Mark Joseph Phillips

Mark Phillips is a jazz guitarist based in Great Barrington, Massachusetts who loves to play swing, traditional, and straight ahead styles of jazz.

Samples of his music live on Instagram at @MarkPhillipsGuitar

If you're interested in hiring him for a gig, email [email protected]

Mark performs in a variety of contexts, from restaurants to weddings and private events, and can play as a solo guitarist, in duo format, or with a full band.

More about Mark:

Mark has played guitar since sixth grade, and jazz since college when he became an avid listener of "Gypsy Jazz", or jazz manouche, focusing primarily on rhythm guitar and occasionally attending jam sessions at the World Cafe Live.

In 2015 he experienced repetitive strain injuries in his hands & wrists which changed the trajectory of his professional career. He experienced a complete recovery after discovering the work of the Psychophysiologic Pain Disorder Association, which he wrote about here. (As a side note, Mark is passionate about helping people and specifically musicians find solutions to chronic pain and other medically unexplained illnesses).

As of 2024, Mark plays mostly “Hot Swing” and traditional American jazz while continuing to chip away at the marble block of the Great American Songbook.

His current project, Hot Chestnut, endeavors to draw from the best of these traditions to create a musical experience that even people who “hate jazz” can enjoy and maybe even dance to.

The musical premise of Hot Chestnut is to provide a foundational, toe-tapping rhythm section for a rotating guest list of my favorite solo horn or woodwind players.

If you're a venue looking for a bio, here you go:

Mark Phillips is a jazz guitarist based in Great Barrington, Massachusetts who loves to play swing and traditional jazz.

Hot Chestnut, his latest project, draws inspiration from traditional, straight ahead, and jazz manouche to create a listening experience for everyone.