Minnesota Chorale
Family of Choirs
We sing together to unite people and amplify diverse voices through rigorous artistic practice and joyous collaboration.
Michael Dennis Browne
May 28, 1940 - March 29, 2026
Dear Friends:
It is with great sadness that I write about the passing of Michael Dennis Browne, who died peacefully yesterday morning surrounded by his loving family. Michael was a remarkable man – an incredible writer, poet, teacher, collaborator, colleague, and friend. His humanity was great, his generosity limitless, and his art profound. His poems opened our hearts to the joys and challenges of the human experience providing insight into ourselves and the world around us. For those less acquainted with Michael’s life and work, I have excerpted parts of his biography which chronicles his distinguished career.
Michael had a special love of choral music and as a librettist wrote many texts for music, working for years with composer Stephen Paulus. Their post-Holocaust oratorio, To Be Certain of the Dawn, which the Minnesota Chorale performed twice, was nominated for the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in music by the Minnesota Orchestra and recorded in 2008 with the Minnesota Orchestra under Osmo Vänskä. Other composers Michael worked with included John Foley S.J., Carolyn Jennings, Juliana Hall, Tim Takach and Craig Hella Johnson, with whom he collaborated on Considering Matthew Shepard.
Michael came to the United States in 1965 from England, where he was born in 1940 of mostly Irish ancestry. After graduating from the University of Iowa, he taught at Iowa, Columbia, Bennington, and the University of Minnesota. He was a professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota, where he taught for thirty-nine years, served a term as director of the creative writing program, and was a member of the Academy of Distinguished Teachers.
Michael’s poems have been published in many magazines and anthologies. His awards include fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Bush Foundation, the Jerome Foundation, and the McKnight Foundation. Two of his collections won the Minnesota Book Award for poetry. His most recent collection of poems, Build Me a Boat: Words for Music 1968 – 2018 was published by Carnegie Mellon in 2020 as part of the Carnegie Mellon University Poetry Series. It is a beautiful selection of works that Michael wrote for music over the past fifty years including “lyrics, song cycles, songs for children, excerpts from libretti—some of them in free verse, some of them formal—as well as poems that, while not written to be part of specific musical works, were nonetheless written with music in mind or under the influence of particular works. The result is a volume that sits comfortably between poetry and music, lyrical and rhythmic and memorable.”
When I think of Michael, I will remember his zest for life, his boundless creativity and curiosity, his passion for music, his love of spoken and written word, his melodious speaking voice, the twinkle in his eye, and his caring for family and friends.
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Our thoughts and prayers are with Michael’s family as they mourn his passing and celebrate his life and legacy. To Michael, we extend our deepest gratitude for the many ways you touched our lives and that of the greater choral community. The Minnesota Chorale will honor you at our upcoming Family of Choirs Concert on May 3 at 4pm at Roseville Lutheran Church. I know you have followed the road home, where you now rest in beauty and peace.
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Requiescat in pace, dear Friend.
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Kathy
Stephen Paulus and Michael Dennis Browne
133k
Audience engagements per year
375
Singers
4
Ensembles
1
Family of Choirs
UPCOMING EVENTS
As we launch "Voices United," we're also learning how to sustain this beautiful work for years to come. Some concerts will introduce accessible ticketing (with generous "Pay What You Can" options), while others maintain our traditional suggested donation approach. What's not changing?
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Our commitment that every voice has value and financial circumstances never keep anyone from participating.
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The following are just one or two of our exciting programs coming soon.
We look forward to seeing you in the audiences!
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