Composer Garth Baxter is noted for his modern traditionalist style of writing. This is a style that combines the traditions of form and clear melodic writing with the use of contemporary approaches to harmonies and other elements.

Baxter was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1946 and moved to California when he was nine years old. He earned music degrees from Pepperdine University and California State University at Northridge. He studied composition with Robert Hall Lewis, Joseph Wagner and William Thornton.

His compositions for chorus, voice, guitar, and piano, as well as other instrumental combinations, have been performed throughout North America and Europe. His compositions are published by Columbia Music Company, ALRY Publications, Les Productions D'OZ, Voices of Training, and Mel Bay Publications. He has received numerous awards, commissions, and honors for his music. His song cycle, From the Heart: Three American Women, was recently the topic of a doctoral dissertation. He is on the music faculty of McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland, where he lives with his wife, Katherine.