Artistic Director and Conductor of Masterworks Chorale since 2002, Bryan Baker also serves as Director of Music at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley, Director of the men's vocal ensemble Thirst & Howl, and Assistant Conductor of the San Francisco Choral Society. He frequently conducts instrumental ensembles, and has led the Solaris Chamber Orchestra, the Masterworks Orchestra, the Peninsula Symphonic Band, and the New Millennium Strings Orchestra. Highlights of the recent seasons include leading performances of Faure’s Requiem, Britten’s Rejoice in the Lamb, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, Rutter’s Mass of the Children (with Ragazzi Boys Chorus), Vivaldi’s Four Seasons with soloist Roy Malan, and Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings. Masterworks 40th Anniversary concert featured Borodin’s Polovetsian Dances, Brahms’ Nänie, and Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy, with pianist Jon Nakamatsu.  Soprano Luana DeVol joined in the 42nd Concert year Opera Gala.

While earning Bachelors, Masters, and Doctoral degrees in music, Dr. Baker studied with Eckart Sellheim, Ciao Pagano, Carlo Busotti, Dewey Camp, and Conrad Bruderer. He now serves on the faculty of the College of San Mateo. He formerly taught voice at San Francisco State University and at Truman University in Missouri, as well as piano at Foothill College and at Arizona State University. He maintains a busy private studio, and his students have won competitions and appeared in concerts and opera productions in the Bay Area and across the country.

Active as a concertizing pianist, Dr. Baker has played solo concerts, chamber music, and accompanied vocal recitals across the United States and in Europe. Locally he has performed in Davies Symphony Hall, Herbst Theater, at the Stern Grove Festival, on the Old First Concert Series, Concerts by the Sea, the Oakmont Concert Series, and on many other concert series. He gave the inaugural concert of the new Petrof Recital Series in Ashland, Oregon. During recent seasons, he performed with the Kensington Symphony Orchestra, the CMC Orchestra, New Millennium Strings, and the SF Concerto Orchestra, and conductors including Robert Geary, Geoffrey Gallegos and Urs Steiner. The concertos were Mozart’s Concerto #13, Beethoven's Choral Fantasy, St-Saens Concerto #2, and Shostakovitch Concerto #1.

Dr. Baker has won prizes in numerous competitions, most recently first place in the Klatzin Contemporary Keyboard Competition, and the Bay Area Keyboard Arts Competition, Living Composers. He received a grant for performances of chamber music and has performed a wide range of unusual works for small ensembles. Bryan has spent a good deal of time in the theater, first as a singer and actor, and now as a musical director. He has directed many musical and operas including productions of Godspell, The Mikado, Company, Cabaret, Puccini's Suor Angelica, and Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti. The last two shows he worked on are the review Side by Side by Sondheim and the opera La Clemenza di Tito by Mozart.