BIOGRAPHY

Mark Haanstra is a versatile bass player based in the Netherlands. He started playing classical piano at an early age but switched to bass in his teens after hearing the music of James Brown. Soon after he started his studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam where he graduated cum laude in 1997.

His recognizable sound, groove and flexibility make him a much sought after musician by artists, ensembles and orchestras in many genres. Mark won several prizes, including the Dutch Jazz Competition with the Nemesis Quartet (1994), Geel (1998) and Agog (2002).

Last 15 years Mark recorded and played in over 30 countries with wide range of artists such as Simon Phillips, Terry Bozzio, Rembrandt Frerichs, Chris Cheek, Jorge Rossy Marcel Veenendaal, Ellen ten Damme, Nai Barghouti, Oene van Geel, Yuri Honing, Kris Berry and many others. In season 2019/20 Mark was the bass player for David Bowie’s ‘Lazarus.’ Through this monumental award-winning work, he met Henry Hey with whom he kept working ever since.

Mark played with major classical ensembles and orchestras including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Rotterdam Philharmonic, MDR Sinfonieorchester, Asko Schönberg and many more. He is a soloist in Steve Mackey’s Grammy Award-winning work Dreamhouse, which has been performed and recorded by several renowned orchestras such as the BBC and New York Philharmonic.

Mark teaches bass and ensemble at the Prince Claus Conservatoire in Groningen.

Read this interview (Dutch) with Mark in De Bassist.