A native of Marin County , California , Mark played keyboard in
a number of bands in the 1960's, 70's and 80's. He was the keyboard
player in the original "Heart of Gold Band" after Keith
Godchaux's untimely death in 1980. Initially, Mark sought a major
in music, but eventually gained his degree in film from UCLA where
he studied film scoring with David Raskin.
The 1980's were a renaissance for documentary films in the San
Francisco Bay Area; and Mark was soon working on many of those
projects. During this period he worked briefly as a music editor
for such directors as Milos Forman, David Lynch, and Francis Ford
Coppola. (His music editing credits include "Amadeus," "Blue
Velvet," "Tucker," and "Godfather III.")
In 1991 he began a long association scoring films for National
Geographic Television.
He has scored nine feature films and twelve television movies. Feature
films include "Focus," "Picture Bride", and Wayne
Wang's films, "Eat a Bowl of Tea," and" "Life
is Cheap." In 1999 he won a Primetime Emmy for his work on HBO's "The
Rat Pack." His work in " Forbidden Territory : Stanley
's Search for Livingstone," was also nominated for a Primetime
Emmy. In 2000, he composed the new theme for the long- running PBS
series, American Experience. He wrote and produced source music for
the Philip Kaufman films "The Unbearable Lightness of Being," and "Henry
and June. His range of experience has resulted in an eclectic musical
style often drawing from jazz, folk, world music, and traditional
orchestral idioms. He currently serves as a vice- president of the
Society of Composers and Lyricists. In addition to his full schedule
in film scoring, Mark has once again taken his place as the keyboard
player in the reformed "Heart of Gold Band". Mark is married
and lives in Santa Monica with his wife Joanie and daughter Brooke. |
