Mark Whitfield graduated from Boston’s prestigious Berklee College of Music,
the world’s foremost institution for the study of Jazz and modern American music
in the spring of 1987. Shortly thereafter, he returned to his to his native New York
to embark on a career as a Jazz Guitarist that afforded him the opportunity to
collaborate with legendary artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Quincy
Jones, Ray Charles, Herbie Hancock, Carmen McRae, Gladys Knight, Burt
Bacharach, Jimmy Smith, Clark Terry, Shirley Horn, Wynton Marsalis, Branford
Marsalis, Joe Williams, Stanley Turrentine and his greatest teacher and mentor
George Benson.
In 1990 the New York Times dubbed Whitfield “The Best Young Guitarist in the
Business”. Later that year, Warner Bros. released his debut album “The
Marksman”. The success of his debut release led to a recording career that has
produced a total of 14 solo recordings and a myriad of collaborative efforts with
some of the most important artists in recent years; Sting, Steven Tyler, D’Angelo,
Mary J. Blige, John Mayer, Chaka Khan, Jill Scott, Diana Krall, Christian
McBride, Chris Botti, Roy Hargrove and Nicholas Payton.
Along the way the “Whitfield Family Band” was born, literally. In 1994 The Mark
Whitfield Quartet appeared on the Thanksgiving Day broadcast of Good Morning
America. This performance featured a very special guest drummer, 4 year old
Mark Whitfield Jr. It was obvious even then that he was destined for greatness.
Following in his father’s footsteps he attended the Berklee College of Music and
graduated in 2011 with honors. He went on to study for his Masters Degree at
the Manhattan School of Music while simultaneously embarking on a career as a
drummer extraordinaire. He has quickly earned a reputation as one of the best
young drummers in Jazz and was nominated for a Grammy in 2014 as part of the
ensemble featured on Kenny Garrett’s 2013 release “Pushing the World Away”.
Not to be outdone by his older brother, Davis Whitfield, a prodigious pianist,
earned a Presidential Scholarship and graduated from the Berklee College of
Music with honors in 2014.
Together, the “Whitfield Family Band” has created a brand new recording project.
It will be released on January 24th, 2017. It features Mark Whitfield on
guitar, Mark Whitfield Jr. on drums, Davis Whitfield on piano, Yasushi Nakamura
on bass and the incredible Sy Smith singing the title song, Grace!!.
Monday, December 3 Blue Monday
Professors of Jazz w/ Mark Whitfield
Call ahead to register at:
517-333-2424 ext. 2348/ cvanhourt@msufcu.org
Venue: 3777 West Road, East Lansing, MI 48823
Time:6:00pm-7:00pm
Tuesday, December 4 Rehearsals & Workshop MSU
Time: 12:40-2:40 Joint Improv/Workshop Room: 206 MB
Time: 4:00- 9:00 Open Rehearsal w/ Jazz Orch I, II, III Room: 120 MB
Friday, December 7 Guitar Workshop & Jazz Orchestra’s Concert
12:40pm – 2:40pm Guitar Workshop Cook Recital Hall
Jazz Orchestra’s Concert
Ensemble: Jazz Orchestra I, II, III w/ Mark Whitfield
Venue: Fairchild Auditorium- 542 Auditorium Road, East Lansing, MI