Mark Scherzinger prefers to share the spotlight. A self-described “sideman guitarist”, Mark started Portraitures in 2019 while living in Sudbury, Ontario, as an outlet for the instrumental songs they were writing. The project evolved in 2021, when Mark was able to make the move to Toronto. With a deep fondness for the Sudbury music scene, Mark still recognized the varied creative opportunities in Toronto:
“Far before playing music, I'm a fan of music... The reason why I think any of us play music is we're fans first and players after. It doesn't always stay that way the whole time, but it's the spark of inspiration is very much that. And I had this realization that – because I like a pretty diverse body of music genre wise – I was like, ‘wow, I can hear incredible music in this city any night of the week’. Sudbury’s music scene is incredible, truly remarkable, and punches wildly above its figurative weight class... But it's just a smaller music scene... [in Toronto], I can hear great art any night I want; that seemed like the thing that would really fill me up the most.”
After moving to Toronto, Portraitures became a vehicle of collaboration, and an instrument for Mark to highlight the projects and artists they treasure; as they put it, “a love letter to community”. Each song has different collaborators and performers, each a different slice of Toronto’s music scene. Mark describes, “it would be like a portrait of a friend, was the idea... Through my compositional lens, I’m showcasing my reverence and how much I appreciate my community, and my friends, through the art.”
The lyrics of the most recent Portraitures release, Ways You Are, were co-written by Mark and Melanie St. Pierre of Casper Skulls. It is also the first Portraitures release Mark as ever sang on; in a way, a self-portrait.
Near the end of our discussion, I asked Mark about their thoughts on recent developments in the United States, and the additional barriers that musicians now face when trying to tour and build a career. They believe that – more than ever – strong, concerted, grassroots efforts to develop connections in the community are vital: “I would never fault anyone for not using every tool at their disposal to succeed in the realm of making art, especially if it leads to monetary success, or being able to pay your bills and not being in a load of debt all the time... but I think the biggest show I ever played is far from the favourite show I've ever played. My favourite shows have been small rooms packed with people [I] love and care about. So I just try to centre making music around that as much as I can.”
All of Portraitures’ releases, including Ways You Are, can be found on Bandcamp or streaming (Apple Music and Spotify).