Michael Feinstein

Michael Feinstein, Ambassador of the Great American Songbook, has built a dazzling career over the last three decades bringing the music of the Great American songbook to the world. From recordings that have earned him five GRAMMY® Award nominations to his Emmy nominated PBS-TV specials, his acclaimed NPR series and concerts spanning the globe – in addition to his appearances at iconic venues such as The White House, Buckingham Palace, Hollywood Bowl, Carnegie Hall and Sydney Opera House – his work as an educator and archivist define Feinstein as one of the most important musical forces of our time.

In 2007, he founded the Great American Songbook Foundation, dedicated to celebrating the art form and preserving it through educational programs, Master Classes, and the annual High School Songbook Academy. Past graduates of the program, reaches students across the country, have gone on to record acclaimed albums and appear on television programs such as NBC’s “America’s Got Talent.” Michael serves on the Library of Congress’ National Recording Preservation Board, which ensures the future of America’s sound recording heritage.

The most recent album from his multi-platinum recording career is A Michael Feinstein Christmas from Concord Records, featuring Grammy Award-winning jazz pianist Alan Broadbent. Feinstein earned his fifth Grammy Award nomination in 2009 for The Sinatra Project.

His Emmy Award-nominated TV special Michael Feinstein – The Sinatra Legacy, which was taped live at the Palladium in Carmel, IN, aired nationally in 2011. The PBS series “Michael Feinstein’s American Songbook” was broadcast for three seasons and is available on DVD. His most recent primetime PBS-TV Special, “New Year’s Eve at The Rainbow Room” – written and directed by “Desperate Housewives” creator Marc Cherry – aired in 2014.  For his nationally syndicated public radio program “Song Travels,” Michael interviews and performs alongside music luminaries.

Feinstein was named Principal Pops Conductor for the Pasadena Symphony in 2012. He launched an additional Pops series at the Kravis Center in Palm Beach, Florida in 2014. The Gershwins and Me, Michael’s book from Simon & Schuster, features a new CD of Gershwin standards. 

Feinstein is Artistic Director of the Palladium Center for the Performing Arts, a three-theatre venue in Carmel, Indiana; Artistic Director for Carnegie Hall’s “Standard Time with Michael Feinstein” in conjunction with ASCAP; and Director of the Jazz and Popular Song Series at New York’s Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Feinstein’s at the Nikko, Michael’s nightclub at San Francisco’s Nikko Hotel, has presented the top music talents since 2013. He debuted at Feinstein’s/54 Below, his new club in New York, late in 2015. His first venue in New York, Feinstein’s at the Regency, featured major entertainers from 1999 to 2012.

After graduating from high school, Michael moved to Los Angeles and the widow of legendary concert pianist-actor Oscar Levant introduced him to Ira Gershwin. Feinstein became Gershwin’s assistant for six years, which earned him access to numerous unpublished Gershwin songs, many of which he has since performed and recorded. www.MichaelFeinstein.com.