W. Claude Baker Jr. (born April 12, 1948 Lenoir,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

) is an American composer of

contemporary classical music Contemporary classical music is Western art music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st-century classical music, 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 Modernism (music), post-tonal music after the death of ...

Biography

Claude Baker attained a B.M. degree, magna cum laude, from

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of universities in North Carolina by enrollment, fourth largest university in North Carolina and the only one in the state with s ...

in 1970. He subsequently studied composition at the

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. Established in 1921 by celebrated industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman, it was the ...

with Samuel Adler and

Warren Benson Warren Frank Benson (January 26, 1924 – October 6, 2005) was an American composer. His compositions consist mostly of music for wind instruments and percussion. His most notable piece is titled ''The Leaves Are Falling'' (1964). Biography Benso ...

, and holds M.M. (1973) and D.M.A. (1975) degrees from that institution. He is currently Class of 1956 Chancellor's Professor Emeritus of Composition in the

Jacobs School of Music The Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana, is a music conservatory established in 1921. Until 2005, it was known as the Indiana University School of Music. It has more than 1,500 students, approximately half of whom ar ...

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

, Bloomington, where he is also the recipient of the university-wide Tracy M. Sonneborn Award for accomplishments in the areas of teaching and research. Before his appointment at Indiana, he served on the faculties of the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

and the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

, and was a visiting professor at the Eastman School of Music. In the eight-year period from 1991 to 1999, he held the position of Composer-in-Residence of the

St. Louis Symphony The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is the second-oldest professional symphony o ...

, one of the longest such residencies with any major orchestra in the country. During this time, he initiated numerous community-based projects, the most notable of which was the establishment of composition programs at multiple grade levels in the St. Louis Public Schools. In recognition of his contributions to the cultural life of the city, he was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 1999. His music has been championed by such conductors as

Leonard Slatkin Leonard Edward Slatkin (born September 1, 1944) is an American conductor, author and composer. Early life and education Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a Jewish musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His fat ...

, Mario Venzago, Robert Spano, Gerhardt Zimmermann, Gilbert Varga, Juanjo Mena, and Giancarlo Guerrero, and by soloists including Marc-André Hamelin, Eugene Rousseau, Claire Huangci, Tzimon Barto, Jon Garrison, and Ana Higueras. Among the many orchestras in addition to St. Louis that have commissioned and/or performed his music are those of San Francisco, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Indianapolis, and Nashville, as well as the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930 by cellist Hans Kindler, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The NSO regularly ...

Orquesta Nacional de España The Orquesta Nacional de España (Spanish National Orchestra) is a Spanish orchestra based in Madrid. History Although the orchestra originated as of 1937, during the Spanish Civil War, it was legally founded in 1940, by the merging of Pérez Casa ...

, Musikkollegium Winterthur, Staatskapelle Halle, Orchestre National de Lyon, and Das Berner Symphonieorchester. Performances of his chamber works have been presented by Alarm Will Sound,

Cleveland Chamber Symphony The Cleveland Chamber Symphony (CCS) is an American chamber orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio, with a focus on performing contemporary classical music. Since its inception, the CCS has premiered over 200 works. The ensemble is affiliated wit ...

Voices of Change Voices of Change is a professional chamber music ensemble based in Dallas, Texas, United States. Voices of Change performs small ensemble works by 20th- and 21st–century composers. History Voices of Change was founded in 1974 by pianist Jo Bo ...

American Modern Ensemble The American Modern Ensemble is a contemporary classical music ensemble based in the United States in New York City with the goal of premiering, performing and recording and commissioning the widest possible repertoire written by American composer ...

, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, Empyrean Ensemble, Locrian Chamber Players, Ensemble Connect, Momenta String Quartet, and the Pacifica String Quartet (with pianist Ursula ). His music is published by Keiser Southern and Carl Fischer, and is recorded on the Naxos, Innova, ACA, Jeanné, IUMusic, TNC, Gasparo, and Louisville First Edition labels.

Accolades

The professional honors he has received as a composer include an Academy Award in Music from the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, Music of the United States, music, and Visual art of the United States, art. Its fixed number ...

; two Kennedy Center Friedheim Awards; a "Manuel de Falla" Prize from the Government of Spain; the Pogorzelski-Yankee Prize from the American Guild of Organists; the Eastman-Leonard and George Eastman Prizes; awards from ASCAP, BMI, and the League of Composers/ISCM; commissions from the Koussevitzky Music Foundation, Fromm Music Foundation, Barlow Endowment for Music Composition, and Meet the Composer (now, New Music USA); a Paul Fromm Residency at the American Academy in Rome; a Copland House Residency Award; and fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation,

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The foundation was created by Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller (" ...

, Bogliasco Foundation, and the state arts councils of Indiana, Kentucky, and New York. In 2021, he was named as the recipient of the A. I. duPont Composer's Award from the Delaware Symphony Orchestra for his “significant contribution to the field of contemporary classical music.”

References

External links

Claude Baker Home PageClaude Baker Page, Keiser SouthernClaude Baker - In honor of IU Retiring Faculty 2020

Listening

Claude Baker: Sample Recordings, IU Composition Department
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Claude American male classical composers 20th-century American classical composers 21st-century American classical composers 1948 births Indiana University faculty People from Lenoir, North Carolina Pupils of Samuel Adler (composer) Pupils of Warren Benson University of Georgia faculty University of Louisville faculty East Carolina University alumni Living people 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians