Mike graduated from the Berklee College of Music and Boston University with degrees in music composition. He taught music theory at Berklee and established the Berklee College Choir. Mike performed, either as a pianist or vocalist from Savannah, GA to Boston, MA, where he sang with the Boston Symphony’s Tanglewood Festival Chorus for six seasons.
Locally, Mike established Euterpean Productions, a successful regional Virginia theater group that operated the Peninsula Dinner Theater. He also founded Light Opera of Virginia. He edited and published a classical radio station listeners’ guide and served as broadcast host of a weekly program dedicated to Broadway music for WGH-FM.
In addition to writing the book Sidemen, a history of the regional “Sound of Swing” orchestra for which he played piano and wrote arrangements for 30 years, Mike wrote or arranged over 290 sacred choral and instrumental pieces, as well as numerous chamber and orchestral pieces. Over the years, Mike has served numerous church congregations as music director and organist.
Mike was predeceased by his parents, Richard and Patricia Hassell. He is survived by his wife for 30 years, Mary Ellen, stepson Scott Drumheller, his sister Rebecca Back and several nieces, nephews and cousins. He will be sorely missed by his 4-legged companions Beauxarts, BeeBee and BooBoo.
The family wants to say a special thank you to James Chever and Heather Tucker for their amazing care of Mike over the final year of his illness.
The family will greet visitors at the Parklawn-Wood Funeral Home 2551 N. Armistead Ave Hampton, VA 23666 on Monday, June 17, 2019 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. A celebration of Mike’s life will be held at 2 p.m. with entombment at Parklawn Memorial Park following the celebration.
If you choose, in lieu of flowers, please donate to one of the following in Mike’s memory: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place Memphis, TN 38105; ASPCA www.aspca.org/donate or your local animal shelter.
Friends are encouraged to visit www.parklawn-woodfh.com to share memories and offer words of condolence with the family.
