Violinist Benjamin Baker Teams Up on New Album

“In July this year, New Zealand-born violinist Benjamin Baker will be part of the online line-up for the East Neuk Festival,” Ken Walkton writes in a review page for The Scotsman. “Meanwhile, here he is in a new album with [Hungary-born] pianist Daniel Lebhardt, its music themed around the year 1942 – [violin] sonatas begun that year by Aaron Copland, Francis Poulenc and Sergei Prokofiev.”

“It was the midst of the Second World War, and each composer had his own experience and reaction to events,” Walton writes. “Baker’s and Lebhardt’s performances present all three works with poignant regard for their personal messages.”

Baker studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and the Royal College of Music. He is the artistic director of the At the World’s Edge Festival, which will be held in Queenstown in October 2021.

Original article by Ken Walton, The Scotsman, May 3, 2021.