“The Oregon Trail is special to me because it brought the nation together at a time when it was divided. It’s an epic story and I just want to embellish on the greatness of it”
Dana Mengel has over 1,000 sacred sacred choral pieces published nationally and internationally from 1990 to 2010.
In recent years, he has turned his efforts to composing for his first love - the strings.
Many of these new pieces were developed “prairie dances” which he developed with his brother Leslie. Some of the dances were based on the paintings of American artist George Caleb Bingham.
That effort resulted in the album “Inspired by Bingham” and his compositions being included in the Emmy-award winning documentary “The American Artist: The Life and Times of George Caleb Bingham.”
Subsequently, Mengel embarked on a lengthy composition for strings and percussion - The Oregon Trail Suite. The 21-movement suite is yet unperformed but selections have been featured in public performances and one movement aired on National Public Radio in Honolulu.
Other string compositions have yet to be performed but are available to listen on this website.
The music is very personal, deeply felt and affected by place, time, history and personal relationship. One original piece is a tribute to a daughter Gloria who died of childhood cancer (age 16) in 2014. She was a dancer which the piece clearly captures.