Mark Hayes’ musical story began in a home where creativity was encouraged and music was a natural language. He started piano at age ten, discovered the joy of improvisation early, and went on to earn a B.M. in Piano Performance, magna cum laude, from Baylor University—where his calling as a composer and arranger first took root.
Today, Hayes is internationally recognized as a composer, arranger, conductor, and concert pianist whose music resonates in churches, universities, and concert halls around the world. His career has taken him across Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, South Africa, and Canada, yet his work remains grounded in a singular purpose: to write music that connects—artistically, spiritually, and to every listener.
Known for a distinctive American voice, Hayes draws freely from gospel, jazz, pop, folk, and classical traditions, shaping a sound that feels both fresh and familiar. With more than 2,000 published works, his catalog spans solo voice and piano, multiple pianos, jazz combo, orchestra, chamber ensembles, and choral music of every kind. His compositions and arrangements are regularly featured at ACDA, MENC, and Chorus America conventions, and he is frequently commissioned by churches, universities, children’s choruses, and community ensembles.
As a pianist, Hayes has recorded more than 25 solo piano albums, moving effortlessly from jazz and classical to gospel—music made to inspire performers and listeners alike. The Grammy Award–winning Kansas City Chorale, under the direction of Charles Bruffy, has recorded his larger works for chorus and orchestra, helping bring his most expansive musical visions to audiences worldwide.
Hayes’ creative reach extends into musical theater as well. He arranged and orchestrated Civil War Voices, winner of six awards including “Best Musical” at the 2010 Midtown International Theatre Festival in New York. His more recent venture, We’ll Meet Again, premiered at the Historic Savannah Theatre in 2022 to high acclaim and toured the Southeast in 2023.
A sought-after conductor of his own major works, Hayes has led performances at some of the world’s most celebrated venues. He first conducted his Te Deum and Magnificat at Carnegie Hall in 2007, returning in 2008 and 2009. He conducted the world premieres of The American Spirit(Lincoln Center, 2011) and Requiem (Lincoln Center, 2013), later leading the European premiere of Requiem in Rome in 2014. In 2019, he helped plan and lead the Ecumenical Worship Service for the national ACDA convention, and later that year conducted Requiem in Brasília, Brazil. He continues to conduct his works at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.
On May 26, 2024, Hayes conducted the world premiere of his newest opus, Kindness: a Chorale and Fugue in the Baroque Tradition, for chorus, soloists, and orchestra at David Geffen Hall in New York City—an artistic statement that reflects his belief in music’s power to lift, heal, and unite.
Whether composing at home in Kansas City, Missouri, or sharing music across the globe, Mark Hayes is grateful to live out his mission: “to create beautiful music for the world.”
Mark Hayes has three biographies available—the full one (on this page), a short one and a mini-bio—available for download at the press package page.