Anyone who works in the performing arts eventually faces the need to write a program bio. This is one of those tasks that forces you to talk about yourself in the third person and do your best to make yourself sound insufferably more important than you really are. We each face this necessary endeavour with some combination of dread, amusement, pride, arrogance, hopefulness, vanity, ego, and self-esteem-building. Throw in some brevity and modesty (hopefully) to taste, and you have yourself a program bio that might… kinda… sum up who you are. (We’re all a lot more interesting and complicated than that anyway, right?)
To cover any possible reason you may have stumbled upon the web page, I present my several bios depending on which of my Jack-of-all-Trades is of interest.
As a Music Educator
Scott has been teaching since 1994. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Music Theory and Composition from Towson University, and his undergraduate course work includes classes in music education, and educational psychology. He has helped sudents prepare for music festivals, and to audition and play with groups such as The Greater Baltimore Youth Orchestra. In addition to teaching private lessons and group classes, he is the Executive Director of The Maryland Academy of Music in Columbia, MD. Mr. Farquhar has also been a guest and rehearsal conductor for The Towson University Clarinet Choir, The Towson University Symphonic Band, The New Wave Singers of Baltimore, and The Maryland Academy of Music Faculty Chamber Ensemble.
As a Musician
Scott began studying clarinet at age 9 and gave his first public performance shortly before his 10th birthday to an elementary school auditorium full of sweaty but appreciative parents. (His mom said he played the best!!) He played bass clarinet during his secondary school years and began studying piano in college. Current noise-making efforts are focused on piano and singing, however Scott has performed in public on a variety of instruments including: clarinet (soprano, bass, and contra-bass), sax, harmonica, recorder, mandolin, penny whistle, concertina, and percussion. Scott is a bass and has sung as a soloist and in large and small ensembles. For available recordings, please visit the Get Music page.
As a Composer
Mr. Farquhar holds an Associate in Arts in music, with honors, from Montgomery College and a Bachelor of Science in Music Theory and Composition from Towson University. Commercial composition credits include: Theme music for The Bargain Basement Game Show by Treyhawk Productions; Songs for The Rude Mechanicals production of Much Ado About Nothing; Title music for the unabridged audiobook productions of The Black Star Passes by John W. Campbell and Star Surgeon by Alan E. Nourse; and numerous pieces of theme and incidental music for productions by Prometheus Radio Theatre. Scott’s compositions are published by C.L. Barnhouse and Splunge Music.
As a Voice Actor
Scott has recorded and produced two unabridged audiobook productions for the classic science fiction novels The Black Star Passes by John W. Campbell and Star Surgeon by Alan E. Nourse. He has recorded several projects for LibriVox, and can be heard in numerous productions by Prometheus Radio Theatre. Scott has provided his voice for advertisements, promo spots, and automated attendant recordings for Maryland Piano Service, Critical Futures, The Rude Mechanicals, and Dale Music Company. Voiceover work is produced under the auspices of ScottVox.
As an Actor
Scott’s formal training in the craft of acting includes… this acting class he took at college just for fun… which he had to drop about halfway through the semester in order to focus on his actual major. The much more informal and hands-on training was working with a group of local science fiction fans who produced about two plays a year between 1985 and 2006 for performance at local science fiction conventions. Since 2003, he has been in productions by many community, semi-professional, and professional troupes in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. area including: Chesapeake Music Hall, Rockville Musical Theatre, Chesapeake Shakespeare Company, Howard County Summer Theatre, Columbia Community Players, and The Rude Mechanicals. Favorite roles are Oscar Madison in the Columbia Community Players production of The Odd Couple, Costard in The Chesapeake Shakespeare Company’s production of Loves Labours Lost, and Clarence in The Rude Mechanicals production of Richard III.
