Trombonist MARK A. BOWLING received his Bachelor of Music from Mansfield University in 1986, and received a Master of Music in Trombone Performance from Arizona State University. While in Arizona, he performed with the Phoenix Symphony, Ballet Arizona, and performed for Mass given by Pope John Paul II in Sun Devil Stadium in 1987.
In 1989, Mark became a member of The United States Army Field Band in Washington D.C. He is currently the band's principal trombonist and a featured soloist. While with the Field Band, he has toured both internationally, and throughout all 50 states. Highlights have included regular performances with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Boston Pops under Keith Lockhart, including a nationally televised appearance with the Pops on July 4, 1997.
In 1996, Mark helped to form the Embassy Brass Quintet, an official chamber ensemble within The U.S. Army Field Band. The quintet has established a national reputation of musical excellence. In addition to performing dozens of recitals and masterclasses at major schools of music throughout the United States, the group has performed on live television broadcasts in Detroit and Buffalo, as well as on Good Morning America and at the New York Stock Exchange in June of 2000.
The Embassy Brass Quintet was a guest of the Atlantic Brass Quintet at Tanglewood in 1997 and 1998 where they gave several recitals and coached student brass quintets. They have been featured at the 1997 TUBA Conference, the 1997 Eastern Trombone Workshop, the 1999 International Trombone Festival, the 2000 International Women's Brass Conference, and the 1999 Georgia Brass Quintet Festival at the invitation of Mr. Fred Mills.
Mark is active as a free lance musician, clinician, and adjudicator in the the Baltimore-Washington area, and was a winner of the Baltimore Chamber Music Competition in 1998.