Anglo-Armenian violinist Mark Messenger has had a broad and varied career which has resulted in a global reputation as soloist, chamber musician, conductor, teacher, jury member, speaker and consultant. His love of music and the human connection it offers has meant he has shared the concert platform with some remarkable musicians and some incredible students. He hopes that these connections, some of which are fleeting, and others which last for decades, have in some way affected these people to the same extent as he has been transformed by them. For over four decades he performed on some of the most prestigious concert platforms in the world as a string quartet and chamber musician, recitalist, concerto soloist, concertmaster and conductor. He is privileged to have appeared with great international artists such as Lord Yehudi Menuhin, Ivy Gitlis, Maxim Vengerov, Bernard Greenhouse, Natalie Clein, Raphael Wallfisch, Yonty Solomon, Howard Shelley, John Lill, Michael Collins, David Campbell, Chris Garrick and Sir John Dankworth. For many decades he toured and performed with the Bochmann String Quartet, immersing himself deeply in the spiritual and transformative world of great string quartet repertoire, unlocking the secrets of truly intuitive and spontaneous chamber music performance. He has appeared internationally as a soloist, and as a duo recitalist with his long-time musical and life partner Maria Tarasewicz. He has been concertmaster for symphony and chamber orchestras, and opera and ballet companies including the Bolshoi Ballet and the European Chamber Opera. Other performing highlights have been as a session musician, including recording soundtracks for Hollywood Films and rock and pop albums, as well as touring in the 1980s and 1990s with his own innovative jazz/rock group, Mercury Jazz. His conducting career has seen him working with professional and youth orchestras. He conducted and appeared as soloist with the Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra for the Sultan of Oman’s New Year Concert, worked closely with the Ayoub Sisters, conducting two of their highly acclaimed albums and has performed at Elkton John’s private house party. He has appeared as a jury member for many international competitions in Europe, South East Asia, America and the UK. He is also much in demand as a speaker, mentor and consultant for educational projects. However, it is teaching that is Mark’s main passion. His ability to build both technical assurance and artistic integrity has contributed to his students’ many and varied successful international careers as chamber musicians, soloists, principal players in major orchestras and innovators within the music industry. His unique and insightful guidance, and the demands he places on his students to continue searching and examining the repertoire has proved to be  transformative. His roster of students covers over 30 nationalities, and he has taught and given masterclasses in great institutions throughout Europe, Asia and America. His educational philosophy underpins the ethos and impact of The Thinking Musician music programme of which he is a Co-founder and Artistic Director.

As long as his exploration of life and music continues to provide such human experiences, he will continue the journey with travelling companions from any walk of life and in any nation of the world.