NCB Trombone Master Class with Will Baker
Left to Right: Bryan Tipps, Karen Mari, Alec Fenne, master class clinician Will Baker, Paul Bauer, Joseph Schorer, and Dan DiCesare.
On Sunday, March 15, the NCB trombone section held its ninth annual master class. Leading the master class was Will Baker, bass trombone for the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra.
Over the course of two hours, Will played a solo for the group, coached them on several trombone trios and answered a plethora of questions.
Special thanks go to Ken Preuss, who organized the master class, and Karen Mari, who provided the space at the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra offices.
William A. Baker, was appointed Bass Trombonist of the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra in 2024 by Music Director Enrique Mazzola. He also currently serves as the Principal Bass Trombonist of the Monterey Symphony, a post he has held since 2018. From 2021-2024, Will primarily performed with the San Francisco Symphony, including over 200 performances, and European Tour, and the 2023 SFS recordings with Maestro Esa Pekka Salonen.
A native of Walnut Creek, California, Will has performed with the Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Opera and Ballet, the Detroit Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Alabama Symphony, and Malaysian Philharmonic.
Will began his professional career in Iowa, performing as the tenured member of Orchestra Iowa from 2013-17 and the Des Moines Symphony since 2014-18. In 2016, while artist in residence with the Southeast Iowa Symphony (SEISO), Will commissioned and premiered a new bass trombone concerto by composer Robert Tindle titled At Sixty Miles An Hour. In 2018, Will premiered the Wind Ensemble arrangement with Travis Cross and the UCLA Wind Ensemble.