COMPOSER ARTIST
MICHAEL DERAGON

COMPOSER

Deragon scores independent film projects, theatre productions and creates his own video/sound installations. He uses a variety of classical instruments, guitars, prepared pianos, field recordings, synths, found sounds, toys and electronics. He often uses techniques inspired by chance, improvisation layering elements to create delicate, sometimes haunted, elegantly dark and always evocative sounds. 

ARTIST

As a collage artist Deragon began making band flyers for all his experimental bands in college through the 1990s. From there he became obsessed with found paper, old blue prints and masking tape. He began showing his work in 2006 and continues to make and show his collages. Deragon adores Hoch, Ernst, Breton, Picasso, Cornell and others looking to create ladders from the mundane to the new/etheral.

FILMS/PUBLICATION-ART SHOWS/RECORDINGS ETC:

Most Recent: MOON FALL (LIONS GATE 2021 Addtional Sounds) Heliochrysum (We Become Mist-Original Music-Bedroom Community Records-2021) Moon Garden (Composer-Feature 2022-FireTrail Films) 2019 Cold Brook (Composer-Feature: Winner of WoodStock Film Festival Carpe Diem Award 2018). 

SOUND WORK:

Every Child's Dream Has Teeth (Short) LA CA 2017* The BlackWindMill EP 2016 LA CA*  FOUR QUARTETS FOUR SHORT FILMS (SHORTS) 2015 * Composer UnBound (Short) 2015  *Composer ChatterBox (Short)2014 *Composer Harvard and Hudson Short Film LA CA 2014 *COMPOSER DARKNESS PEERING : SHORT FILM LA CA 2013  *DIRECTOR/WRITER/COMPOSER : DEAR DARLING LA CA  (Featured on EXTRACTS)  2013*Composer: Collecting Change Short Video Poem Los Angles, CA Featured for Topanga Art Installation 2012    *Composer: Joey Half-Bad Short Film Los Angeles CA   2011 *Composer/Co-Producer:DROP Experimental Theatre Calstate Northridge LA CA  2011*William Tell Commission : Hammer Museum/Machine Project A serious of Experimental Scores for two cellos featured at Hammer Museum LA CA  2011*Composer: Poker Night Short Film Los Angeles CA 2011  *Composer:HINI/Virus X Feature Film(Sundance/Lions Gate) Los Angeles CA 2010*Commission for 100 Composers: Machine Project for Hammer Museum Los Angeles  2010*Sound Collages: Performance West SOUND AND SEA GALLERY Los Angeles CA  2010*Mess America Sound Design/Composer Calstate Northridge Northridge CA 2010*Fresh Squeeze Festival CALARTS Valencia CA Vocal Ensemble: Hiss Jico HUM  2009*Sea and Space Festival Los Angeles CA Vocal-MovementEnsemble : Hiss Jico HUM 2009 *Sea and Space Festival Los Angeles CA  Field Recording/Piano  2009  *Composer: Machine Project featured at LACMA Los Angeles CA Solo Vocal  *SEA and Space Festival Los Angeles CA Featured Composer: Noone Knew About This (audio and video collage) 2008 *An Evening of John Cage: Guitarist Los Angeles CA Part of the Calarts Experimental Music Workshop RedCat 2008-2009  *Walking LA :Resurfacing Los Angeles by Sara Wookey Composer/SoundDesigner Multiple venues: MOCA San Diego, UC Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara Art Festival, Gallery 727   2009 *Prajna Music Improv Ensemble Knitting Factory: NYC 1999-2001

(Poetry/Collage)
Dabarts Online Selection Collages 2021 Mixed Collage Group Show 2015 Bustamonte Gill Gallery Los Angeles * You and Your Body Sept. 2013 Muzzle Magazine *Concrete Exile andDust: Sound Collages MAY2013 book by JeanineMinge for Routledge Press: 2012  *Fern Colored Eyes (Collage): Big Luck 2011.  *regarding you: Big Luck 2010.  HelicopterHelicopter : Limnalities 2010 (book length poetry manuscript and audio collection)  *What I WasWanting  (Automatic Writing Manuscript): Translated in Spanish for the Las Palabras : Bogata, Columbia 2009. *The Gravity ofHornets:(Poem)The Sierra Nevada Review 2007 *A Slow Evening: The Cafe Review 2007 (Collage)   *Sound: The CafeReview 2007 (Collage) *From Your Eyes to MyTeeth: (Poem) Drumvoices 2007   *Jazz Tongue: (Poem) Drumvoices 2007 *Day Job: (Poem) Karmau 2007 *Surrealism: (Poem) Epicenter 2007 *A Note: (Poem) Puerto Del Sol 2007 *The Dark Like An Egg: (Poem) Iodine 2007 *Replace In Us What Has Been Lost: (Poem) Compass Rose 2006 *Succubus: (Poem)The Yalobusha Review 2006 *Four Collages: The Cafe Review 2005 *Automatic: (Poem) Poet Lore 2005 *To Whom Koch Destroyed After Reading W.C. Williams:(Poem) Cafe Review 2004 Readings Include: Chester College, various radio shows, TheSmell Los Angeles, RedCat Los Angeles, Calarts, Skylight Books, etc. 2006-2009.

RECORDINGS 
Heliochrysum: Bedroom Community Records 2021 M. Deragon Invisible Life 2018 (Assembly Fields Music) M. Deragon Somewhere We Are Lost  (2015) *The Cooling Time : 2 EPs (2010-2012)  *The Great Invisibles: You Left Me Haunted 2006 Broken Sparrow Records, Anywhere but Here  (forthcoming) *The Water Section: The Winter of Love and Fury 2001 : And Then the Distant Hum of the American Diesel Engine 2003 Saltwater Records *Prajna:  Postmodernism 1998 Eclectic Recordings

GALLERY-CURATOR-PRODUCER 
Group Show Busta Monte Gill, Los Angeles CA 2014  *The Broken House Group Show Los Angeles CA July 2012  *Downtown Artwalk Group Show Debra Miller Gallery Los Angeles CA June 2009 *Art Stimulus Show The Whole 9 Gallery Group Show Los Angeles CA May 2009 *Assemblage and Tear Two Person Show Nahcotta Gallery Portsmouth NH June 2007 *Mixed Tape Solo Show Nahcotta Gallery Portsmouth NH April 2006 *Enormous Tiny Art Group Show Nahcotta Gallery Portsmouth 2006/2007 *Sotto Voce (Bands and Video) Curator/Producer Nahcotta Gallery Portsmouth NH 2006-2007

AWARDS:  Carpe Diem Award Cold Brook 2018 Woodstock Film Festival Winner of Interdisciplinary Grant California Institute of the Arts 2009 Sea and SpaceFestival First Place Heavy MetalVocalist Competition March 2009 Water Section and Great Invisibles Nominee Spot Light Awards Best Alternative Bands Portsmouth NH 2006-2007Best Painter Nominee Spotlight awards Portsmouth NH 2009