval,
Barbra Streisand and Frank Zappa - to mention a few.
He
has recorded more than 2000 scores, working with virtually every
film composer including John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, James Newton
Howard, Henry Mancini, Elmer Bernstein, Hans Zimmer, with numerous
screen credits for solo appearances. He has premiered jazz piano
concerti written especially for him by Byron Olson and Brad Dechter.
Mike has written songs for jazz notables including Stan
Getz, Fourplay, Tom Scott, Lee Ritenour and Dave Grusin, Herb
Alpert, and others. Mike has recorded a jazz CD entitled "Days of
Wine and Roses: The Classic Songs of Henry Mancini". A new recording
project with David Paich is in development.
Some
current credits:
Movies: Seven Pounds, Hanna Montana: The
Movie, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon, My Best Friend’s Girl, Dark
Streets, Spiderman 3, The Reaping, Jump
Records:
Vanessa Williams, Russell Watson, Hong Buom, Michael Bolton, Barbra
Streisand
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