Composer Spotlight
Tom Baker
The Unadorned Composer and the Extravagant Art of Opera (Part 2)
Wed., August 10 @ 7:30pm
Jack Straw Productions
4261 Roosevelt Way NE Seattle
map FREE
Tom Baker will discuss his new chamber opera CD - Hunger: The Journey of Tamsen Donner, which was recorded at Jack Straw for his recent Jack Straw artist residency project, and will be released on CD this summer by Present Sounds. Recounting the process from early sketches and composition, through live-stage production, ending with this commercial release, Baker will also re-examine his talk from 2008 about the evolving art of being an opera composer.
Guitarist Tom Baker has been active as a composer, performer and music producer in the Seattle new-music scene since 1994. He is the artistic director of the Seattle Composers' Salon, and co-founder of the Seattle EXperimental Opera (SEXO). Tom performs on fretted and fretless guitars, and has worked with many innovative musicians, including Stuart Dempster, William O. Smith, Christian Asplund, Chinary Ung, Ellen Fullman, Gino Robair, and Henry Threadgill. He has recorded seven albums, including two solo albums. His most recent release, SAVE, with his band the Tom Baker Quartet, has garnered much attention and critical acclaim. Tom has received many grants and awards for his work, including honors from the Seattle Arts Commission, Meet the Composer, Artist Trust, and Jack Straw Productions. His compositions have been performed throughout the United States and Canada, as well as in Holland and England. more
Supporters
Jack Straw Productions gratefully acknowledges The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, City of Seattle’s Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs, 4Culture King County Lodging Tax Fund, Washington State Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Arts, PONCHO, ArtsFund, Seattle Foundation, and individual contributors for their support of Jack Straw Artist Programs.