Stephen Mitton is a composer, educator, and performer based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He holds a master's degree in composition from Arizona State University where he studied with Jody Rockmaker, James DeMars, and Rodney Rogers, and has written socially and environmentally-conscious music for a wide variety of genres ranging from contemporary dance to full orchestra. Stephen is the recipient of numerous awards and grants, and was recently selected as a finalist in ASCAP’s Morton Gould Young Composers’ Awards for his string quartet Caricatures. He has received commissions from various performers across the country, as well as several groups and organizations including Winona State University, Chicago Public Schools, the Arizona State University Bands and Orchestras, the Arizona State University BioDesign Institute, and the Arizona Flute Society. Much of Stephen's current work centers on championing emerging composers by facilitating commissioning projects with local ensembles and school districts through his publishing company, Leading Tones Music.

Stephen is also an active performer, with a bachelor’s degree in cello performance from Utah State University where he studied chamber music with the Fry Street Quartet. He has participated in master classes with such groups as the Emerson, Ying, and Brentano String Quartets, and has given well-received performances throughout the country. He is also the cellist and founding member of the Logan Quintet, which released its second full-length studio album of Stephen's arrangements in winter 2020.

Stephen is working toward his doctorate in composition at the University of Michigan where he studies with Bright Sheng and Michael Daugherty. When he is not composing or practicing, he enjoys taking walks outside with his wife Sara and their two young children.

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Recent Performances

March 14, 2021

University of Michigan Concert Band 

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Premiere of Talking Points 

for chamber winds and fixed media

Feb 10, 2021

University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra New Music Concert

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Premiere of Distance Humors 

for chamber orchestra