David Stewart Baker

David Stewart Baker

St. Clair Shores - David Stewart Baker, B.A., B.S., M.S., aged 74, of St. Clair Shores, Michigan, son of Mary Jean (Baker) Rarig and Frederick Milton Baker, Sr., and step-son of Lloyd Corneal Rarig, passed away on February 5, 2021, after a long illness. Survivors include his son, Steven Christopher Baker, of Hamilton, Ont.; his brother Frederick M. Baker, Jr. (Irene), of East Lansing, MI; and nieces Jessica Taylor Pavone (William), of Dobbs Ferry, NY, and Jordan Taylor Snead (Keith), of Allison Park, PA.

A precocious cellist, David was performing publicly at age 9 and at 12 became the youngest member of the (Port Huron/Sarnia) International Symphony Orchestra. He attended, and later was a counselor at, Interlochen, and was admitted to the University of Michigan School of Music's performance program. After injuring his wrist in a fluke accident that prevented him from playing for almost a year, he withdrew from the Music School and instead took double majors in psychology and history. But David never gave up the cello; after graduating he returned to it with what can be described fairly as obsession. Eventually, he joined Orchestra London, in Ontario, where he performed professionally for 20 years.

In what seemed a radical mid-life change of course, David resumed his studies, taking a second bachelor's in mathematics and a master's in computer science. He saw this as an intellectual continuum, observing that "music is math." He spent the second half of his career at General Dynamics Land Systems programming the M1 Abrams Main Battle Tank, which proved overwhelmingly effective in the Gulf Wars.

David never stopped performing. He joined the Grosse Pointe Symphony Orchestra, formed and supported a string quartet, and played at many private and public events, including the weddings of his niece Jessica and cousin Ashley, and, occasionally, Kol Nidre at Yom Kippur services. David was active in Democratic politics; he served 4-year terms as trustee and Recording Secretary of the St. Clair Shores Democratic Club, using his computer skills to create and host its first website. He received Michigan Clean Water Action and the SCSDC Joe Krutell Volunteer Service awards, and remained active in the SCSDC until a few months before his passing.

David's encyclopedic knowledge of classical music and musicians was uncanny, and he was a student of music theory, history, and language. He gave his dogs Russian names and hoped to recover to see his beloved dog Moya ("girlfriend"). After his father died, he looked out for his little brother, and his son Steven loved to listen to his stories. He will be missed. Contributions in his memory may be made to any Humane Society, or to the American Federation of Musicians Relief Funds, https://www.afm.org/musicians-relief-fund/