Baker Purdon is an active educator, conductor, pianist, and vocalist. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Music Education and Choral Conducting at Temple University where he was awarded a University Fellowship, the second-highest award at the university. While at Temple, he was named the inaugural Presser Foundation Graduate Music Fellow. In this role, he attended more than 50 performances by arts organizations in the Philadelphia area and wrote numerous essays on these performances, historical topics in music performance, and discussed the past and future of DEIAB efforts in classical music. He was also awarded the 2022 Presser Foundation Graduate Music Award. This $10,000 award funded the recording of his debut album, Walking Through the Valley: Choral Music from Black Composers, 1919-2022. This album has been recognized with multiple American Prize nominations and is available on all streaming platforms. He previously earned an M.A. in Teaching from the University of Central Missouri and BFAs in Theater and Voice Performance from The University of Kansas.

 

As an educator, Baker has served as the Assistant Director of Choirs at Liberty High School, where the LHS Chamber Choir was named a finalist for the American Prize in Choral Performance and was featured on state and regional conference stages. He most recently served as the Director of Choirs at Olathe East High School where his ensembles premiered works by Libby Larsen and Ryan Main, and received critical praise for their "beautiful sound" (Sarah Quartle), "wonderful musicianship in every aspect" (Libby Larsen), and of their performance of Dan Forrest's Good Night, Dear Heart, the composer called it "one of the finer ones I've heard from any age choir."

 

Baker's research on the imposter syndrome in music education has received international attention and has been presented at the National Association for Music Education's Biennial Convention, the 13th International Conference for Research in Music Education, the American Educational Research Association's Annual Conference, and numerous state and regional conventions. He is also developing additional research and performance projects centered on the choral music of Black composers, particularly the choral works of Harry T. Burleigh.

 

Alongside his academic and educational work, Baker has been active in liturgical music from an early age. He began his music ministry at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, KS accompanying the youth choir while he was a high school student. During his studies at KU, he served as a bass section leader at Trinity Episcopal Church in Lawrence, KS. He has since served as Director of Music Ministry at Northminster Presbyterian in Englewood, MO and First Lutheran in Mission, Hills KS. He is currently serving as the Director of Music at the Unitarian Society of Germantown in Philadelphia, PA.