About Mark McLain

It has been said by Roger Burn, current producer of "The Evolution of Helium" and teacher, "Mark concentrates on strong melodies and direct lyrics, using different musical flavors.  From guitar driven rock to a mellow jazz ballad, there is a large variety to his songs.  He will connect to many audiences." So what made him so eclectic?

Growing up in San Ramon, CA (40 miles east of San Francisco) Mark McLain was just a normal kid.  He took piano lessons once a week while focusing also on sports, friends, and school.

By age 11 he had gone to Danville Music Studio to study with Marc Gilson, Mark’s teacher and mentor to this day.  This is where composition and songwriting became his passion.  He wrote his first song at age 12, an instrumental piece entitled “Singing in the Glen,” which was named by his Irish grandfather. 

Mark continued to study with Gilson throughout middle school and high school, writing a number of songs along the way.  In addition to studying music in high school, Mark was a standout athlete in football and track.  He was a 1^st team all league at wide receiver for the football team and competed in the long jump, the triple jump, and the 4x100 relay on the track team, where he competed in the state championships.

After high school in 2001, Mark attended Southern Oregon University in Ashland, OR on a partial football scholarship where he started as a music major.  That lasted only a few years.  He realized that singing his songs at open mic nights was the only satisfaction he got out of the music department, where classical music was "king." 

In 2003 Mark left for Hollywood, CA to study in the keyboard program at the Musicians Institute.  During his time at M.I. he did nothing but study the music he wanted to study.  Classes were small, and he was able to build strong relationships with his peers and his instructors, including Roger Burn (mentioned above).  Roger saw the potential in Mark’s songwriting and took him under his wing, working with him one-on-one during his 2 years at school.  Mark released his first album in 2007.