Luke Frazier

Founder and Music Director @ American Pops Orchestra

Luke Frazier is changing what it means to be the maestro of a cutting-edge orchestra. He is an innately musical conductor, a sensitive and brilliant pianist and a visionary for presenting music we know and love with a fun, energetic and unique twist. Washingtonian Magazine named him one of their “Top 40 Under 40,” and most recently named 5 of Washington, DC’s “Men on the Move” by Modern Luxury.  Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and musical theatre legend, Marvin Hamlisch is quoted as calling Frazier “…so talented, and sensitive to every nuance.”

As founder and Music Director of The American Pops Orchestra (APO), Frazier has set the bar high for popular orchestral programming. His past seasons have brought Broadway, television and even Olympic stars to the stage alongside APO to dazzle his new-found audience of young, first-time attendees and long-time orchestra patrons alike. Each show is built from the ground up with original arrangements and innovative staging, all brought to life by a cast of stars, acclaimed and upcoming, to deliver what every audience wants to experience- a night they won’t forget!

Frazier doesn’t spend all his time conducting The American Pops. He has earned his stripes conducting across the country and abroad. He has conducted at internationally acclaimed venues including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, The White House, Kravis Center, The Kennedy Center and more. He is an avid proponent of the preservation and celebration of the American Songbook, as evidenced by his orchestral programming, his iTunes playlist, and his yearly tours to underserved schools in Appalachia. He has also recently joined the board of the NY Festival of Song and is an Artistic Advisor for the Capitol Conversation and Performing Arts Series in Washington, DC.

Frazier is thrilled to have worked with an arsenal of incredible artists, most of whom he calls friend. This list includes such luminaries as Chita Rivera, Harry Connick Jr., Patti LaBelle, Joshua Bell, Jessie Mueller, Renée Fleming, Darren Criss, Vanessa Williams, Liz Callaway, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Betty Who, Laura Osnes, Wynton Marsalis, Eric Owens, Marilyn Maye, Liza Minnelli, Rita Moreno, Lindsay Mendez, Michael Feinstein, Kathy Najimy, Paige Davis, Arturo Sandoval, and Norm Lewis, among many others.