Baroque On Fire

Moises Carrasco is a bassist who “provides propulsion and
support…with his keen attention and vivid playing”. The son of a
Tubist, Moises was involved with youth orchestras at a young age.
He cycled through percussion and trumpet before finally
discovering the bass. After many years of ensembles in the New
England area, Moises was accepted to the Interlochen Arts
Academy in Michigan where he studied with Derek Weller. He
pursued his collegiate studies at the New England Conservatory of
Music (NEC) studying with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra’s Donald
Palma and the Boston Symphony’s Thomas Van Dyck. He credits
all of his teachers and his father for shaping him into the musician
he is today. Moises holds a Bachelor’s Degree and a Graduate
Diploma from NEC.
Specializing in orchestral music, Moises has played with
ensembles across North America and Europe. He has been
fortunate enough to have performed in such prestigious venues
as: Dvorak Hall in Prague, Royal Albert Hall in London,
Musikverein in Vienna, Symphony Hall in Boston and many more.
Moises can be heard performing with orchestras including
Symphony By The Sea, Cape Symphony, New Bedford Symphony,
Boston Pops and the Pittsburgh Symphony.
Moises is appreciative of all genres of music with a special love
for outlaw country, jazz and rap. When not playing bass, Moises is
often watching the Boston Celtics or listening to MF DOOM.

Flutist Tracy Kraus is known for her “supple and riveting” performances, described as “elegant and adroit” with a “dazzling” quality of sound. She has performed extensively in Europe and the US, including at prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. Her summer festival appearances include the Aspen and Tanglewood Music Festivals. 

Ms. Kraus received her BA from Clark University and her MM from the Boston Conservatory. 

Kraus’ love for the Northern California coast led her to an orchestral position with the Mendocino Music Festival. In 1982, she founded the Abbot Chamber Players, where she discovered her passion for chamber music and organizational management. Her role as the co-founder, flutist, and former Executive Director of the Worcester Chamber Music Society, a highly regarded organization, is a testament to her exceptional leadership and management skills, which have guided the society through a significant period of growth and success.

As the Executive Director of WCMS, she guided the organization through various stages of growth, including its inception, obtaining nonprofit status, establishing a leadership and governance team, managing a roster of exceptional musicians, developing a robust concert series, and creating two outstanding educational programs.

Tracy and violist Peter Sulski co-founded the Worcester Chamber Music Society 20 years ago. Their vision for a thriving and vibrant chamber music organization has grown and evolved over time. This growth is attributed not only to the exceptional musicianship of the chamber players but also, especially, to Tracy’s leadership, vision, dedication, and ability to adapt and learn in her role as Executive Director. Tracy’s innumerable contributions, creativity, insight, and boundless energy during her tenure as Executive Director have been augmented by her skills in strategic planning, relationship building, organizational skills, and tireless work in garnering support within our community, thus enabling WCMS to grow and flourish.  

Tracy’s active involvement with the Worcester Cultural Coalition for many years, including her service as board president from 2020 to 2022, is a testament to her deep commitment to promoting the city’s rich and diverse cultural assets. The coalition, a public-private partnership established in 1999, aims to leverage these assets to promote economic revitalization, encourage active and creative engagement for all, and foster a strong cultural identity for Greater Worcester.

In 2017, Ms. Kraus was honored with the YWCA’s Katherine Erskine Award, which recognizes women who have demonstrated leadership and achieved exceptional levels of success in their professions and communities.

John McKean is a harpsichordist and musicologist based in Boston, where he serves on the faculty and is chair of the Historical Performance Department at the Longy School of Music of Bard College. Frequently in demand as both a soloist and continuo player, he has performed extensively throughout Europe and North America, with concert engagements bringing him to venues as far afield as the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Fondazione Cini (Venice), Museu da Música (Lisbon), St. Martin-in-the-Fields (London), Norðurljós Hall (Reykjavík, Iceland), and the Philips Collection (Washington, DC). Critically acclaimed for his “intelligent” and “precise” playing (The Washington Post) as well as his “sonorous brilliance and thrilling, dance-like energy” (Allgäuer Zeitung), John performs with leading American and European ensembles, including Apollo’s Fire, Emmanuel Music, the Catacoustic Consort, Camerata Vocale Freiburg, Habsburger Camerata, and has appeared with the Jacksonville, Naples, Portland (Maine), and Pittsburg symphony orchestras (among others). He counts among his live radio broadcasts performances on NPR, BBC Radio 3, and Deutschlandradio Berlin.

John holds degrees in German Studies and Harpsichord Performance from Oberlin College/Conservatory and an advanced performance diploma from the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg (Germany), where he studied with Lisa Crawford/Webb Wiggins and Robert Hill respectively. He received additional instruction over the years from some of the greatest modern masters of historical keyboards, including Arthur Haas, Jacques Ogg, Skip Sempé, Jesper Christensen, Ketil Haugsand, Mitzi Meyerson, Richard Egarr, and Gustav Leonhardt. He also holds an M.Phil. and a Ph.D. in historical musicology from the University of Cambridge (U.K). His master’s thesis unearthed new details concerning the life and works of French harpsichord composer Gaspard Le Roux, while his doctoral dissertation examined the development of keyboard technique during the German Baroque. For several years he served as an assistant editor of the Oxford University Press journal Early Music. Beyond his musicological work and performing career, he also maintains an active interest in instrument building (he regularly performs on a 17th-century style Flemish harpsichord of his own making), music publishing, typography, and exploring the remote corners of his home state of Maine.