Mark Greathouse -- Bio
I
have played music ever since my father introduced me to the accordion at age
five. I won several awards for my
accordion performances in Oregon before going to Europe during my college years
to study German, where in the late 1960’s I met my future wife Helena. We were both foreign students at the
University of Hamburg in Germany. The attraction was mutual, and when Helena
discovered I could learn anything she could sing, I added my unique
accompaniment to her music. As students in Germany we performed several months together
in an international folklore cafe in Hamburg. In 1970 we were married in the Historic
Prague Old Town Hall, and later that year we came to America, where we have
lived ever since. We frequently travel back
to Europe to visit family and friends and perform our music.
My
professional career was first spent teaching German and Russian for several
years. I later worked for the Federal Government,
Bonneville Power Administration (an agency of the Dept. of Energy) from which I
retired.
I
enjoy playing Czech, German, Russian and American folk songs. My
repertoire includes music from several European countries, especially Spain and
Italy. I also play traditional American songs and musical standards, and I
especially enjoy classical and popular solos arranged for the accordion.
Music
composition on the piano has always been a strong interest for me, but only in
recent years after I retired did I begin to compose many piano pieces. I began
writing my first compositions in 2008 and continue to compose for the
piano. We have now published two dance
books, Dancing for Fun, Book 1 and Book 2, which consist of group dances for
all ages. These dance melodies were some
of my first compositions. Later some of my
compositions were recorded on several CDs played by well-known Czech pianist
Daniel Wiesner. I really enjoy creating
new melodies.
In
2001 Helena and I formed a duo, ‘The GREAT HOUSE of Music’, and returned to an
active musical career with her. We have
performed in many places both in the US and overseas. We now have our own original variety shown incorporating
some of my songs, based on our early lives together in Germany and the U.S. We have been performing this show around
Oregon.
