Biography

Award-winning Jamaican-American violist Jordan Bak has achieved international acclaim as a trailblazing artist, praised for his radiant stage presence, dynamic interpretations, and fearless power. The recipient of the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s Alexandra Jupin Award and a former Young Classical Artist Trust’s (YCAT) Robey Artist, Bak was also a prizewinner in the Sphinx, Lionel Tertis, and Concert Artists Guild Competitions.

For the 2025–26 season, Bak will join the world-renowned Takács Quartet on a tour of rarely  performed Mozart viola quintets, in addition to making his concerto debuts with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Houston Symphony Orchestra. Bak will also give the world premiere of composer Michael Frazier’s new viola concerto, Los quetzales, commissioned by Eastman School of Music, The Sphinx Organization, and American Composers Orchestra.

Bak’s enthusiastically received sophomore album, Cantabile: Anthems for Viola (Delphian Records), has garnered significant international attention, featuring works by Arnold Bax, Benjamin Britten, and Ralph Vaughan Williams, paired with contemporary compositions by Jonathan Harvey, Bright Sheng, and Augusta Read Thomas. Bak is a proud advocate of new music.

Bak has appeared as soloist with such orchestras as London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sarasota Orchestra, London Mozart Players, New York Classical Players, Juilliard Orchestra, and Brandon Hill Chamber Orchestra, among others. As a recitalist and chamber musician, he has been heard at some of the world’s greatest performance venues. Bak has been a presence at numerous chamber music festivals such as Marlboro Music Festival, Tippet Rise, Chamber Music Northwest, and Newport Classical.

Passionate about education, Bak currently serves as Assistant Professor of Viola at University of North Carolina School of the Arts and as an Ambassador for UK Music Masters in London.

Only the third violist to earn the Artist Diploma from The Juilliard School, Jordan Bak holds a Bachelor of Music degree from New England Conservatory and a Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School where he was awarded the prestigious Kovner Fellowship. His principal teachers were Dimitri Murrath, Hsin-Yun Huang, and Samuel Rhodes.

Jordan Bak plays on two violas both made by Jon van Kouwenhoven. He is married to violist Rubina Bak.