Emory Hensley Photography
Dr. Luke Spence enjoys a multi-faceted career as a performer, educator, and recording artist. He is the Visiting Assistant Professor of Trumpet at the SUNY Potsdam Crane School of Music, second trumpet of both the Washington Chamber Orchestra and South Florida Symphony, and a member of the chamber groups Anima Brass and the Potsdam Brass Quintet. He is proud to be a performing artist for Denis Wick Products and S.E. Shires Co.
Praised by Fanfare Magazine for his "great artistry", labeled "exquisite" by the International Trumpet Guild Journal, and hailed as "a true expert in phrasing" by the NACWPI Journal, Spence's debut solo album 20th Century Art Songs offers a fresh approach to the genre of vocal transcriptions and highlights repertoire seldom explored by instrumentalists. The album was recently honored as a finalist for The American Prize. As a freelance orchestral musician, Spence has performed with ensembles including the National Philharmonic, Fairfax Symphony, Lancaster Symphony, Reading Symphony, Mid-Atlantic Symphony, Orchestra of Northern New York, and The New Orchestra of Washington. In recent years, he has performed at the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center, toured across the U.S., Europe, and China, and was a featured soloist with the Washington Sinfonietta. In past summer seasons, Spence performed with the Endless Mountain Festival Orchestra in PA and NY, the American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) Festival Orchestra in Graz, Austria, and as principal trumpet with Opera in the Ozarks at Inspiration Point in Eureka Springs, AR. He has appeared on programs with world-renowned artists including Denyce Graves, Joshua Bell, Leon Fleischer, Gerard Schwarz, Gordon Lightfoot, Leon Bridges, and Jennifer Nettles.
Spence is particularly passionate about chamber music for its ability to capture audiences through intimacy and versatility. Upon his appointment to the SUNY Potsdam Crane School of Music faculty, he joined the Potsdam Brass Quintet, one of America's oldest professional brass quintets. Spence’s other chamber group, Anima Brass, is dedicated to performing, recording, and promoting new works for brass quintet. The group holds a deep passion for highlighting works by composers who have been historically marginalized and excluded. Anima has held residencies at institutions such as St. John's College, Frostburg State University, and Towson University. In fall 2023, Anima Brass will be featured on an album of new music by celebrated minimalist composer Kali Malone. Previously, Spence was a member of the Oberlin Brass Quintet, which notably toured 17 cities throughout mainland China in 2015. That same year, OBQ premiered David Maslanka's brass chamber work "Letter to Martin", which was written to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s commencement speech at Oberlin College.
Outside of mainstream classical music, Dr. Spence has performed with Baltimore and D.C. theatre companies, toured with the Peacherine Ragtime Society Orchestra, and premiered new works by living composers with groups such as Stage Free and the District New Music Coalition. With a deep interest in early music on period instruments, Spence has appeared twice with the Washington Cornett and Sackbutt Ensemble. Following a nearly sold-out concert of Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610 with WCSE and The Choral Arts Society of Washington at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Washington Classical Review praised the cornetto players for being "solid on the virtuosic solos."
Prior to his appointment at SUNY Potsdam, Dr. Spence served as Lecturer of Trumpet at Frostburg State University, Instructor of Trumpet at Frederick Community College, and Director of the Young Artists of America Trumpet Academy. In 2020, he created and served as director for a new brass ensemble and repertoire course at the University of Maryland School of Music, which continues to thrive and grow today. In recent years, Spence has given masterclasses at institutions such as Colorado State University, the University of Akron, Towson University, the University of Maryland, and the Music for All Mid-Atlantic Regional Concert Band Festival. Additionally, he has chaired and served as a judge for competitions at the International Women’s Brass Conference and the International Trumpet Guild Conference. Dr. Spence previously held teaching posts with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra's OrchKids program, George Mason High School in Falls Church, VA, the Sheridan School in Washington D.C., the Wyoming Seminary Performing Arts Institute in Kingston, PA, and the Northern Ohio Youth Orchestra in Oberlin, OH.
A firm believer that music has the power to be an agent of social change, Spence is a founding Board of Directors member of the International Pride Orchestra, a non-profit charity orchestra that brings together LGBTQIA+ musicians from around the world to present concerts, celebrate community, and raise funds for LGBTQIA+ causes.
Spence earned his Doctorate of Musical Arts and Master of Music at the University of Maryland, where he studied with Distinguished Professor Chris Gekker. He also holds a Bachelor of Music with a minor in musicology from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Associate Professor Roy Poper and was the recipient of the 2014 James Stamp Award.
Praised by Fanfare Magazine for his "great artistry", labeled "exquisite" by the International Trumpet Guild Journal, and hailed as "a true expert in phrasing" by the NACWPI Journal, Spence's debut solo album 20th Century Art Songs offers a fresh approach to the genre of vocal transcriptions and highlights repertoire seldom explored by instrumentalists. The album was recently honored as a finalist for The American Prize. As a freelance orchestral musician, Spence has performed with ensembles including the National Philharmonic, Fairfax Symphony, Lancaster Symphony, Reading Symphony, Mid-Atlantic Symphony, Orchestra of Northern New York, and The New Orchestra of Washington. In recent years, he has performed at the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center, toured across the U.S., Europe, and China, and was a featured soloist with the Washington Sinfonietta. In past summer seasons, Spence performed with the Endless Mountain Festival Orchestra in PA and NY, the American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) Festival Orchestra in Graz, Austria, and as principal trumpet with Opera in the Ozarks at Inspiration Point in Eureka Springs, AR. He has appeared on programs with world-renowned artists including Denyce Graves, Joshua Bell, Leon Fleischer, Gerard Schwarz, Gordon Lightfoot, Leon Bridges, and Jennifer Nettles.
Spence is particularly passionate about chamber music for its ability to capture audiences through intimacy and versatility. Upon his appointment to the SUNY Potsdam Crane School of Music faculty, he joined the Potsdam Brass Quintet, one of America's oldest professional brass quintets. Spence’s other chamber group, Anima Brass, is dedicated to performing, recording, and promoting new works for brass quintet. The group holds a deep passion for highlighting works by composers who have been historically marginalized and excluded. Anima has held residencies at institutions such as St. John's College, Frostburg State University, and Towson University. In fall 2023, Anima Brass will be featured on an album of new music by celebrated minimalist composer Kali Malone. Previously, Spence was a member of the Oberlin Brass Quintet, which notably toured 17 cities throughout mainland China in 2015. That same year, OBQ premiered David Maslanka's brass chamber work "Letter to Martin", which was written to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s commencement speech at Oberlin College.
Outside of mainstream classical music, Dr. Spence has performed with Baltimore and D.C. theatre companies, toured with the Peacherine Ragtime Society Orchestra, and premiered new works by living composers with groups such as Stage Free and the District New Music Coalition. With a deep interest in early music on period instruments, Spence has appeared twice with the Washington Cornett and Sackbutt Ensemble. Following a nearly sold-out concert of Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610 with WCSE and The Choral Arts Society of Washington at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Washington Classical Review praised the cornetto players for being "solid on the virtuosic solos."
Prior to his appointment at SUNY Potsdam, Dr. Spence served as Lecturer of Trumpet at Frostburg State University, Instructor of Trumpet at Frederick Community College, and Director of the Young Artists of America Trumpet Academy. In 2020, he created and served as director for a new brass ensemble and repertoire course at the University of Maryland School of Music, which continues to thrive and grow today. In recent years, Spence has given masterclasses at institutions such as Colorado State University, the University of Akron, Towson University, the University of Maryland, and the Music for All Mid-Atlantic Regional Concert Band Festival. Additionally, he has chaired and served as a judge for competitions at the International Women’s Brass Conference and the International Trumpet Guild Conference. Dr. Spence previously held teaching posts with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra's OrchKids program, George Mason High School in Falls Church, VA, the Sheridan School in Washington D.C., the Wyoming Seminary Performing Arts Institute in Kingston, PA, and the Northern Ohio Youth Orchestra in Oberlin, OH.
A firm believer that music has the power to be an agent of social change, Spence is a founding Board of Directors member of the International Pride Orchestra, a non-profit charity orchestra that brings together LGBTQIA+ musicians from around the world to present concerts, celebrate community, and raise funds for LGBTQIA+ causes.
Spence earned his Doctorate of Musical Arts and Master of Music at the University of Maryland, where he studied with Distinguished Professor Chris Gekker. He also holds a Bachelor of Music with a minor in musicology from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Associate Professor Roy Poper and was the recipient of the 2014 James Stamp Award.