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Dave Baron
Dave Baron is an internationally renowned jazz bassist residing in New York City.
About Me
“In case the listener needs a reminder of how wonderful an upright bass can sound,
I hope that they will take the opportunity to listen to Dave Baron.” – Ron Carter
Everyone has a story to tell. Jazz bassist Dave Baron lets his instrument do the
talking. He has demonstrated his skills supporting such jazz luminaries as Eric
Reed, Lew Tabackin, Mary Stallings, Peter Bernstein, Walt Weiskopf, Joe Lovano,
Jimmy Greene, Bill Dobbins, Wycliffe Gordon, Bruce Barth, and Bill Evans
(saxophonist), among others. Dave has collaborated with other artists in countries
such as Australia, Russia, Korea, Grand Cayman, and Romania.
Dave moved to New York City in 2010 to attend the Juilliard School for his master’s
degree. Under the tutelage of the legendary bassist Ron Carter, Baron performed
with Herbie Hancock at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center as part of a concert held
for the 75th birthday celebration of Ron Carter.
Previous to attending Juilliard, Dave Baron received his Bachelor’s Degree from the
Eastman School of Music. Dave was selected as one of fifteen semi-finalists from
around the world for the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Bass Competition. As
part of the competition, he performed with pianist Geoff Keezer and drummer Carl
Allen at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Soon after, he was awarded
second place at the International Society of Bassists’ Scott LaFaro Jazz
Competition. Baron participated in a professional development workshop with
pianist Brad Mehldau, presented by the Weill Institute at Carnegie Hall. He also
participated in workshops at the Banff Centre in Alberta, Canada where he worked
with artists such as Dave Douglas, Scott Colley, and the ICP Orchestra.
Originally from Simsbury, CT, Dave grew up playing the cello in local youth
orchestras where he gained an appreciation for classical music. Despite Baron’s
love for classical music through the years, his true calling was jazz. Dave was first
exposed to jazz at the age of 12 while he was a paperboy for the Hartford Courant.
On rainy days, his father would drive him around the neighborhood along his paper
route, playing the radio where he heard such artists as Duke Ellington and Louis
Armstrong. He began pursuing jazz seriously when he was accepted to the Greater
Hartford Academy of the Arts during his junior year of high school, where he
became a protégé of saxophonist Jimmy Greene. Greene introduced Dave to
bassist Reuben Rogers. On weekends, Dave would travel into New York City to
take lessons with him. It was during this crucial time in his life that he decided to
pursue creating music with a purpose.
Dave Baron is not only a performer in high demand, but is also a well-rounded
educator. He currently is a faculty member of the New Jersey Performing Arts
Center’s Jazz For Teens program where he teaches jazz ensembles, theory classes
and bass students. Other teaching experiences include his time at Juilliard, when
he was selected to join the Goldman Fellowship, working with students at Harlem
School of the Arts. After graduation, Baron was hired by HSA as a faculty member.
David has taught jazz workshops at The Trinity College in Melbourne, Australia,
Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, and has presented master classes at numerous
other institutions. He recently released his debut album entitled “Introducing Dave
Baron” in the fall of 2015.