Accompanist

Accompanist Mary Lonsdale Baker grew up in Laramie, Wyoming, where she graduated from Laramie High School and the University of Wyoming with a B.A. degree in piano performance. After living in Italy for several years, she moved to Tucson with her two daughters and attended the University of Arizona. Here she earned a M.A. in Music Education and became certified to teach English and music. She taught strings at Gridley Junior High and orchestra and English at Palo Verde High School for 25 years, retiring from TUSD in 1999. Since that time, she has taught writing at Pima Community College.
Mary has two daughters ─ Anne Rodda is the director of the Michael Hill International Violin Competition in New Zealand and is a lobbyist for various non-profit arts organizations in the Auckland area. Katie Rodda is a professor of Theater Arts at City College in San Diego, and she directs for several local theater companies.
Since her retirement, Mary stays busy at St. Philip’s In The Hills Episcopal Church as a member of the Canterbury Choir. She also accompanies various soloists and ensembles throughout the city and in Green Valley. Any spare time finds her exercising at the gym or walking in the mountains with her standard poodle, Maurice..