ABOUT DAVID - his Credits and Credentials

    David Baptist spent over 45 years in the music business as a professional musician, hornplayer, composer and arranger. He attended Diablo Valley college in California and the University of Hawaii in Honolulu, Hawaii where he studied composition with Dr. Armand Russell, Dr. Neal McKay and Gordon Keddington.

    David studied (french) horn with David Sprung, Russell White and Larry Philpott. He played with the U.S. Air Force Band, The Marin Symphony Orchestra, The Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, Stan Kenton's Neophonic Orchestra and was Solo Hornist with the Royal Hawaiian Band for several years. After moving to Arizona, he was principal horn with the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra.

    As a free lance hornplayer, he worked with entertainers such as Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis, Bob Hope, Elvis Presley, Debbie Reynolds, Henry Mancini, Burt Bacarach, Vic Damone, Liza Minnelli, and many others.

    His compositions and arrangements have been performed  by The Flagstaff Symphony, The Jerome Opera Company, The Airmen of Note in Washington, D.C., The Honolulu Symphony Chamber Orchestra, The Royal Hawaiian Band, The NAU Horn Society, The Puget Sound Horn Society, The Black Diamond Brass, The Sedona Concert Band, The Gateway Concert Band, The Honolulu Jazz Festival and many jazz, classical, military, high school and college organizations. He has also written for TV, radio, video scores and recordings. He arranged for Jim Nabors, Don Ho, Debbie Reynolds, Martin Denny and many other entertainers and recording artists.

    Being a horn player, David Baptist composed and arranged many pieces for horn in ensembles of various sizes; many of which have been performed by the NAU Horn Society at Northern Arizona University.

1965:    "DON'T DOUBT IT" original jazz composition
            "I'M BEGINNING TO SEE THE LIGHT"    arranged by David Baptist

                performed by Diablo Valley College (Concord, CA) Stage Band, Spring Concert
 
 

1966:    FIRST HORN
            All Western Conference Junior College Band (MENC), conducted by Frederick Fennell
 
 
 

1966:    "DON'T DOUBT IT"   Original jazz composition
                        Annual Jazz Band Competition, San Jose State College
 
 

1966:    FEATURED HORN SOLOIST
                Diablo Valley College Concert Band,    "Ralph Herman Horn Concerto"
 
 

1966:    NORSEMAN TROPHY FOR MUSIC
                Diablo Valley College
 
 

1966-70:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS:
                    "JAZZ OPUS", "THEL'S TUNE", "NO BIG THING", "THREE SHADES OF GREEN",
                    "WE ALL DIED AT BREAKAWAY STATION"

                              performed by The 573rd Air Force Band, Hamilton AFB, CA

1966-70:    ARRANGEMENTS:
                    "Wichita Lineman", "Mac Arthur Park", "The Hive",
                    "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy","Hawaii Five-O"

                             performed by The 573rd Air Force Band, Hamilton AFB, CA
                                                                             and
                                  The 501st Air Force Band of the Pacific, Hickam AFB, HI
 

1970:    FEATURED HORN SOLOIST
                University of Hawaii Symphony Orchestra,    "Horn Concerto" by Franz Strauss
 
 

1970:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS:
           "THREE SHADES OF GREEN"    &     "WE ALL DIED AT BREAKAWAY STATION"

                Featured at The Young Composers Concert, Honolulu, Hawaii
                            performed by "The Tuesday Night Underground Rehearsal Band"
  

1971:     Original composition:
            "JAZZ OPUS"
                    Performed by The Iolani Boys School
 

1971:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
           "WHEN JOHNNY COMES MARCHING HOME FROM NAM"
                performed at The Honolulu Symphony Concordium Series

1972-79:    ARRANGED FOR AND PERFORMED WITH:
                    DICK JENSEN
 

1973:     ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
           "ORCHESTRAL COMPOSITION"
                    performed at The Honolulu Symphony Concordium Series

1979:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
                     "HIILAWE -A JAZZ BALLET"
                      written for The Jim Nabors Show, Hilton Hawaiian Village
 

1979-81: ARRANGED FOR AND PERFORMED WITH
                    JIM NABORS
 

1980:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
            "A NEW DAY"
                      performed at The Honolulu Jazz Festival
 

1983:    Orchestration:
                "Ruddigore"
                        performed by The Jerome Opera Company, Conducted by Arlyn Brewster
 

1984:    Orchestration
                "Patience"
                        Performed by The Jerome Opera Company, Conducted by Arlyn Brewster
 

1986:    Arrangement:
                "Star Spangled Banner"
                        Commissioned and performed by The Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra (now part of repetoire)
                          

1988:    ORIGINAL SCORE:
           "SEDONA'S BESTVIDEO"
                  Best Productions

1989:    ORIGINAL SCORE:
           "SEDONA.....A VIDEO POSTCARD"
                  Beeler Video Productions
 

1990:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
           "SEDONA OVERTURE"
                 Premiered and performed by The Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra
                   

1991:    PRODUCED AUDIO CASSETTE OF ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS:
           "THE ELVES OF WESTFORK"
                              by David Baptist
                       

1994:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
             "SEDONA WALTZ"
                     premiered and performed by The Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra
                     

1994-2000:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS:
                      "MEMORIES OF A CLOWN",  "THE CHESS SUITE",  "THREE JAZZ MOVEMENTS",  "TEXTURES",
                                performed by The NAU Horn Ensemble, Flagstaff

1998:    ARRANGEMENT:
              "CHRISTMAS TIME"
                      for vocalist Laurie Burke and the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra

1999:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
              "SEDONA WALTZ"
                      performed by the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra
                       

2002:    ORIGINAL COMPOSITION:
               "ANTHEM"
                          performed by the Sedona Concert Band

home

about

gallery

hornecdotes

compositions

reviews

recordings

guestbook