Baker Artist Portfolios

Joel Michael-Schwartz is an eclectic, curious mandolinist, composer, and activist. Equally at home playing Bach, flamenco, bebop, swing, funk, celtic, and more, they brings expression, command, and a quirky sense of fun to all their artistic endeavors. They are Associate Director of the Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra, music faculty at Goucher College, and regularly appear at premiere venues throughout Maryland.

Passionately dedicated to using music to explore across cultural and personal divides, Joel creates soundscapes that are entirely their own, spinning out melodies, textures, and an endless variety of expression from the mandolin family. Surprising, organic fusions of styles from around the world are always the goal, bringing out firey, angular passages one moment and heart wrenching, lyrical lines the next. They constantly push his boundaries and that of his instrument, be it through composition, improvised concerts, solo performances, or whatever else comes his way.

They are also a determined activist, working on and organizing around humanitarian causes in the conflicts in Ukraine and Palestine, local elections, and protesting systemic and specific racism here in Baltimore.

Hailing from Evanston, Illinois, Joel grew up playing Celtic fiddle and mandolin, and was introduced to the jazz mandolin by the great Don Steirnberg. They graduated with a B.A. (cum laude, honors in music) in mandolin performance and composition at Goucher College in Baltimore, where they studied jazz and classical mandolin with Dave Evans. They have subsequently studied at Silkroad's Global Musician's Workshop, as well as with Edward Perez, Dudu Maia, Avi Avital, and Jeffrey Chappell.

Currently, Joel collaborates and performs in a variety of ensembles across many genres: Dawg's Pocket (jazz, bluegrass, Americana), The Iron Ring (celtic), The Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra, The Front Porch Orchestra, and many others. They also run a lively teaching studio for fretted instruments, improvisation, and composition. They have appeared with jazz masters Frank Vignola, Alfonso Ponticelli, and acclaimed pianist/composer Jeffrey Chappell, alongside many musical master from the mid-Atlantic.

When not trying to draw music from their instrument or wandering in search of adventure, Joel can be found reading about history, cognitive science, and pie recipes.