Mark Hightower was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana but has lived in the greater Philadelphia area in Pennsylvania most his life. Mark sang as the bass soloist in rehearsal with the Philadelphia Orchestra for Beethoven’s 9th Symphony under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin alongside soloists such as Angel Blue, soprano. This past season he was the BassSoloist for the Wayne Oratorio Society, the Haverford-Bryn Mawr Chorale, the Wilimgton Mastersingers, and the Lansdale Choristers performing works such as Haydn’s Creation, Handel’s Messiah, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Benjamin Britten’s Rejoice in the Lamb, and Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music.

Since leaving his 15 year teaching career in 2022, Mark sang the role of Hariadeno in Cavalli’s L’Ormindo at the Théâtre National Mohammed V in Rabat, Morocco and reprised the Beethoven 9th Symphony solos with the New Jersey Capital Philharmonic. He has also recently enjoyed taking the opera stage as Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro and Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte at the Trentino Music Festival in Italy and as Frank in Die Fledermaus with Lyric Opera Studio Weimar in Germany. He is looking forward to making his debut as Dr. Grenvil in Verdi’s La traviata with Opera Delaware and Opera Baltimore this March and April, as Osmin in Mozart’s Die Entführung with the Jenaer Philharmonie in Jena, Germany this June, and as Coline in La Bohème with Opera Synergy in Cardiff, Wales this July. Additionally he will enjoy singing the title role of Mendelsohn’s Elijah with the Kutztown University Orchestra in May, the bass solos of Mozart’s Vesperae solennes and Haydn’s Theresienmesse with the Wilmington Mastersingers in May, the bass solos of Mozart’s Vesperae solennes and Haydn’s Harmoniemesse with the Choristers of Upper Dublin in April, and performing recitals for Music in the Somerset Hills organization in March.