Mark Otten (NL)

Coming from a rich musical background, starting out as a drummer, but also teaching himself to play guitars and keyboards, he gets involved in dance music at an early age. It doesn’t take long until the world’s number 1 DJ Armin van Buuren notices Mark’s talent and signs the first progressive trance single, ‘Mushroom Therapy’ to his personal Armind label. “Mushroom” is an epic melodic piece of dance music, featuring Mark himself on lead guitar, and is considered a classic. At the same time, Mark’s music gets picked up by legendary DJ Tiesto, when the lush ‘Inner Warmth’ gets signed to Tiesto’s Blackhole label under the ‘Lightscape’ alias. ‘Inner Warmth’ gets plays all over the world. New releases follow soon, on leading labels such as Armind and Electronic Elements, on which Mark releases his more underground ‘Rio Addicts’ project (‘Crossroads’). The biggest players in the industry such as Paul van Dyk, Markus Schulz, Above & Beyond, Ferry Corsten, Paul Oakenfold, Armin van Buuren and Tiesto include Mark’s work in their sets and compilations (for instance the renowned ‘In Search of Sunrise’ and ‘A State of Trance’). Always trying new ways to use his creativity, Mark loves collaborating. Whether it is true progressive trance (‘Time Is Serene’ with Carrie Skipper) or more funky (‘When Cosy Met Randy’ with Fine Taste), Mark’s up for it. Recently, Mark has been working closely with songwriting moguls Raz Nitzan and Adrian Broekhuijse (known for their work for Armin van Buuren, Markus Schulz, Cosmic Gate and more), producing for young DJ star Julian Vincent and their prestigious chillout project Dark Matters. Julian’s first single ‘Certainty’ is included on Armin van Buuren’s A State of Trance 2008 album and the third single ‘Here For Me’ is featured on both Markus Schulz’s Vegas ’10 album and Armin’s Universal Religion 4. Having a profound passion for pop songs also, Mark is involved in projects such as Gia Mellish and remixing UK synth pop outfit Chew Lips. Next to producing music himself, Mark works at Armin van Buuren’s Armada Music office for a few years, where he gains insight into the other side of the music industry. Nowadays, Mark is also associated with the two leading Dutch institutions for popular music, teaching Music Production at the Rockacademy and the Herman Brood Academy. With new tracks and remixes constantly coming up in multiple projects and styles, Mark Otten is a leading force in music today. Albums containing his material have been released within the United States, Europe and from Africa to Australia. “I just love doing this, I sense that music brings me closest to myself, ” Mark says. “It feels great to know that other people can relate.”