J. Mark Baker arranger

J. Mark Baker is the founding director of the Milwaukee Chamber Choir. An experienced choral conductor, singer, and music educator, he holds a doctorate from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As a professional member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus, Dr. Baker sang under the direction of today’s leading conductors and was a recipient of the CSC’s Margaret Hillis Foundation scholarship for continuing vocal studies. He has sung in Europe, in Canada, and at Carnegie Hall. A church musician for over 30 years, he has served congregations in four states.

From 2006–2014, Dr. Baker was on the voice faculty of the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. He has been heard in the Milwaukee area as the baritone soloist in performances of Bach’s Cantata No. 140, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, Mozart’s Solemn Vespers, Fauré’s Requiem, and Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia on Christmas Carols, among others. As a music editor, he has prepared a five-volume Anthology of Italian Opera, a four-volume set of Mozart opera arias, and the collected songs of Maurice Ravel as well as choral music by Debussy, Ravel, Duruflé, Poulenc, and Respighi.

A native of Alabama, Dr. Baker holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Montevallo and a Master of Music degree from Illinois State University.