Matt Baker

Position
Instructor

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Career Highlights
  • Member of the opera orchestra of the Palau de les Arts, founded by Lorin Maazel and Zubin Mehta
  • Performances on international circuits with artists such as Bob Mintzer, Dave Samuels, Clark Terry, Terri Lyne Carrington, and Catriona McKay, among others
  • Founder of the double bass jazz program at the Conservatorio Superior de Valencia
  • Over 50 albums recorded in jazz, tango, Latin, orchestral, folk, pop, opera, and chamber music with artists such as Placido Domingo, Andrea Bocelli, Catriona McKay, and Donald Grant as well as Claudia Montero’s Grammy-winning album recorded at Berklee Valencia with the Elan Quintet
  • Signed by Naxos Records for chamber recordings including baryton trios of Franz Joseph Haydn with the Valencia Baryton Project and the world premiere of string quintets of George Onslow with the Elan Quintet
  • Reviews published in the Strad, Gramophone, Ritmo, BBC Music Magazine, and ISB Magazine, among others
  • Soloist with orchestras and ensembles such as the Orquesta de Festival Internacional de Música de Peñiscola, Sioux City Symphony Orchestra, Moonwinds Ensemble, Ensemble La Seu, and Banda Sinfonica de Barcelona, among others
Education
  • Bachelor of Music (with Honours), Royal Northern College of Music
  • Postgraduate Diploma, Royal Academy of Music
In Their Own Words

"At Berklee we have a global view of music, not limited to any specific set of styles or traditions, but encompassing all styles and all traditions, and that is exactly what makes up the core of my teaching philosophy."

"My career has led me down many different paths, from jazz to classical soloist, from folk music to acting in musical theater, from tango to opera, and even to playing early music on a 16-stringed instrument that only a handful of people in the world play. What I’ve learned through all of this is that musical diversity is the key to a fulfilling and continually evolving professional life. As a musician, that sort of musical diversity and innovation is what will make you stand out above all others."

"At the age of 10, my first double bass teacher promised me I could study jazz, but only if I first learned the technical foundations of the double bass through classical training. This was probably one of the pivotal moments in my musical studies: concrete training in sound production, tuning, rhythm, and articulation that then seamlessly flowed into a musical adventure in improvisation. To this day, what I try to give my students is a solid base of technical expertise in their instrument, but with the idea that they use these very techniques to realize their creativity and ideas to their maximum potential, that every nuance, every turn, and every burst of creative brilliance of theirs can be achieved."

"I would love my students to come away from their studies with the feeling that they really understand their own playing and have all the resources at hand to step back, look at what they are creating, and then know how to achieve what they envision. In short, I like to give my students the tools to carry on teaching and improving themselves throughout their whole career."