Michael McLean is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 composer, singer, author, and filmmaker based in Heber City, Utah.

Early life

McLean attended high school in the Chicago area. He was the only Latter-day Saint in his graduating class, but managed to serve as student body president, as well as performing in the school's production of The Music Man

The Music Man

The Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...

.

McLean served an LDS mission in South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

. After returning from his mission he formed a band. They went around at the bottom of the club circuit, but never made a break. While a student at Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...

 he took a music theory class in which he received a C and was told that he did not have what it would take to make it in music professionally.

After this McLean went to the University of Utah

University of Utah

The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...

. He took a weekly composition class with Merrill Bradshaw

Merrill Bradshaw

Merrill Bradshaw was an American composer and professor at Brigham Young University where he was the John R. Halliday Professor of music....

. He then did some writing of music for local commercials in Salt Lake City and made some headway at this.

McLean finally quit college after his wife Lynne was in an auto accident. He made his first march into the limelight by writing commercials for the Church's "Homefront" campaign. He next took a job as producer for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Mormon Tabernacle Choir

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, sometimes colloquially referred to as MoTab, is a Grammy and Emmy Award winning, 360-member, all-volunteer choir. The choir is part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . However, the choir is completely self-funded, traveling and producing albums to...

 in 1976. McLean would work with the Choir until 1993.

Career

As a composer, McLean has produced more than 20 albums of original music, selling over one million copies since his 1983 debut. Focused mainly on a Latter-day Saint audience, McLean has also produced albums with a broader appeal, such as The Forgotten Carols. McLean's most recent musical releases have been through Shadow Mountain Records, with The Forgotten Carols on a separate Deseret Book

Deseret Book

Deseret Book is the largest Latter-day Saint book publisher and also owns a chain of LDS bookstores in the western United States. Over 150 people work in its Salt Lake City headquarters...

 label.

McLean authored a book in conjunction with The Forgotten Carols and enjoys continued commercial success from that work via annual, regional tours of a stage adaptation during the Christmas season. He has authored other books as well.

In 1986, McLean began work on a musical called The Ark, which originally debuted at the Plum Alley Theatre. In 2000, the musical participated in the Festivals of New Musicals in New York City. The play was scheduled for an off-Broadway debut in the fall of 2005.http://theater2.nytimes.com/2005/11/16/theater/reviews/16ark.html?ex=1140843600&en=beb5b7adfaab64ab&ei=5070

In the early 1980s, McLean convinced legendary actor James Stewart

James Stewart (actor)

James Maitland Stewart was an American film and stage actor, known for his distinctive voice and his everyman persona. Over the course of his career, he starred in many films widely considered classics and was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning one in competition and receiving one Lifetime...

 to work with him at a reduced rate in a made-for-TV film entitled Mr. Krueger's Christmas

Mr. Krueger's Christmas

Mr. Krueger's Christmas is a 1980 made-for-television film starring Jimmy Stewart, and directed by Kieth Merrill.It was created by Brigham Young University for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and features the Mormon Tabernacle Choir....

. McLean later worked with other notable actors in various writing, directing, and producing projects, including Academy Award

Academy Awards

An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...

 winner Celeste Holm

Celeste Holm

Celeste Holm is an American stage, film, and television actress, known for her Academy Award-winning performance in Gentleman's Agreement , as well as for her Oscar-nominated performances in Come to the Stable and All About Eve...

.

McLean also wrote The Ark with BYU professor Kevin Kelly, which was produced off-Broadway in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 in November 2005 by Erik Orton

Erik Orton

Erik Orton was born in 1974 in southern California to a U.S. Air Force officer, his father, and his mother, a Finnish immigrant. He was raised primarily in West Germany and the suburbs of Washington D.C. He graduated from Brigham Young University in 1998 with a degree in Media Music...

.

Discography

• You're Not Alone (1983)
• Stay With Me (1984)
• Celebrating the Light (1985)
• A New Kind of Love Song (1988)
• One Heart in the Right Place (1990)
• The Forgotten Carols (1991)
• You've Always Been There For Me (1992)
• The Collection, Volume 1 (1994)
• Soundtracks (1994)
• The Garden (1995)
• Our Unspoken Song (1995)
• Celebrating the Light Soundtrack (1995)
• The Collection, Volume 2 (1997)
• Father and Son (1997)
• The Ark (1998)
• Safe Harbors (1999)
• Michael Sings McLean (2000)
• Connie Lou's Christmas (2000)
• Arise and Shine Forth (2000)
• The Forgotten Carols: Anniversary Edition (2001)
• Something's Changed (2002)
• The Best Two Years (2004)
• As I Am (2005)
• The Other Side of Down (2008)
• Hope Hiding (2008
• It's Not Love 'Til It's Been Through a Storm (2008)
• See Us Shine (2008)
• Tender Mercies (2008)

External links

• Michael McLean Music
• Csardas by Michael McLean performed by the Lamb Sisters Trio on the radio show From the Top
  From the Top
  From the Top is a national program and initiative to develop and showcase young classical musicians. It is best known for its NPR radio and PBS television programs hosted by pianist Christopher O'Riley, which celebrate the passion, dedication and personal stories of America's best young classical...
  
  .