Mike Wendeln is a Cincinnati-based steelband educator, performer, and composer who has been teaching steelband for over 15 years. He is the founder and director of Cincy Steel, a community pan ensemble, and he recently launched a steelband program at Aiken New Tech High School. Previously, he has led the acclaimed pan programs at Leon High School in Tallahassee, Florida, and Walnut Hills High School in Cincinnati, Ohio.
As an active performer, Wendeln has collaborated with many of the leading figures in the steel pan world and has traveled to Trinidad to immerse himself in its musical culture. In 2015 and 2016, he competed with the renowned birdsong Steel Orchestra in the Trinidad National Panorama competition.
Beyond performing and teaching, Wendeln publishes steelband music through his company, Wendeln Music Works, and is the author of Steelband in the Classroom, one of the only pan methods books written for the classroom. He is also active as a guest clinician and composer and currently serves as the Chair of Education Committee of the National Society of Steel Band Educators (NSSBE).
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Miami University and a Master’s degree in Percussion Performance from Eastern Kentucky University, where he studied with Dr. William Albin, Dr. Chris Tanner and Dr. Jason Koontz.