Michael Furgala is a violinist and music educator from the Chicagoland area of Illinois. New to Arizona, he is currently pursuing a Masters Degree of Music in Violin Performance under the tutelage of Dr. Katherine McLin. He received his Bachelor’s Degree of Music in Violin Performance in May of 2021 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. While attending, Michael studied under Professors Wayne Lee and Stefan Milenkovich. Prior to his collegiate studies, he worked with Ying Chai of the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra for over a decade.

Michael has always had a passion for music and planned on pursuing it from the moment he picked up the violin. His passion for music has led him to participate in masterclasses under the great pedagogues Janet Sung, Oleh Krysa, Renée Jolles, Timothy Lees, Gregory Fulkerson, and Rictor Noren. Honored to have worked with these incredible artists, Michael aspires to reach their level of musicianship and pedagogical success. Michael has extensive knowledge of classical music, music history, and all things violin. He believes that students should always be able to play music they enjoy while growing as musicians. Michael’s performance history includes classic repertoire by Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Paganini, Tchaikovsky, Franck, Waxman, Prokofiev, and Shostakovich, as well as lesser-known works by Purcell, Goldmark, Tegnér, Kodály, Gaubert, and Pettersson. A heavy advocate for contemporary music, Michael has also performed works by Penderecki, Oshima, Thomas, Danielpour, and Mazzoli, realizing that his true passion as a performer lies with this music.