Mr. Marshall started his Church music ministry as the Saturday 4pm organist at Immaculate Conception Church in Springfield, Missouri in 1984 as a 13 year old under the tutelage of then Music Director Michael Kern. Kern influenced Mr. Marshall in his joy of Hymns, Folk, and Contemporary styles of Christian Music. During this time, Mr. Marshall was also blessed to have as his private teacher, Wilfred Adler, a decorated jazz musician as well as a retired classical professor at Southwest Missouri State, now Missouri State University in Springfield. Eventually attending MSU under classical piano performance scholarship, Mr.
Marshall continued at Immaculate Conception Church through 1991 eventually accompanying all services with new Music Director and decorated organist, Mary Beth Wittry, who provided him with basic organ training and church accompanying skills.
Mr. Marshall co wrote with local original/cover band Freeway Green, singing lead and backed other rock/country bands in local and regional venues and had as many as 20-25 private piano students after employment at Bass Pro taking catalog orders and flipping patties at Steak N’ Shake.
In the summer of 1991, Mr. Marshall moved back to his birthplace in Los Angeles as an aspiring songwriter and keyboardist and attended the Los Angeles Recording Workshop trade school and became experienced in live sound and analogue recording techniques, including tape editing and tape recorder alignment. After briefly holding a local sound editing job, he was immersed in the L.A. songwriter/coffee house revival through harmonica player, Clay Goldstein, and was quickly spread around gigs and studio work thanks to Church accompaniment skill on piano and organ.
During this time, his band the Previous, led by Andras Jones toured extensively for 4 years recording 3 records with the group ending up in Olympia, Washington as the band’s base. Mr. Marshall returned to Los Angeles in 1996 and became father of his 1st child, Ry, working mail and front desk at a retirement residence. Again, Mr. Marshall quickly became in demand for up and coming songwriters armed with acoustic guitars that wanted a full sound and started producing and recording demos for them in his house shared with his wife and son. Mr.
Marshall turned down a European tour with the late R&B legend Solomon Burke after playing New Year’s “97 in Lake Lugano Italy to be closer to his family and worked locally until 1999.
For 8 years, Mr. Marshall, toured as a keyboardist, guitarist, vocalist for a full variety of acts from Vegas shows to South by Southwest, London to Brisbane while starting to sub at Lutheran, Baptist, and Catholic Churches and adding to his family with the birth of twins, Azur and Violet. The Lutheran Church in Pacific Palisades offered Marshall the organist and choir director job in 2008 through an absolute angel, Pati Vining and her daughter Allison. Mr. Marshall adapted easily from Catholic Liturgy and provided a country/blues feel for the contemporary service and found a much needed Christ centered family amidst “burn-out”. “The Church was right across from the high school and was central in sharing Christ’s light with my family.”
“I am very honored and grateful to be a part of St. John-Bellville and hope to share the gift of light through music. Please check out our ministry and be a part of the widest variety (Traditional, Gospel, Country and Contemporary) in Bellville. Also inquire about discount lessons in improvisation and sight-reading for piano, guitar, and drums.
Email: marshall@stjohn-bellville.org
