For decades, Mark Soderlind has been a familiar face in Thunder Bay’s music community. Soderlind has performed with a variety of groups, including After Hours Jazz, Bourbon Haze Blues Band, Quarter to 12, The Touch, and CR Slam, moving comfortably between jazz, blues, soul, R&B, rock, country, theatre productions, and orchestral performances. Whether he’s playing jazz with Mood Indigo, performing in a rock tribute show, or working on a country album, Mark has built a career on versatility.
“I adjust to whichever project I’m working on,” he says with a laugh.
As he discusses music, Soderlind shows his various instruments from the 1950s and 1960s. To him, each instrument tells a different story.
“There’s something different in every guitar, the wood and the methods they used to build them back then,” he says.
Despite owning several vintage instruments, Soderlind doesn’t see himself as a collector.
“I don’t collect instruments. I use them as tools for different applications,” he says.
Music has been a constant presence in his life since he was orphaned at the age of 12. He began playing at a very young age and later studied classical guitar at Lakehead University. Mark remembers his mentors Sean Mundy, Elizabeth Ganiatsos, who taught him history, and Heather Morrison for helping shape his musical foundation and ensemble performance.
“Lots of people play by ear, which is totally fine of course, but being able to read music opens more musical doors in classical and Jazz music,” he says.
After graduating, he performed extensively throughout the city, sometimes playing as many as 20 gigs a month. An opportunity to teach at Hillcrest High School came when teacher Marcella Smithers went on sabbatical and her musical headship position opened up. Since then, balancing teaching and performing has become a way of life.
Many local musicians know Soderlind not only as a performer, but also as a teacher who helped shape their musical journey.
“I would teach during the day and then head out to perform gigs afterward,” he recalls.
Throughout his career, Mark has continued learning, teaching himself band instruments to help facilitate teaching high school music. He cites the book Jazz Theory: A Creative Approach by Kenneth Stanton as one of the most influential resources in helping him understand music theory and composition. Beyond performing, Mark also writes and records original music in his home studio. Over the years, he has written, produced, and recorded original material with fellow musicians.
Among his musical influences, Soderlind points to jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery as one of his greatest inspirations. He also admires guitarists Jeff Beck and Ritchie Blackmore.
After decades of teaching and performing, Mark’s advice remains simple: “Practice, practice, practice.”
He often returns to a quote from renowned cellist Pablo Casals which is something to the effect of: “Creativity is common. Discipline is rare.”
We sat in Soderlind’s living room overlooking a glass-walled patio, watching birds come and go throughout the afternoon. Between conversations about music, teaching, and his growing interest in the natural world around him, he spoke warmly about his wife, Lisa, and the support she has given him over the years.
Today, Mark remains as busy as ever. Although he retired from teaching in 2018, he continues working as a freelance musician and remains actively involved in musical productions throughout Thunder Bay. Audiences may have recently seen him in productions such as Frozen at St. Ignatius High School and Mean Girls at Westgate High School. Mark also performed in the last two years in a Billy Joel tribute show based in Nashville.
This summer, he is recording a country album with local artist Nick Warren, a project he says he is quite enjoying.
He also continues performing jazz gigs with Mood Indigo and taking part in Ozzy Osbourne tribute performances.
For a musician who has spent a lifetime moving between jazz, blues, rock, country, orchestras, and theatre productions, perhaps that’s exactly what makes him a chameleon guitarist.
