Benjamin Baker (violin)
Since winning 1st Prize at the 2016 Young Concert Artists International Auditions in New York and 3rd Prize at the Michael Hill Competition in New Zealand in 2017, Baker has established a strong international presence. Described by The New York Times as bringing “virtuosity, refinement and youthful exuberance” to his debut at Merkin Concert Hall he is highly sought after as a soloist and chamber musician. Recent highlights include regular appearances at Wigmore Hall (live-streamed and on BBC Radio 3), his debut with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra at the East Neuk Festival and with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra in New Zealand, alongside solo recordings with the BBC Concert and Royal Philharmonic Orchestras. He recorded live concerts commissioned for online release by the Vancouver Recital Society and Banquo de la Republica in Colombia. In 2021, Delphian Records released his recording with pianist Daniel Lebhardt to critical acclaim. The opening of the 2021/22 season saw the launch of his festival in Queenstown, New Zealand – At the World’s Edge Music Festival – and solo appearances with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic and Fort Worth Symphony Orchestras. Baker has toured widely in the USA, Colombia, China and Argentina and has participated in the Al Bustan Festival in Lebanon and the Sanguine Estate Music Festival in Australia. In recent seasons, he has made solo appearances with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, Krasnoyarsk Philharmonic, Albanian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia, London Mozart Players, Long Bay Symphony, National Children’s Orchestra of Great Britain, Sinfonia Cymru, Orchestra Sinfonica Abruzzese L’Aquila, and Maui Pops Orchestras. In 2017, he collaborated as a soloist with the Royal New Zealand Ballet.
Born in New Zealand, Benjamin Baker studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and the Royal College of Music where he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Rose Bowl. He was a prize-winner at the 2013 Young Classical Artists Trust International Auditions in London and a Fellow at the Ravinia Festival’s Steans Music Institute in Chicago in 2016 and 2017.
Baker performs on a Giovanni Grancino violin from 1694, generously loaned to him by a charitable trust.