Biography

Mark Snider is a guitarist that does many styles; including, Flamenco, New Age, Jazz, Classical, Pop, music from TV and movies. Mark plays at venues throughout Ohio, and his biggest claim to fame is performing at receptions for the Smothers Brothers and Olivia Newton-John at the Schuster Center in Dayton Ohio. His original compositions fuse many different musical styles and most people claim that they see "images" while they are listening.

His work contains original guitar duets and classical guitar solos. The music crosses over many traditional divisions of art forms including serious music intended for the concert hall, Flamenco which originated in Andalusia (Spain), and Jazz which relies heavily on improvisation, and is characterized by much use of syncopated rhythms. This music aspires to a universal form of communication. Mark Snider and his wife, Donna, reside in Nashport, Ohio. At the heart of his dedication to performance and recording is a deep commitment to the Christian faith.

Musical Concepts

Aesthetics (also esthetics) is the philosophy of beauty and art. The English word aesthetics is related to a similar Greek word aisthesis. Aisthesis in one sense means the ability to appreciate beauty and creation. Intra-psychic absolute truth (Bible Doctrine) fuels the aesthetic sense. We obtain the heightened ability to concentrate on what is laudable and beautiful from the study of scriptures. Hence, the title for the CD Songs in the Night comes from a statement made by Elihu, one of the friends of Job, who said,” But no one says, 'Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night, who teaches more to us than to the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds of the air?” (Job 35:10-11). It seems over the years that many of the tunes that I have received have come during the night. The term “negative capability” best describes how the music that I play comes into being. Negative capability is like being “plugged into” a power source that is outside of the self. There is a special mental state where the music moves or runs smoothly with unbroken continuity. In “negative capability” there is a feeling of complete and energized focus in the activity of making music and there is a high level of enjoyment and fulfillment. When plugged into the “flow” of aisthesis all concerns disappear and the subjective experience of time is altered. The same idea was expressed by the apostle Peter when he said, “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Peter 3:8). In the mental flow that comes from Aisthesis, there is awe but there is there is no contaminating emotion. In Psalm 19, David looked into the sky and he said that the sky spoke to him but, there was no audible voice talking to him at the time. The information being conveyed to David was in a universal language. Creation speaks in the language of aesthetics.

The aim and final end of all music should be none other than the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul.

-- Johann Sebastian Bach

Cup of Music Interview

ACM: From your albums, which three tracks are your favorites and why? Start from the one you like most.

MS: I will pick three songs to tell you about because they have kind of interesting stories related to them. First, Snowy River off of the album Living Water came on a beautiful winter evening. One winter evening when the snow was falling intensely, I was watching my dogs in the backyard playing in the snow. I could see each snow flake falling in the light. Through the trees in the backyard I could see the river. The moonlight reflected off the river and I could see the reflections despite the darkness. The music for Snowy River came on the evening that I just described.

The Song Living Water was really composed kind of on the spot in the studio. My partner Mark Humbert had written the chord arpeggios before hand but I had never heard them before then. We both kneeled down and said a little prayer before we played asking the Lord to help us play well. Anyway, I played the lead for that piece for the first time there in the studio. It was really amazing and totally the Grace of God all of the way. Every note came out perfect. It’s funny because I had to go back and learn the song from the CD later when we would perform it in public so that I would know what to play.

Music is truly a gift, in fact, many of my compositions actually write themselves. I am merely a vessel that the music comes through rather than the originator. The first cut on my most recent album “Songs in the Night” is called “Sparks Fly Upward” and it is based on the Flamenco tangos of Andalusia Spain. It’s hard to explain how deeply the Flamenco music touches me. I live up on a hill in Eastern Ohio that over looks Dillon State Park. I can remember sitting on my back porch one summer evening absorbed in the beautiful rolling hills and trees that surround our property. The Flamenco melody and the chord progressions of “Sparks Fly Upward” started to be born on that day.

ACM: How or where did you get the idea/inspiration when you composed your music?

MS: I believe that intra-psychic absolute truth that comes from Bible Doctrine fuels the sense of aesthetics. The more Bible Doctrine I study the more music I write. I don’t believe that I am the source of the music but rather a conduit that the melodies come through. The chord of a lamp that is plugged into the wall carries the electricity that makes the bulb display light. However, the chord is not the source of the power that brings the light and neither is the bulb for that matter. Also I do believe that beauty of nature also fuels the creative flame.

ACM: Define your music. Also, what would you like the listener to get from it?

MS: The music that I play hopefully brings a sense of inner peace to the listener. It certainly gives me joy and peace while I play so hopefully those same things are experienced by the listener.

ACM: What inspired you to become a musician/artist?

MS: I believe early in my life the playing of Andres Segovia had a tremendous impact on me. I can remember in college listening to the Spanish Classical pieces that Andres played particularly the compositions of Isaac Albeniz. I would listen to recordings again and again hoping that someday I too could play that music. Many consider Andres Segovia the father of the modern classical guitar movement. However, over the years I have heard many great players that have inspired me.