Michael Martin is a second year double bass fellow in the New World Symphony from Allentown,
Pennsylvania. Formerly, he was a Diversity Fellow with the Cincinnati Symphony, and an Associate
Member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. He holds degrees from Northwestern University and Oberlin
Conservatory of Music in double bass performance. Michael lives in Miami Beach, Florida, with his
girlfriend Rose, their tuxedo cat named “Tofu”, and an ever-growing collection of houseplants.

Michael began his study of the double bass with Suzuki teacher Domenick Fiore in early high school, and
quickly discovered a deep love of the double bass in all its musical capacities. He has studied with renowned
bass professors Joseph Conyers, Tracy Rowell, Andrew Raciti, Owen Lee, and Alexander Hanna.

Throughout his undergraduate and graduate degrees, Michael developed a passion for string pedagogy and
has worked with legendary cello pedagogues Hans Jørgen Jensen and Cornelia Watkins-Dyer. Michael is a
Teaching Artist at VIA Academy, a weeklong summer intensive based in Miami Beach focused on reaching
underserved and underrepresented communities. He has also taught semi-private lessons and group classes
through the International Society of Bassists Young Bassists program, in addition to masterclasses with the
composer-performer collective Bass Players for Black Composers.

In addition to orchestral playing, Michael found an appreciation of contemporary music in his time at
Oberlin Conservatory, and can be heard on the album Songtree performing the music of Ricardo Zohn
Muldoon alongside faculty of the Eastman School. Michael is also the creator of Black Reflections, a
three-part panel discussion series on racial justice in music, featuring Black luminaries of classical music and
jazz such as Chi-chi Nwanoku, Christian McBride, and Dr. Tammy Kernodle.

​Michael plays a modern instrument made for him in 2019 by Christopher Savino, and a bow by celebrated
French archetier Jean Grunberger.