REVIEW

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 23 February 2003

Not many people are as fortunate as Mark Lucas, who has managed to cultivate an early childhood interest, then watch it blossom into a career that enables him to work at something he loves--

Just talk to the Canonsburg native a while(like I did over lunch) and see if his enthusiasm for playing the guitar doesn't spill out into the conversation--

"At 6 and a half, I asked my father for a guitar for Christmas"--"He gave me a $29 Harmony I loved so much that playing was all I wanted to do"--

The lessons that followed with instructor Bill Loughman of McMurray taught him the instrument's fundamentals--When Loughman moved to Boston, he studied with guitarist Tony JanFlone Sr.of Washington, who introduced him to classical transcriptions for guitar by composers such as Bach, Albeniz, and Sor--

At 10 he played his first professional gig at the now defunct Pancake House in McMurray--By the time he graduated high school, playing had become a way of life--so he enrolled at Duquesne University in 1977 and graduated in 1981 with a degree in classical guitar--

In 1984, he moved to Boston, Massachusetts and immersed himself in the music world there--in 1991, he began studying with Charlie Banacos, a pianist/teacher who taught well-known jazz musicians such as Danilo Perez, Mike Stern, Lincoln Goines, Wayne Krantz, etc.--"I was on Charlie's waiting list for the better part of a year and a half before a slot opened up"--"Studying with him was a blessing"-

In 1996, he expanded his studies with guitarist Mick Goodrick, whose book THE ADVANCING GUITARIST made a lasting impression and provided a deep inspiration--"Mick is a wonderful teacher, and the book is the best I've ever studied from--he opened a whole new approach to the guitar"--

When Mark felt it was time to move from Boston in 1999, he at first planned on relocating to New Mexico, stopping in Canonsburg along the way--He didn't get to the southwest, deciding to live in Pittsburgh's Bloomfield neighborhood--"I was sort of waylaid by getting a lot of work in the area"-

Lucas will play April 5th for the W and J College Jazz Festival with saxophonist Michael Sakash--"When I first heard Mark," says Sakash,"I found him a very creative and lyrical improviser--He can play a wide variety of styles and has complete mastery of his instrument"--

Now 43, Lucas said he still loves playing the guitar and cannot imagine doing anything else with his life--He still practises 4-5 hours a day--His performance schedule has him playing solo, duo, trio, and quartet--His musical diversity runs the gamut--everything from R and B to jazz, brazilian, and contemporary music; his guitar has taken him to places such as Pearl's in San Francisco, gigs in Phoenix, Arizona, and to Anaheim, CA in 2002 for the NAMM Show--

On his second CD UNCOVERED, he is featured as a solo guitarist(and ensemble player in 2 trio pieces) in recordings of some of his favorite tunes such as PENNY LANE. ST. THOMAS, and WHEN I FALL IN LOVE-

Already a somewhat peripatetic guitarist, his long-range goals are to relocate eventually to Paris with his partner Karen--

Article by Dave Zuchovsky