Israel Baker
{{Short description|American jazz musician (1919–2011)}}
{{More footnotes needed|date=January 2020}}
Israel Baker (February 11, 1919 – December 25, 2011) was an American violinist and concertmaster. Through a long and varied career, he played with many of the greatest figures in the worlds of classical music, jazz and pop.
He appeared on hundreds of recordings by artists as diverse as Igor Stravinsky, Ella Fitzgerald, and Tom Waits, and appeared on many film scores including Psycho and Jonathan Livingstone Seagull. Baker was the concertmaster on The Dameans{{'}} Beginning Today album from 1973.Vinyl record album notes.
Biography
Born in Chicago, he was the youngest of four children of Russian immigrants. He showed great talent as a violinist from an early age, appearing on national radio at the age of six. By the age of 22 Baker was concertmaster of Leopold Stokowski’s All-American Youth Orchestra. Later, he was a member of Arturo Toscanini’s NBC Symphony Orchestra. During World War II, he served as a violinist with the Army Air Forces in Atlantic City, NJ, playing requests to entertain wounded comrades.
After the war, Baker increasingly gravitated towards the West Coast and session work, including work with the famed "Wrecking Crew", although he continued to be a presence in concert halls across the United States. He formed a duo with pianist Yaltah Menuhin; they made their New York debut in 1951. In 1961, he played alongside violinist Jascha Heifetz and cellist Gregor Piatigorsky in a series of chamber concerts, and in 1964, he recorded Arnold Schoenberg's "Fantasy for Violin & Piano" with Glenn Gould. He recorded many of Stravinsky's scores for CBS with Stravinsky himself conducting. He then went on to lead the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Away from the concert hall, he led the West Coast version of the CBS Symphony.
He died at his home in Studio City, California on December 25, 2011, following a stroke.
Personal life
Baker was married twice: to Caroline, who died in 1974, and then to Imelda Corrigan from Dublin Ireland. They were married for over 30 years until his death. He had three children from his first marriage.
He is the grandfather to Vulfpeck bass player, Joe Dart.
References
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- Tully Potter. "[https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/jan/11/israel-baker Israel Baker obituary]." The Guardian, January 11, 2012.
- Valerie J. Nelson. "[https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/music/israel-baker-noted-violinist-dies/2012/01/09/gIQADFUSmP_story.html ‘Psycho’ violinist Israel Baker dies]." Washington Post, January 9, 2012.
- Valerie J. Nelson. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20120111180600/http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jan/09/local/la-me-israel-baker-20120109 Israel Baker, renowned violinist, dies at 92]." L.A. Times, January 9, 2012.
- {{discogs artist|Israel Baker}}
- Barbara Zeisl Schoenberg. "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blXhmKzYwB0&ab_channel=BarbaraZeislSchoenberg Video Interview with Israel Baker]", July, 2009.
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Category:American male classical violinists
Category:Jazz musicians from Chicago
Category:United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II
Category:Jazz musicians from California
Category:American jazz violinists
Category:Classical musicians from California
Category:Classical musicians from Illinois
Category:20th-century American male musicians