MARK MATTHEWS Mark was born in Wollongong New South Wales, Australia, in 1961. He studied piano, organ and singing and was National Champion in the Yamaha Electone Festival in 1979. He represented Australia in Japan where he was ranked in the world top ten that year. Whilst in Japan he competed against the great American Composer and pianist Philip Keveren. In 1983 Mark graduated Civil Engineering with Honours through the University of Wollongong and practiced as a Construction Engineer around New South Wales for 6 years before embarking on a music career. He gained his Diploma in Music through the Yamaha Music Foundation in 1988. In 2005 he received an A.Mus.Ed and A.Comp (Hons) with the Australian Society of Musicology and Composition for his album “Music for the Heart and Soul” Opus 1. Mark has been teaching piano and organ since 1980 and has taught 3 National Champions on Electronic Organ in 1985, 1995 and the third he accompanied in 1996 to Kuala Lumpur for the Asia Oceania Finals. He currently teaches at Wollongong TAFE in the Civil Engineering faculty and teaches Piano in his private studio. As well as being a singer and composer Mark is an ABC radio presenter in the Illawarra where he can be heard regularly on Saturday breakfasts on 97.3 ABC Illawarra. His works include, organ solos, piano solos, both blues and light contemporary and vocal and piano works. Mark launched "Music for the Heart and Soul" an album of piano works on life, love and friendship, Opus 1, in June 2005 and Opus 2 in April 2006. It is also available in piano score for intermediate piano students or for teachers looking for some light contemporary piano solos to add to their library. Mark's two daughters are the focus of two compostions in Opus 1, "Sarah's Suite" and "Emily's Etude" whilst Mark and Sarah collaborate in Opus 2 with "Saranade"