Matthew Baker, Director of Bands

Matthew Baker is in his 17th year of teaching and has been the Director of Bands at Cooper Middle School since 2013. He is responsible for overseeing and teaching all aspects of the band program, including three concert bands, percussion ensemble, and jazz band. Under his leadership, the bands have grown from 57 students (7th/8th grade) to over 230 students.

He is a product of Fairfax County Public Schools, where he attended Chantilly High School under the direction of Keith Taylor and Alan P. Johnson. He received both a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and Master of Music in Music Performance from James Madison University, where he studied under Kevin Stees, Scott Rikkers, Dr. Pat Rooney, and Dr. Steve Bolstad. As the Band Director at River Bend Middle School in Loudoun County, Virginia, he was named the 2010 Teacher of the Year and built the program from 200 to over 450 students. Mr. Baker then became the Assistant Band Director at Fairfax High School in 2012, where the band performed at the Music for All National Concert Band Festival and Virginia Music Educators Association conference.

During his time at Cooper Middle School, the bands were selected to perform at the Virginia Music Educators Association conference in 2017 and 2022, the Music for All National Concert Band Festival in 2019 and 2025, and the Midwest Clinic in 2023. They recently performed at the White House and recorded for the NASA Artemis I Launch. The Cooper Band received the 2019 National Band Association Blue Ribbon Program of Excellence Southern Division Award. In June of 2022, they were awarded the prestigious Sudler Silver Cup by the John Philip Sousa Foundation.

Matthew Baker was awarded the NBA Citation of Excellence four times and has been recognized for excellence by the Fairfax County School Board, Fairfax County Board of Directors, and Virginia State Senate. He currently resides in Ashburn, Virginia with his wife Sarah, their son Everett, and their dog Ellington.