About the Instructor

A California native, Mark spent his youth in the city of Whittier where he began taking violin lessons at the age of four. Soon after, he studied classical piano for six years before pursuing the guitar full time. At the age of twelve he began instruction under the tutelage of guitar great Rusty Anderson (current guitarist for Paul McCartney as well as studio guitarist for Elton John, Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, Willie Nelson, Santana, Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction, and more) and around the same time became very serious about music.

After playing in various blues, rock, and experimental bands, Mark co-formed the Rock-Fusion band Solomon Grundy in 1991, which gained a large following of loyal fans throughout the US.

Mark eventually studied jazz theory and composition for three years with Alan Rowe (Stan Kenton Orchestra, Keith Jarret) before attending the University of California, Irvine, to study classical guitar and baroque lute. Here he had the opportunity to study with and play for many prominent International classical guitarists, including David Tanenbaum, Scott Tennant, Ricardo Cobo, Andrew York, and John Schneiderman.

After graduating Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Music Performance Degree, Mark focused his abilities on touring internationally and performing with various acts, including Jazz Legend Larry Carlton, Tim Reynolds (Dave Matthews Band), and Dave Mason with Traffic.

Some of the venues Mark has performed at include The House of Blues, John Anson Ford Theater, The Coach House, Observatory Theater, and The City National Grove.

Mark began teaching music privately in 1993 and formed Hamrock Music Instruction in 2001. He has taught thousands of students, including professional musicians and music teachers, professional NFL players, Hollywood actors, and Olympic Gold Medalists. Subjects taught include song writing, music production, composing, arranging, guitar & bass.

As a Producer, Recording Engineer, and songwriter, Mark has worked with many bands and artists including Brooks Wackerman (drummer for Avenged Sevenfold, Blink 182, Bad Religion, Suicidal Tendencies, and Tenacious D), Solomon Grundy, Breakfast with the Mayor, and The Pickups, as well as many others.

Mark began composing and orchestrating music for film, TV, ads, and video games in 2015. You can see his film scoring and sound design work at markhamrock.com.