09/25/2026
Highlighting our next Seminar week artist 🎶
Mark Strickland began playing guitar around 1964, taking lessons in downtown Pittsburgh in the Werner Building, located where the Cabaret Theater is today. He began playing in rock and roll bands in the 1960s and 1970s and started playing jazz in the late 1960s after going to see jazz musicians around the city, including those who performed at the Hurricane and Crawford Grill.
Mark eventually had the opportunity to play with many of those musicians, including Grady Tate, Gerald Wilson, Gene Ludwig, Pete Henderson, Roger Humphries, Spencer Bey, Rabbit Barnes, David Braham, Eric Suseoff, Dwayne Dolphin, Tom Wendt, and Vanessa Rubin.
He has also played on several CDs with Michele Bensen, Max Leake, Gene Ludwig, and Jessica Lee.
Mark currently performs at venues throughout Pittsburgh, including the Rivers Club, The Golden Age, Con Alma, Uncorked, and The City of Asylum.
He currently teaches jazz guitar at the University of Pittsburgh and continues to be a student of music.
