Gene Baker

Classroom ManagementConcert BandConductingCurriculum DesignJazz/Stage/CommercialKodalyLevel: SecondaryLevel: Post-Secondary/UniversityMusic ProductionMusic TheoryNotation SoftwareSmall SchoolsCompositionLifestyle Management
Written By Elisa Janson Jones
Gene Baker playing piano Music Teacher Guild

Gene V. Baker is a composer of new works for acoustic and electric ensembles combining traditions of jazz, contemporary classical music, experimentalism, popular music, R&B, and improvisation. He is an adept performer and improvisor on trumpet,

piano, and jazz organ, and is also a vocalist. Gene is a producer and engineer for his project studio and record label, and currently works as an arranger, transcriber, and music educator. Gene has 10 years of Band Directing experience in the music classroom at the middle school and high school level, and has created more than 50 arrangements for school ensembles.

Most recently, Gene was a DMA student in Composition and Jazz Composition at the Frost School of Music in Miami. He has performed at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, Disney Hall (LA), Queen Elizabeth Hall, and Barbican Center (London), among others. He has worked with Cecil Taylor, Pauline Oliveros, Ingram Marshall, Dafnis Prieto, Maria Schneider, Lansing McLoskey, Alvin Curran, Joëlle Léandre, and The Mountain Goats. Gene has recorded with Scott Solter, Eli Crews, BeeHive Studios, Turtle Tone Productions, and Tiny Telephone Studios, and has appeared on 4AD, Howell’s Transmitter, Utility-Pole 689 Records, Majordomo, and Excelsior record labels.

Recent projects include works for studio orchestra & jazz quartet, sinfonietta, pop chamber ensemble, New Orleans brass band, Jazz Big Band, and upcoming full-length solo album (summer 2025).

 
 
 
 


  • Coming from a career as a performer, the excitement that I feel for sharing music as an educator comes from the EXPERIENCE of making music in the moment: The feeling of everyone in the room hitting exactly at the same time, riding the same wavelength, and making a sound with an energy that is greater than the sum of its parts. The motivation and personal power to seek greater abilities in one's self, I believe, must come from what we can do together FIRST. As we realize what we are capable of creating together--at any level--we then also realize what can be accomplished when we work on ourselves, and become the best person and the best musician we can be, taking ownership of our own growth and desire to learn.

    I am in pursuit of the 'Golden Sound'. And while this is something that we must discover as individuals, the origin of this 'Golden Sound' consists of what we find when we are searching and striving together, as a unified ensemble, through teamwork, shared dedication, and a desire to find our greatness together.

    As an educator, one of the many ways I have ignited this passion in my classrooms has been to create my own arrangements custom-made for the ensembles I was working with. This was necessary given the unusual instrumentation of the schools I taught at, but also became a major source of motivation for both me and the students. By choosing repertoire that reflected student interest as well as musical quality, I could motivate every student instead of just a select few. Furthermore, as the arranger I was acutely aware of every detail of every instrument, and was able to bring the expertise and feeling behind the music to every part contained within.

    I believe that improvisation is a crucial aspect to any program in music, and I have developed curriculum that incorporates improvisation at every level. It has been my experience that taking an interest in one's personal voice is the best way to motivate and foster development and growth.

  • While working for Achievement First Bushwick Middle School in NYC, I participated in weekly Professional Development seminars for all teachers in the school. Each week, a new skill, tactic, strategy, or implementation was taught, then practiced, then coached among peers. This involved small group coaching and 1-on-1 coaching (both as mentor and a student-- which was why it worked!). This was the first three years of my teaching career on a weekly basis, which is about 120 sessions at about 3 hours each. I grew more during this period as an educator and a coach than I did the seven years following teaching at a public school.

    Most recently, I have been coaching a new local music teacher through her first year of teaching and everything that goes along with that. Managing music classrooms is hard, and through much dedication and hard work I have become very good at it. Now, I would like to help other music teachers become the best they can be so they can focus on the music!

 
Elisa Janson Jones

Elisa is an entrepreneurial, accomplished, and results-driven educational executive, program creator, and developer with a strong education, leadership & management background. With a proven track record in the professional development sector as a digital education creation specialist, director, strategist, public speaker, and educator, and a product marketing specialization in passion industries.

https://elisajanson.com
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