B.S. in Music and Physics, St. Lawrence University
Mark Tavern is an educator, artist manager, consultant, administrator, and arts advocate. He has more than 30 years of entertainment industry experience, having worked for both commercial and not-for-profit entities in artist management, music licensing, the record business, and in performing arts administration.
Before joining the University of New Haven, Tavern taught music business at LaGuardia Community College/The City University of New York, and at the Institute of Audio Research. In addition to teaching, he operates a boutique company providing management, consulting, and licensing services to performers, composers, and record companies.
Prior to 2012, Tavern worked for several major record companies including Universal Music Group, SONY Music Entertainment, and BMG Entertainment. As an A&R Administrator with labels Island Records, Def Jam Recordings, and RCA Records, he worked on more than 200 recordings across many genres, including projects with such important artists as Justin Bieber, The Roots, Mariah Carey, Big K.R.I.T., Melissa Etheridge, India.Arie, Ariana Grande, Chrisette Michele, The Killers, D鈥橝ngelo, Sarah McLachlan, Mario, Monica, Barry Manilow, Whitney Houston, Adam Lambert, Kelly Clarkson, Angie Stone, Rhymefest, Maroon 5, Cassidy, Clay Aiken, Tyrese, Carrie Underwood, Heather Headley, Ziggy Marley, Rachael Yamagata, The Chieftains, Etta James, George Winston, Jim Brickman, Evgeny Kissin, Andy Summers, Dave Douglas, Eliane Elias, Tom Harrell, Fourplay, Denyce Graves, and Leontyne Price. While at RCA Victor he took part in a dozen Broadway cast album recordings including Urinetown, Avenue Q, Cabaret, and Ragtime, and numerous reissue projects, including the GRAMMY庐-winning 24-disc reissue The Duke Ellington Centennial Edition.
Tavern鈥檚 first job was as an intern at Glimmerglass Opera (now the Glimmerglass Festival) in Cooperstown, NY where he later became Company Manager.
Tavern is a cum laude graduate of St. Lawrence University, where he earned a B.S. degree and completed two majors: Music and Physics. He remains an active SLU alumnus, mentoring current students and recent graduates, and advising the University on their innovative New York City Semester for students in finance and the arts.
In addition to a blog, a newsletter, and several ebooks, Tavern writes about the music business for Audiomack, DJBooth, and Synchblog, and has contributed to several books including Work Hard, Playlist Hard; Don鈥檛 Forget About The Music; and The 360 Deal.
Selected Publications
鈥淢aking Records in the Pioneer Period of the Recording Industry 鈥 Parts One and Two.鈥 The Antique Phonograph. The Antique Phonograph Society, June and September 2026.
"Spotify Fan Engagement" in Work Hard Playlist Hard: Actionable Advice to Help Artists Grow Their Audience on Music Streaming Platforms, written by Mike Warner. Second Edition. Self-published, 2021.
The Audiomack Artist Guide, written with Anna Bond, Samuel Cohen, Sonny Digital, Liz Eason, Seth Faber, Adam Freedman, Esq., Karl Fricker, Benjy Grinberg, MeLisa Heath, Ryan Hobbs, Michael Kolar, Greg Norman, Esq., and Adam Small. Audiomack, 2022. .
"What Does an Artist Manager Do?" Audiomack, December 9, 2021.
"Song Copyrights Explained: 鈥楳usical Work鈥 vs. 鈥楽ound Recording鈥". Audiomack, March 31, 2021.
"An Artist鈥檚 Guide to Royalties, Recoupment & Cross-Collateralization." DJBooth, July 20, 2020.
"13 Music Industry Scams: Everything You Need to Know." DJBooth, September 26, 2019; Updated February 6, 2020.
"For The (Re-)Record: Here鈥檚 What You Need To Know About Re-Recording Restrictions." Synchblog, August 6, 2019. https://www.synchtank.com/blog/for-the-re-record-heres-what-you-need-to-knowabout-re-recording-restrictions/
"Blueface Doesn't Understand His Record Deal. Do You?" DJBooth, February 5, 2019.
Recent Presentations
"Before There Were Stars: Making Records in the Early Recording Industry." Symposium on Historic American Music: Diverse Sounds for a Young Nation. Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA, October 2025.
